The conference, gathering parliamentarians from Western Balkan countries and economic experts, was opened by National Assembly Speaker Prof. Dr Slavica Djukic Dejanovic. The National Assembly Speaker said that understanding the impact of the decisions they make at the parliament was of key importance for the representatives of the people. The role of MPs in the committees for finance and economy, as the most skilled experts in the field, is essential, which is why one of the goals of the conference is to seek ways to additionally improve these committees’ operational capacities, said Djukic Dejanovic.
The participants were addressed by National Assembly Deputy Speaker Gordana Comic who pointed out that every political decision made at the parliament has an impact on the citizens whose interests it represents. Therefore, parliamentarians cannot remain silent before the citizens’ questions relating to their quality of living, stressed Comic. The National Assembly Deputy Speaker said that it was up to the Western Balkan countries to come up with economic solutions in their best interest which would at the same time complement the economic solutions of the European Union.
Director of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation Office in Belgrade Dr Michael Erke stressed that economic issues such as public spending and stimulating the economy were both technical and political issues. Erke drew attention to the importance of regional cooperation not only between the Governments of the Western Balkan countries, but also between their respective parliaments, which, he opined, this conference also contributed to.
The Director of the Institute of Economic Sciences Prof. Dr Dejan Eric was pleased at the fact that the National Assembly had become a place to gather around, discuss and seek solutions to important economic issues. All the states of the Western Balkans strive for the same goal, membership at the European Union, and successful regional cooperation will speed up the process, said Eric.
As panelists and participants of the regional conference, the parliamentarians from Western Balkan countries and economic experts initiated and discussed various topics: potentials to strengthen the capacity of parliamentary committees for economy and finance as a way of increasing their role in economic policy, they also discussed the dilemma of whether cutting public spending or stimulating the economy should be given priority, as well as the existence of economic and political barriers to trade in the region.
In the closing discussion, National Assembly Deputy Speaker Gordana Comic deemed that the participants of the regional conference agree in the estimate that the competent committees for economy and finance should be additionally strengthened by providing a more specific definition of their scope and affairs, as well as by intensifying their cooperation with economic experts so as to better connect politics and the field.
When it comes to the dilemma of whether to cut public spending or stimulate the economy the participants agreed that there were no easy solutions to achieving economic development, but that efforts should be invested into cutting unnecessary budgetary spending. In that regard, it is very important that the parliamentary committees have better control of the budget.
The importance of regional cooperation between Western Balkan countries via joint infrastructural projects, cooperation between economic institutes in the region, as well as intensive interparliamentary cooperation is an opinion all the participants of the conference agree in, stressed the National Assembly Deputy Speaker.
The Regional Network of Parliamentary Committees for Economy and Finance of the Western Balkan Countries was founded at the Regional Parliamentary Conference held in Belgrade in March 2009, aimed at promoting cooperation between the parliaments in the region.