Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021 - Nordic Know-How

FINLAND CAN ASSIST 08 SERBIA IN THIS GREEN TRANSITION

04 IT PAYS TO BE GREEN COMMENT

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POLLUTION DOESN’T HAVE A NATIONALITY

H.E. SUSANNE SHINE, AMBASSADOR OF DENMARK TO SERBIA

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KIMMO LÄHDEVIRTA, AMBASSADOR OF FINLAND TO SERBIA

COOPERATION FOR 10 SERBIA’S CLEANER AND BRIGHTER FUTURE JØRN EUGEN GJELSTAD, AMBASSADOR OF NORWAY TO SERBIA

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

ROOM FOR 12 GREAT PROGRESS

H.E. ANNIKA BEN DAVID, AMBASSADOR DESIGNATE OF SWEDEN TO SERBIA

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PROUD TO SAVE LIVES

DEJAN LAKOVSKI, COUNTRY CLUSTER DIRECTOR, ASTRAZENECA

FULLY COMMITTED 18 TO SERBIA’S GREEN TRANSITION

DRAGAN RAJKOVIĆ, TETRA PAK REGIONAL SUSTAINABILITY DIRECTOR, EUROPE & CENTRAL ASIA

TO 20 DEDICATED ENERGY TRANSITION NEDA LAZENDIĆ, COUNTRY MANAGER, WV-INTERNATIONAL NBT

NORDIC 22

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A LONG AND EXCITING JOURNEY

SMART WAY TO GET STARTED IN SERBIA

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STEPPING BOLDLY TOWARDS A CIRCULAR ECONOMY

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EXAMPLES OF GOOD PRACTICE FROM DENMARK

KNOW HOW

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WE LEARN FROM THE BEST IVA PETROVIĆ, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE NORDIC BUSINESS ALLIANCE

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

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COMMENT

It Pays TO

BE GREEN

Serbian citizens are painfully aware of climate change, biodiversity loss and resource scarcity, and – regardless of their political aspirations – they strive to have a country where each and every business, public body or fellow citizen will feel a responsibility to preserve the environment. This makes us at least a little bit Nordic.

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he Danish Embassy in Belgrade recently became a buyer of the green energy provided by state Power Company Elektroprivreda Srbije.

Symbolically, this represents one more step in confirming that Nordic countries are eager to support the Serbian economy’s transition to the circular model.

Many more examples that lead in the same direction have been evident throughout Serbia. Those interested in Nordic solutions for waste and biowaste management had the opportunity to talk to Danish and Norwegian experts in Novi Sad. Sweden and Finland facilitated similar conferences in Kragujevac and Niš, while the final conference will be held in Belgrade on 12th October. This last event is related to policies and legislation related to the circular economy.

This series of events has been co-organised by the four Nordic Embassies in Belgrade, under the patronage of the Nordic

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Serbian citizens, as demonstrated all over the country, are in need of more trees, better air, much better water and sustainable and responsible waste management solutions Council of Ministers, and covers all aspects of support that Nordic countries may provide to Serbia to help it transition from a country that sets a record in Europe for pollution-related deaths measured per capita, according to the 2019 report of the Global Alliance for Health and Pollution, to an environmentally friendly place.

It would be superfluous to state that a lot can be learnt from the global champions of green transition, in terms of adequate polices and commercial solutions that foster innovation, smart growth and the creation of new jobs.

Indeed, Nordic companies from both the public and private sectors have expertise and technology to resolve different environmental issues. For example, Denmark is a global leader in district heating, where connecting as many households as possible to district heating networks may significantly reduce air pollution. In Serbia, where the individual heating of households represents an important source of pollution, this experience is worth considering. The same applies to the example of food waste solutions, where lots of initiatives are mushrooming in cooperation between NGOs, the start-up community and large supermarkets.

This publication is dotted with first-hand examples of good practices from municipalities, public company experts and the like, and offers a glimpse into ideas that may lead the state, municipalities, businesses and citizens toward sustainable, environmentally-friendly solutions.

Serbia recently took some steps towards embracing a circular economy: the Ministry of Environmental Protection laid the groundwork for the strategy and developed a three-year action plan that must, step by step, lead Serbia along the often-challenging path towards a circular economy.

Serbian citizens, as demonstrated all over the country, are in need of more trees, better air, much better water and sustainable and responsible waste management solutions. In contrast to many other issues where citizens have often opposed visions, motivations and expectations, the preservation of the environment is a topic that reconciles voices from each and every side of the spectrum. This would certainly provide strong motivation for any government to sincerely embrace the green future. And, as the Nordic examples show, such a future creates stronger GDP growth, new jobs and a better society for all.

