Public debate launched on proposed integrated sustainable urban development strategy through 2030

The Ministry of Construction, Transport, and Infrastructure has opened a public debate on the proposed integrated sustainable urban development strategy of the Republic of Serbia through 2030.

The public debate on the proposed integrated sustainable urban development strategy of the Republic of Serbia through 2030 will last until November 4, 2018, with a presentation and discussion to be organized by the ministry on the premises of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce (PKS) on 23 Terazije on October 22, according to a statement from the ministry.

The public debate is open to representatives of state authorities, businesses, public services, international organizations, associations and other representatives of civil society organizations, experts, professors, researchers, other scientists, and other stakeholders.

The bulk of Serbia’s economic activity – over 90% – is centered in around 9% of the country’s urban areas, making the development of the urban economy a key component of the national urban development policy, according to the text of the proposed strategy.

The reasons why the strategy should be produced include fostering an economically efficient, socially just and environmentally responsible urban development; identifying and resolving key urban development problems; encouraging effective use, management, and promotion of urban capital; and creating favorable general and spatial conditions for integrated sustainable urban development in line with the UN’s New Urban Agenda, the Urban Agenda for the EU, the Leipzig Charter on Sustainable European Cities, and other EU documents.

Possible priority areas of intervention in urban settlements

The strategy identifies priority areas of intervention as guidelines for developing local strategies for integrated sustainable urban development. The identified priority areas of intervention will help formulate national programs to support integrated sustainable urban development.

Priority areas of intervention in urban settlements can be:

• Industrial/business and commercial zones and brownfield locations;
• Illegally built and undeveloped urban sprawls and the degradation of rural areas;
• Compromised urban structures, urban matrices, and central urban areas;
• Parts of urban areas with a high degree of social challenges – social inclusion and poverty reduction;
• Settlements or parts of settlements exposed to environmental problems and climate change;
• Areas with cultural and architectural legacy – the key benchmarks of the cultural and historical development of an urban settlement/group of urban settlements.

The initiative to produce the strategy stems from the memorandum of understanding the ministry and Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the German government signed on January 25, 2017, in Belgrade as part of the Strengthening Municipal Land Management in the Republic of Serbia project.