During her two-day visit to Serbia, the United Nations Under-Secretary-General and the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) Executive Director, Grete Faremo pointed to the significance of planning and thinking about the end users in implementation of projects, but also to using the international standards and local expertise in order to be successful.
“Our mandate is primarily implementation of various projects in the area of ​​infrastructure, project management and procurement but in this we are never alone. UNOPS is always extremely appreciative and strongly relies on the close cooperation and contributions from the Government and our committed donors,“ Grete Faremo said.
“UNOPS is implementing European PROGRES, the largest national area based development Programme, supported by the Government of Serbia and funded by the European Union and the Government of Switzerland with 24.46 million Euros. This programme aims at a long-term progress of the most underdeveloped areas of the country. Through European PROGRES, like we did through its predecessor, we will simply try to make the lives of ordinary people better.”
Faremo’s official protocol included meetings with Serbia First Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ivica Dačić, and the Minister without Portfolio responsible for European integration, Jadranka Joksimović.
“I would like to thank, on behalf of Serbia, UNOPS and the contributing donors for the continuous assistance provided to the development of our country, and especially for the extensive support to flood affected areas and to the underdeveloped municipalities of the Southern Serbia,” said Minister Dačić.
“It is important for Serbia to have partners like UNOPS who can transparently and efficiently provide the results of projects funded by the European Union and other bilateral aid,” said Minister Joksimović.
Finishing her visit United Nations Under-Secretary-General (UNUSG) reiterated that in Serbia, UNOPS successfully engages international standards, local expertise and donor support. “This has proven to be a good match and a practice that gives results,” concluded Faremo.