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INTERVIEW H.E. SUSANNE SHINE, AMBASSADOR OF DENMARK TO SERBIA

Pollution Doesn’t Have

A NATIONALITY

The Nordic countries understand that pollution doesn’t respect borders and that environmental cooperation among countries can benefit all. That’s why we are eager to exchange views and cooperate with countries like Serbia. has offered to donate a million vaccines to countries in the Western Balkans, such as Bosnia-Herzegovina, North Macedonia and others. While I’m proud of Denmark’s eagerness to help the Western Balkans, I particularly want to thank the Serbian authorities for their well-organised response to COVID-19 and the exemplary way in which they provided vaccinations to diplomatic staff in Serbia,” says Ambassador Shine.

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erbia recently received a new donation of Danish humanitarian aid in the form of protective medical equipment that was provided via the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, but this is only one example of the support that the Danish government provides to the Western Balkan countries, including Serbia. We spoke with our interlocutor, H.E. Susanne Shine, Ambassador of Denmark to Serbia, about different areas of support, exchanges of knowledge and possible areas of coopera-

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tion related to foreign direct investments and the circular economy, where Denmark and other Nordic countries have superb knowhow and practises.

“Denmark has been keen to support Western Balkan countries in their efforts to medically combat COVID-19. For example, at the request of the Serbian authorities, Denmark recently donated FFP2 protective masks valued at more than €350,000 to Serbia and, similarly, medical equipment worth €1 million to North Macedonia. Additionally, Denmark

Danish companies operate successfully in Serbia. Have their experiences helped convince other Danish investors to consider Serbia as a destination for their investments?

- As you point out, a number of Danish companies are already operating successfully in Serbia, and I believe there are many more opportunities for Danish companies. In my work to attract more Danish companies, I use the success of Danish companies that are already operating in Serbia to illustrate the opportunities that exist here. Serbia provides excellent support to foreign investors, along with a qualified workforce, and increased global freight costs have also made it more relevant for Danish companies to relocate their foreign production operations to Europe. Nearshoring and shorter supply chains have become important factors for companies worldwide.

The actions of Danish companies are the best indication of how they perceive Serbia.

For example, Danish company Grundfos started production in Serbia a decade ago and today employs over 900 Serbian citizens and has become one of the country’s top 10 exporters. Grundfos has now started building

SUPPORT

SUPPORT

RECYCLING

Excellent support to foreign investors, along with a qualified workforce, have made Serbia attractive to Danish companies that are eager to relocate their foreign production operations to Europe

Denmark has been keen to support Western Balkan countries in their efforts to medically combat COVID-19

Danes have become increasingly conscious of the economic and environmental costs of food loss and waste, and have become more focused on reuse and recycling

a new production facility next to its existing factory. In July of this year, I was happy to join Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabić and others in breaking the ground for this new building, which will be fully equipped with solar panels and a Bio-Booster for cleaning its wastewater. Other examples of booming Danish companies are Better Collective and Kentaur, which have both grown to almost 200 employees in less than five years.

Denmark has spent years investing in researching sustainability and green solutions, while you also conscientiously care for the environment. What advice would you give to Serbia and its citizens, who are increasingly gathering to fight to protect their rivers, forests and air quality?

- The green transition in Denmark began with the oil crisis back in the 1970s. Decades of development have progressively transformed the Danish economy into a green one and given Denmark an environmental position that it uses to share experiences and help other countries on their own green journeys. Hopefully, other countries can learn from our experiences and, thus, cut years off their journeys. Grassroots initiatives have also been integral to Denmark’s green transition, and we have also seen many public-private partnerships, such as State of Green (stateofgreen.com), which gather not just state institutions and companies, but also universities, municipalities and civil society.

Your predecessor once said that Denmark isn’t rich enough to discard anything. But what are your experiences when it comes to food recycling, which represents an important part of the circular economy?

- In recent years, Danes have become increasingly conscious of the economic and environmental costs of food loss and waste, and have become more focused on reuse and recycling.

There is no governmental regulation preventing people from wasting food in

Denmark. However, as part of Denmark’s nationwide recycling programme, unused food is separated from other recycling and collected from households for use in biogas production. Danes have also supported a number of sustainable and innovative initiatives to reduce the amount of biowaste. For example, there is an app called “Too Good To Go (https://toogoodtogo.

We can offer expertise and technology, from both the public and private sectors, to solve different environmental issues. One potential area of cooperation is district heating, where Denmark is a global leader com)” which supermarkets, restaurants and bakeries use to offer perfectly fresh food in goodie-bags at the end of the day, at substantially reduced price. Check out similar websites, such as “Eatgrim (eat ugly) (https://eatgrim.com)” a subscription service for food that is perfectly good but does not comply with the standard size, shape etc., and https://foedevarebanken.

dk/, which delivers surplus food to poor and vulnerable people in need.

The circular economy, of course, encompasses a very broad area. Which topics will the upcoming October conference focus on exploring?

