BELGRADE – In addition to chapters 23 and 24 on fundamental rights, Serbia should by the end of the year also open the reform chapters in its EU accession talks, which will significantly help improve public procurements, small and medium-sized entrepreneurship and the industrial policy, Minister for European Integrations Jadranka Joksimovic said on Saturday.
Joksimovic believes that chapters 5 and 20 – which are very important for improving the business climate, implementing public procurements and fighting corruption – will be opened by the end of the year, possibly along with chapters 25 and 26, which relate to science, research, education and culture.
In an interview to Tanjug a month after the opening of the first chapters in the EU accession talks, the minister said that she believes that, in 2016, Serbia will be enabled to open chapters for which it is realistically prepared as all political pre-requisites were met last year.
Politically and technically, Serbia will be ready to open chapters 23 and 24 by mid-year – during the Dutch EU presidency, Joksimovic said.