The Education Committee held its eighth sitting on 12 December 2008. The sitting was chaired by the Committee Chairman, Dr Zoran Sami and attended by the State Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Radivoje Mitrovic and Assistant Minister of Education, Milanko Perisic.

The Committee members discussed the Republic of Serbia 2009 Budget Bill, section 59 – Ministry of Education. Elaborating next year’s Budget Bill, the State Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Radivoje Mitrovic stressed that the budget envisages means amounting to 108 billion dinars, which is 1.5% more than in 2008. The education budget amounts to 3.54% of the domestic product, instead of 3.88% as envisaged by the Serbian Government’s memorandum. 96.36% of the budgetary means for education will be spent on salaries, compensations, scholarships and loans, while 3.64% of the means is planned for projects and the development of education. The budget also envisaged the purchase of textbooks for first-grade elementary school pupils in the amount of 170 million dinars.

In the discussion of the Budget Bill, some Committee members expressed their displeasure at the envisaged budgetary means. Having completed the discussion, the Committee accepted the Republic of Serbia 2009 Budget Bill, section 59 – Ministry of Education by a majority of votes, with the reserved opinion of the Committee Chairman, Zoran Sami.