- The first in a series of four Nordic conferences just took place in Novi Sad on 15th September. Danish and Norwegian experts spoke about Nordic solutions for the management of waste and bio-waste. It was a fascinating conference that included highly constructive discussions with Serbian stakeholders. Later in September, Sweden and Finland will facilitate similar conferences in Kragujevac and Niš. The final conference will be held in Belgrade on 12th October and will focus on policies and legislation related to the circular economy. This series of conferences has been organised jointly by the four Nordic Embassies in Belgrade, under the patronage of the Nordic Council of Ministers.

What kinds of opportunities exist for greater cooperation between Serbia and Nordic countries in this area?

- The Nordic countries are frontrunners in many areas, not least the environment. We can offer expertise and technology, from both the public and private sectors, to solve different environmental issues. One potential area of cooperation is district heating, where Denmark is a global leader. During our conference in Vrdnik in May, representatives of the Danish Board of District Heating discussed the advantages of connecting as many households as possible to district heating networks in order to reduce air pollution. They also discussed constructive ways of switching to greener sources of energy, such as biomass. The Nordic countries understand that pollution does not respect borders and that environmental cooperation among countries can benefit all. That’s why we frequently have regionally aligned policies and are eager to exchange views and cooperate with countries like Serbia.

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

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INTERVIEW KIMMO LÄHDEVIRTA, AMBASSADOR OF FINLAND TO SERBIA

Finland Can Assist Serbia In This

GREEN TRANSITION

Along with other Nordic embassies in Serbia and the Nordic Business Alliance, but also the Nordic Council of Ministers, Finland is sharing its vast expertise in digitalisation and the development of the IT sector and the circular economy, where Serbia is showing some promising results but also faces some tough challenges related to environmental protection.

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e’ve seen continuing dynamic political dialogue and a high degree of mutual understanding between Finland and Serbia over the previous few years, particularly in the context of Finnish support to Serbia’s European integration process. As such, our first question for Finnish Ambassador to Serbia Kimmo Lähdevirta was how much has this process has advanced since the period of your country’s 2019 EU presidency?

“Being aware of all the benefits of EU membership, Finland is a strong supporter of Serbia’s EU accession and we hope it will speed up in the coming period. At the moment, the main reason the process is lagging behind is the lack of results in the field of the rule of law,” says our interlocutor.

“We therefore encourage Serbia to concentrate on rule of law reforms, especially the fight against organised crime and corruption, media freedom and providing a safe environment for the work of journalists and civil society organisations. In addition, the outcome of the ongoing interparty dialogue, facilitated by EU mediators, is of great importance when one considers the dire need to increase trust in the electoral process in Serbia. All these efforts, regardless of how we name them, are essential for advancing the EU integration process.”

The trade exchange between our two countries hasn’t been hit significantly during the pandemic, although it remains at a fairly low level. In your opinion, what’s the key to further progress?

- There has been a positive trend in the trade exchange between Finland and Serbia year on year, even during the pandemic. However,

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there is still a lot of potential for trade growth.

In my opinion, it is of key importance to raise awareness among Finnish companies about business opportunities in Serbia and vice versa. The Embassy of Finland has supported the sharing of knowhow in different fields that are important for improving the business environment in Serbia. We usually operate as

part of the Nordic team, by joining forces with other Nordic embassies in Serbia, the Nordic Business Alliance and the Nordic Council of Ministers.

Direct, face-to-face contacts usually yield the best results, and thus we should work on creating opportunities where our people and companies can meet and start developing

EXPECTATIONS

DIGITALISATION

COOPERATION

I very much hope that the steps currently being taken by the Government of Serbia will translate into tangible results in the areas of the rule of law, media freedom and interparty dialogue

We cooperate with the Serbian authorities in the fields of digitalisation and IT, as well as on promotion of the use of artificial intelligence

There has been a positive trend in the trade exchange between Finland and Serbia year on year, even during the pandemic

business relations. In this regard, we are happy to announce that the Embassy team has a new member as of this summer: Mr Janne Sykkö, whose task is to promote trade between Finland and Serbia, as well as other Balkan countries.

progress has been made in this sphere, in your opinion, and what does the very energised activity of Serbian citizens in terms of protecting water sources and forests, and the struggle for clean air, tell you?

- It is very encouraging that Serbian citizens are increasingly active in the field of environmental protection. Globally, citizens are often the first to react to ecological risks in their surroundings, and that’s why it’s important to

ronmental protection in Serbia. There is a need for the wider use of renewable energy sources, to transition from the linear to the circular economy and a stronger commitment to fighting climate change. Finland, along with other Nordic countries, can assist Serbia in this green transition.

How is bilateral cooperation unfolding in the domain of digitalisation and IT sector development?

- Finland is the most digitalised country in Europe and one of the global frontrunners in 5G mobile communications technology.

