Belgrade, September 14, 2018 - Ambassador of Italy to Serbia Carlo Lo Cascio and UNDP Serbia Resident Representative Karla Robin Hershey, signed today Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) on co-financing and implementation of two projects benefiting Serbia.

The first co-funded projects is focused on 'The Civil Service Training for the 21st Century in the Republic of Serbia", while the second one is dedicated to "improving regional cooperation in processing war crimes and the search for the missing persons". The Ambassador and the Resident Representative expressed their satisfaction regarding joint implementation of these two initiatives, with the goal to intensify the assistance for implementation of internal reforms in Serbia, particularly concerning public administration, and to improve regional cooperation, thus contributing to reconciliation in the region.

Ambassador Lo Cascio pointed out that projects meet the specific training needs of professionals who will be able to effectively manage the public administration, in order to achieve progress in EU accession negotiations, and to contribute to better regional cooperation.

Resident Representative Hershey emphasized that by strengthening peace, stability, human rights and effective governance, based on the rule of law - we can achieve stable and strong societies. At the United Nations, we strongly believe that permanent education of civil servants is key for efficient public administration. Quality education is one of the most powerful and proven vehicles for sustainable development, added Hershey.

The National Academy of Public Administration acting Assistant Director Snezana Antonijevic also took part in the MoU signing ceremony, representing Serbian counterparts and the beneficiary institution of one of the two projects to be implemented.