May 29 (SeeNews) - Serbia will receive a grant of 70 million euro ($78 million) under the European Union's Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA) for 2020, the government said on Friday.
Of the 70 million euro package, 30 million euro have been earmarked for competitiveness, agriculture, innovation and rural development via grants to 450 micro-enterprises, startups and business support organizations in less developed regions of Serbia, the government quoted EU commissioner for neighbourhood and enlargement Oliver Varhelyi as saying in a press release following the signing of the grant agreement in Belgrade.
A total of 25 million euro will be provided to strengthen the capacity to monitor and respond to infectious diseases, as well as to back employment, education and social protection of the most vulnerable people, Varhelyi said.
"This assistance is very important and I thank immensely the European Union for this new package aimed at the economy, social and economic development and employment. This provides an additional impetus for reforms," Serbian president Aleksandar Vucic said in the press release.
Serbia started accession talks with the EU in January 2014 and has already opened 18 of the 35 chapters of the EU body of law, two of which were provisionally closed.
($ = 0.898563 euro)