Therefore, cooperation with other countries in the fields of digitalisation and IT are high on our agenda. Our goal in Serbia has been to maintain a continuous public-private dialogue between the Nordic companies and institutions and the most relevant local stakeholders.

In this context, together with other Nordic embassies, we have organised seminars and conferences focused on the digitalisation of public administration in Serbia, digital solutions to make public procurements more efficient and transparent, smart cities and related digital tools and solutions.

During the course of the COVID-19 Pandemic, all countries have undergone a swift transition to working online, including in the field of education. When it comes to the field of digitalising education, which of Finland’s experiences could Serbia utilise?

- When the pandemic forced schools to operate fully online, the expertise and flexibility of Finnish teachers were crucial in handling the crisis.

The principles of Finnish education are equality, high quality and respect for every student’s right to learn and grow to become the person they are – and achieving and maintaining that requires relentless work every day. I believe that all education systems should uphold the same principles, while instruments to do so have to take local contexts into account.

The process of building an institutional framework for the environmental sector has been underway in Serbia since 2018. What kind of

The Nordic embassies, in cooperation with the Nordic Council of Ministers and local stakeholders, are organising a series of events on the circular economy that are taking place in Novi Sad, Kragujevac, Niš and Belgrade during September and October have a high level of awareness regarding these issues among the population. In addition, when citizens demand green policies, politicians and authorities have to uphold and apply them in practise.

We have to admit that there are still significant challenges when it comes to envi-

To what extent is the circular economy part of Finland’s day-to-day reality and which experiences from this area could find applicability in Serbia?

- Finland has a history of developing circular solutions, which include new business models and new ways to consider an item’s life cycle.

It was the first country in the world to prepare a national circular economy roadmap in 2016.

Our cities are already working on solutions to become carbon neutral and implement circular economy principles in practise. For example, the City of Lahti is the European Green Capital for 2021 and it serves as a great example of how circular economy solutions can be applied.

Having this in mind, we can really say that the circular economy is a Finnish day-to-day reality and that we are honest when it comes to promoting it worldwide. From 13th to 15th September, Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra, together with Canada, organised the World Circular Economy Forum 2021. It was hosted in North America for the first time and focused on the system-level changes, or “game changers,” that are needed to accelerate the transition to a circular economy.

Here in Serbia, the Nordic embassies, in cooperation with the Nordic Council of Ministers and local stakeholders, including the Ministry of Environment, NALED and the Circular Economy Hub of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce, are organising a series of events on the circular economy. These events, which are taking place in Novi Sad, Kragujevac, Niš and Belgrade during September and October, aim to share the Nordic experiences in this field, increase the awareness of local stakeholders regarding the circular economy and provide proposals on how to continue the implementation of these principles in Serbia.

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

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INTERVIEW JØRN EUGEN GJELSTAD, AMBASSADOR OF NORWAY TO SERBIA

Cooperation for Serbia’s Cleaner

AND BRIGHTER FUTURE We believe that we can together turn problems into opportunities and achieve results for a cleaner and brighter future. Those of us in the North started earlier, so we have learned some lessons the hard way. And we want to share those lessons with Serbia, so that this society can avoid our mistakes and reproduce our success stories.

However, we have implemented a number of energy efficiency projects in the public sector in Serbia, including the Centre for Social Work in Bela Palanka, a nursery school in Babušnica and a library in Golubac. Norway also supported the reconstruction of the Dositej Obradović Primary School in Bela Crkva and the Veljko Dugošević Culture Centre in Kučevo. All these projects improved the energy efficiency of the public institutions in question.

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orway is a consistent supporter of the socioeconomic development of the Western Balkans, and it cooperates closely with local and national governments, international organisations and civil society to achieve the best possible results.

“I would particularly highlight our model for support to local businesses, especially in the less developed municipalities in Serbia,” says Jørn Eugen Gjelstad, Ambassador of Norway to Serbia.

The applied Norwegian model is actually quite simple: public calls for support are announced and the best proposals are awarded grants for implementation, with substantial technical assistance and guidance provided over the course of the project.

“One of the most successful calls was targeting business support entities, enabling them

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to support local businesses in a coordinated manner,” says our interlocutor. “We see time and time again that small businesses, through relatively minor financial support from our side, are able to increase their production capacity and productivity, employ more people, identify new markets or production technologies, and obtain certificates that open the door to exports to the European market.”

Norway’s assistance to Serbia is directed towards SMEs in relation to energy efficiency.

How many of these kinds of projects were instigated in 2020?

- Norway is focused primarily on increasing the compliance of SMEs with the industrial emissions directive of the European Union, which relates to the improvement of their competitiveness, performance and resilience.

From the perspective of Serbian enterprises, energy efficiency and the circular economy are mostly viewed as being primarily connected to expensive investments. What does Norway’s experience in this area tell us in that regard?

- Industrial transformations are always costly, but virtually all experts agree that we need to cut emissions drastically. The alternative is catastrophic for the globe, both for the environment and for societies. Green energy, energy efficiency and the circular economy represent the backbone of the path forward.

And I believe you are right in pointing out that it should be seen as an investment, rather than a cost. Investments in technology tend to yield excellent results in the long run, and the future is green. Businesses and societies that don’t invest in the future will fall behind. In today’s global markets, going green is a matter of competitiveness. I believe that Norwegian businesses are not willing to accept the risk associated with not investing in the green future. The proposed European carbon border adjustment mechanism is a clear signal that the EU is serious about the green transformation, and that its trading partners need to follow suit.

This is an additional reminder and incentive, both

RECOGNITION

COMMITMENT

COOPERATION

Making a big impact in local communities is precisely the aim of the “Norway for You” project, which in itself has become a recognised development brand both in Serbia and around the region

Norway will continue its close engagement with the health authorities in Serbia and the Western Balkan region in order to enhance the overall efficiency and capacity of the healthcare systems

The concept of regional cooperation has long traditions in all Nordic countries. It is therefore encouraging that a similar cooperation model is being developed for the Western Balkans

for Norwegian and Serbian businesses, to speed up the green transformation in both countries.

think it’s important to stress that no country was fully prepared or equipped to handle, or even predict, the immediate consequences of the pandemic. Furthermore, the procurement of sophisticated equipment was complicated by the extremely high demand and limited capacity on the side of suppliers.

- The “Open Balkans” initiative was launched just recently with strong political support by the leaders of Albania, Serbia and North Macedonia. Like its predecessor, the “mini-Schengen” initiative, Open Balkans aims to further strengthen regional cooperation in the Western Balkans, through increased

We will have an opportunity to hear more about this topic in early October, at the conference that you’re preparing. What will be the main messages of this event?

- The main message is that we are enthusiastic about the future of Serbia!We believe that we can together turn problems into opportunities and achieve results for a cleaner and brighter future.

And this is exactly what the green shift and the circular economy are about! We take the waste and turn it into a resource, into “gold”, so to say.

Climate change has forced us all to realise that what we have been doing over the last century or so is not sustainable. We must limit pollution too. We cannot endanger the lives of our children and jeopardise their future. We must preserve nature while creating jobs and prosperity. Those things do not need to be mutually exclusive!There are a lot of opportunities there. We just need to do things differently. Let’s work together. Those of us in the North started earlier, so we have learned some lessons the hard way. And we want to share those lessons with Serbia, so that this society can avoid our mistakes and reproduce our success stories. Free of charge!

Norway has been providing assistance to Serbia’s healthcare system for many years, as well as the healthcare systems of other Western Balkan countries. To what extent has this support helped Western Balkan countries navigate the pandemic with relatively high success?

- Norway has a highly developed capacity to respond quickly to crises and disasters by allocating targeted resources for dire needs. I was both proud and happy to see that we managed, during the first phase of this outbreak, to act accordingly and make significant funds available for Serbia to mitigate the effect of this crisis, including the procurement of respirators, PCR tests and protective equipment. This was an immediate act of solidarity, deeply rooted in the long-term friendship between our two countries. Nevertheless, I

Norway sees regional initiatives like “Open Balkans” as being complimentary to the ongoing EU accession processes, and stands ready to support tangible initiatives that can facilitate cooperation across the region Your country has repeatedly supported the “mini-Schengen” concept, which has now been renamed the “Open Balkans”. How much progress has been made on this cooperation and are there elements that are beginning to resemble cooperation between Nordic countries?

economic cooperation, the free movement of people, dissemination of technology and access to higher education, services and culture. The concept of regional cooperation has long traditions in all Nordic countries. Nordic cooperation is based on a set of shared norms, values and a common history, and stands out as one of the oldest, most comprehensive and successful partnerships we have today.

It is therefore encouraging that a similar cooperation model is being developed for the Western Balkans, and I believe it has strong potential to improve quality of life for ordinary citizens. Some progress has been made, but a lot remains to be achieved. It is time to focus on implementation.

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INTERVIEW H.E. ANNIKA BEN DAVID, AMBASSADOR DESIGNATE OF SWEDEN TO SERBIA

Great Room

FOR PROGRESS

As friends of Serbia, we want to cooperate with and support Serbia in meeting the conditions for its EU integration. I believe in particular that there is great room for progress on environmental issues, and we are working with the Serbian government on many projects aimed at improving the quality of life of the Serbian people.

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weden has provided strategic, predictable and long-term support to Serbia’s EU integration process for over two decades. This assistance has a number of strands that come together to support processes that are indeed building blocks to full membership: rule of law, public sector governance and accountability, economic performance and employment generation, the protection of natural resources and fundamental rights.

With a total value of eight per cent of Serbia’s GDP (approximately €3.8 billion in 2019), public procurement is a very powerful tool to direct public spending towards better services where the citizens need them.

“For citizens, it matters how the economy fares and how resources are distributed and spent,” says H.E. Annika Ben David, Ambassador Designate of Sweden to Serbia. “Citizens want value for their tax money, but this value does not literally translate into how little you spend. It also includes a measure of effectiveness and efficiency in the use of public resources. We exert additional effort to harness this purchasing power to buy more sustainable goods and services, and both the environment and society will benefit.”

The project “Effective public procurement for economic growth”,

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which is being financed by Sweden and implemented by NALED (National Association for Local Economic Development), aims to help Serbia strengthen its knowledge base and streamline its public procurement procedures through further digitalisation and an inclusive public-private dialogue.

As our interlocutor explains: “a dialogue between the public and private sectors was launched this summer, with July being dubbed “the month of public procurement”.

However, we want this dialogue to continue every day until we reach an average of 3.5 bids per tender, instead of the current 2.5. The momentum for an open dialogue about moving environmental considerations higher up the list of criteria is here and we should use it”.

Early October will see the staging of Nordic conferences dedicated to promoting the circular economy in Serbia. Which conference topics would you single out for the special attention of our readers?

- I believe that would be the issue of waste management. We are aware of the problems that many Serbian cities are having with landfill sites and waste treatment. The Nordic countries had similar problems and have learned to view waste as a resource; a resource that can be used to create energy, fuel, heating

DEMOCRACY

SUPPORT

OPPORTUNITY

Quality of life can’t be improved without strong institutions and a vibrant democracy. Strong institutions and their accountability are essential elements of any democracy

Sweden is a strong supporter of Serbia’s EU integration. Our countries have strong ties, not least because of the large Serbian diaspora resident in our country

By keeping products and materials in use and recycling energy and waste, we will create new jobs and hatch new businesses in a resilient and inclusive way

and many other components that can make our cities function in an environmentally-friendly way. This marked the start of an important change in our societies.

Instead of discarding waste, it has become a resource that creates jobs and innovative industries. Together with the Serbian Government and more than 17 local municipalities, and throughfinancingfromtheEU(theIPA project Source Separation in Four regions), we are now preparing for large scale source separation reform to be launched in Serbia. This investment covers more than 800,000 citizens!

And it will boost the circular economy in the years to come.

The Nordic countries responded to the need to control the spread of infection in quite different ways during the pandemic. Which of your positive experiences would you share with our readers?

- I am aware of the widespread international attention the Swedish response to the COVID-19 pandemic has generated, including in the Serbian media.

The Swedish national strategy was set up by the Swedish Public Health Agency. The strategy was designed to consider public health from a broader perspective than just the pandemic. Considerations such as mental health, obesity and the socioeconomic impact of regulations were considered. The model was not perfect, and like many countries we failed to protect groups among the elderly and most vulnerable. I think evaluations on best practices should be conducted primarily by experts.

Thanks to a successful vaccination campaign and low levels of hospitalisations, we are this month lifting most of the remaining restrictions.

Together with the Serbian Government and more than 17 local municipalities, and through financing from the EU, we are now preparing to launch large scale source separation reform in Serbia Currently, 75% of the Swedish population aged over 16 has been vaccinated with two doses. Looking back, we can see that the pandemic created a situation with no ready answers. I’m glad that we decided to keep our primary schools open.

This proved not to lead to any increasing contamination, but to kids not having their education interrupted. For their health and wellbeing, going to school meant psychological normalcy, a hot meal and psychosocial problems not going unnoticed. Moreover, their parents were able to continue working, including in sectors that have been under great stress: hospitals

and elderly care, for example.

All in all, I believe that even though our model wasn’t without problems, it still seems to have worked very much thanks to the general public’s strong trust in our institutions, experts and science. It has allowed us to keep our society open.

Sweden has established good cooperation with the Serbian Ministry of the Environment and the City of Niš regarding wastewater treatment, and your country’s greater engagement in this area has also been announced. Do you agree with your predecessor, Ambassador Lundin, that this is among the

crucial topics for Serbia’s European integration?

- It is often said that pollution knows no borders – and clearly combatting air and water pollution is a shared purpose for all EU countries. The focus of Sweden’s development cooperation in Serbia – strengthening EU integration – is right on target.

We have strong cooperation on the environment and climate.

Serbia has high ambitions to increase wastewater treatment over the coming years. Together with the Government, municipalities and the EU, Sweden is preparing for large scale investments in waste treatment, for example in the City of Niš, but also in the City of Čačak.

We also have inter-municipality cooperation between Swedish and Serbian municipalities on water and waste-water management, for example preserving the quality of water in Lake Ćelije!

In order to create successful projects and investments, we work actively with our Serbian partners to: achieve EU environmental standards, strengthen intermunicipal cooperation and build projects in close cooperation with the local administration and citizens. This is important for us to gain sustainable projects that improve the quality of life in Serbia.

Which other areas provide great room for progress within the scope of Serbia’s EU integration?

- Quality of life can’t be improved without strong institutions and a vibrant democracy. That’s why a third of our development assistance goes towards strengthening institutions and their accountability, the rule of law, anti-corruption and media freedom. These are all essential elements of any democracy.

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BUSINESS DEJAN LAKOVSKI, COUNTRY CLUSTER DIRECTOR, ASTRAZENECA

Proud To

SAVE LIVES

AstraZeneca is among the leaders in the research and development of innovative medicines, as part of efforts to deliver the most advanced therapies and scientific achievements. Based in Cambridge, UK, AstraZeneca operates in over 100 countries, while its innovative medicines are used by millions of patients worldwide

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T

his company has delivered over 1.3 billion doses to over 170 countries in the space of just one year! Nothing on this scale has ever previously been attempted, but AstraZeneca managed, in a matter of months, to do what would normally take years. And it has done so for the benefit of all, without any financial interest.

In which therapy areas are you most dominant?

- AstraZeneca is a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company. Our business is organised to deliver our strategic priorities sustainably, supporting continued scientific innovation and commercial success. We focus on the discovery, development and commercialisation of prescription medicines in Oncology and BioPharmaceuticals, including Cardiovascular, Renal & Metabolism, and Respiratory & Immunology. In addition to our core therapy areas, we added a fourth engine of growth recently, with the addition of Alexion’s rare disease business.

The financial results you published recently were quite good, as covered widely by the media. Could you share more details?

- AstraZeneca is on a strong growth trajectory. We have grown at a double-digit rate for the last two years. We are accelerating our double-digit growth this year and expect the company to continue growing in double digits until 2025. Growth is robust across all regions and disease areas, as we continue to advance our portfolio of life-changing medicines.

With increased investment in R&D, we continue to invest in the future of AstraZeneca and build on our already significant achievements.

AstraZeneca in the Balkans is no exception and contributes strongly, with 12.7% growth this year to date, while introducing innovations to meet significant need across the area.

Serbia is equally positioned within our Balkan cluster and is doing very well in a challenging environment. We have a great team in place and will continue and accelerate our growth and investement plans moving forward.

AstraZeneca has become very well known globally over the last year. Is this due to the

fact that you quickly developed an effective vaccine against the novel coronavirus?

- The company has been present for well over a century. Astra was founded in Sweden in 1913. And it was in 1999 that it merged with Zeneca Group PLC, which was formed when ICI Pharmaceuticals (a UK-based company founded in 1926) demerged three of its businesses.

The Vaxzevria vaccine was developed

by Oxford University’s Jenner Institute, working with the Oxford Vaccine Group.

The partnership with Oxford University is unprecedented. It was negotiated in just 10 days, as an urgent response to the escalation of the COVID-19 Pandemic. The team at Oxford recognised that a partnership with AstraZeneca would accelerate global clinical development, scale up manufacturing and crucially drive broad and equitable access around the world.

Are you proud that AstraZeneca was among the leaders of this global, life-saving project?

- Yes. We are incredibly proud of what we’ve done and the difference we’ve made. We save lives. This is a vaccine for the world and AstraZeneca has done more than any

Growth is robust across all regions and disease areas, as we continue to advance our portfolio of life-changing medicines other company to make the vaccine available, at no profit, to countries regardless of income level.

The majority of our vaccine doses have gone to low- and lower-middle-income countries, accounting for more than half of all COVAX deliveries, which we were the first to sign up for across the entire industry.

The pandemic has shown that continuous and wise investments in healthcare are important for both the life and health of the people, but also for the economy and stability of a society. Have we learned our lesson for the future?

- While the vaccine is the key element that will help the world return to normal, we must also look beyond and at the way in which we

rebuild our health systems. The broader issue of the resilience and sustainability of healthcare systems must be where our attention shifts once we overcome the immediate challenges of the pandemic.

That’s why, alongside our partners at the World Economic Forum and London School of Economics, we initiated the Partnership for Health System Sustainability and Resilience (PHSSR).

From new models of care to innovative financing mechanisms and breakthrough technologies, the PHSSR aims to identify solutions with the greatest potential across multiple healthcare systems and assess ways to support their adoption, with the ultimate ambition of better understanding the policy options and other tools that can build healthcare system resilience and sustainability.

We brought together policymakers, academics and the private sector to discuss how to implement these findings to really make a difference on the ground. The first phase of the PHSSR concluded successfully in March 2021, while the second phase has just begun.

AstraZeneca has specially designed programmes for the youth. Could you tell us more about that?

- Wherever we work in the world, we aim to have a positive impact on people and their communities. An example of that is the Young Health Programme (YHP) that was launched 10 years ago. This is a global non-communicable disease (NCD) prevention programme with a unique focus on young people aged 10 to 24. In partnership with UNICEF, the YHP has reached more than 30 countries and 12 million young people with information about NCD and risk factors for mental health issues and obesity. This also includes acting on smoking prevention among the youth, which is the focus of the YHP that we’ve had in Serbia since 2018.

You invest a great deal of your time and finances on promoting illness prevention and healthy lifestyles, but your business is manufacturing and selling medicines.

Are these two areas not contradictory?

- We believe they are not, as we recognise health as a human right. Our approach goes beyond our medicines. We provide health-

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BUSINESS INTERVIEW

that is just a transition step and is already a reality. AstraZeneca has medicines that are already established around the world and which provide, for example, more than five years with no signs of deterioration following a devastating ovarian cancer diagnosis, or three years of additional life for a person with lung cancer, both in the case of positive genetic predispositions.

And this is the type of reality that we also want to see being advanced in Serbia, through the improving of access to healthcare and investments in personalised medicine, as well as the implementing of

Our bold ambition is to find a cure for cancer, by first transforming it into a chronic disease, but that is just a transition step and is already a reality principles of initiating treatment during earlier stages. The innovative medicines that allow earlier treatment of cancer are saving and improving patients‘ lives and also supporting the general efficiency of the healthcare system. We believe that we are working towards a future where all people in Serbia have access to sustainable healthcare solutions for life-changing treatment and prevention.

care solutions along a continuum of care from prevention, awareness, diagnosis and treatment, to post-treatment and wellness.

Healthcare is our core business; we seek to prevent disease and support people on their path to better health. For those who have been diagnosed with a condition, we strive to ensure access to effective treatment.

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At AstraZeneca, we truly place patients‘ benefits at the heart of everything we do.

One of the many examples of our values being put into action are our efforts in Oncology. Our focus is on some of the most hostile and hard-to-treat cancers. Our bold ambition is to find a cure for cancer, by first transforming it into a chronic disease, but

Tell us something about you, your career...

- I joined AstraZeneca at the beginning of March 2021 as Cluster Country Director, Balkans, which encompasses Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia and other Western Balkan countries. I have over 20 years of experience in the pharma industry and an extensive background in successfully leading teams across countries in this part of Europe. Being a medical doctor by education, placing patients at the heart of every decision and action is my nature, so joining the patient-focused AstraZeneca was an intuitive step. In my new role, I look forward to building a diverse, strong and forward-looking team that plays a key role in accelerating the company‘s growth in the Balkan region, focusing on new launches and raising organisational capabilities by implementing an innovative model of customer and patient engagement.

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BUSINESS

DRAGAN RAJKOVIĆ, TETRA PAK REGIONAL SUSTAINABILITY DIRECTOR, EUROPE & CENTRAL ASIA

Fully Committed To Serbia’s

GREEN TRANSITION

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t’s been 70 years since we started producing a beverage carton that should save more than it costs. Serbia is one of the key spots on our global map, and our Gornji Milanovac factory is one of the best in class. The COVID-19 crisis has demonstrated how important it is to have a resilient food system and to make food safe and available everywhere. Serbia and its major food manufacturers have done an excellent job of keeping the dairy and juice infrastructure going during these very challenging times.

Today, more than ever, our business is very dedicated to climate neutrality, biodiversity preservation and effective waste management.

Plant-based raw materials, such as wood and sugar cane, are essential to our low-carbon circular economy approach.

The recycling rate of beverage cartons in Europe has increased from just over 5% in 1993 to more than 51% in 2019. And our aim is to collect 90% of all used beverage cartons by 2030.

AN EFFECTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR SERBIA Over the past 10 years, we have worked hard to increase the level of beverage carton recycling in Serbia and invested significantly in collection systems and a local paper mill.

However, if we want more recycling, there must be more waste collection supportedbyadequateinfrastructure.

Increasing the collection rate is possible through improved Extended

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With innovations in reverse vending machines and smart bin technologies and digitalisation, Serbia has an opportunity to set up a broad DRS that will improve packaging waste collection and recycling results significantly Producer Responsibility, as a scheme based on the shared responsibility model for everyone in the value chain and, as part of that, Deposit Return Schemes (DRS) like the one the Serbian government aims to introduce.

In practise, a DRS system would require Serbian consumers to pay a small deposit at the point of purchase, which they would get back

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when returning the empty container for recycling. The best results are achieved when this includes all packaging formats. Our recent project in Kragujevac shows how a DRS system can also reward consumers via public transportation or mobile communications financial recompense.

With innovations in reverse vending machines and smart bin technolo-

gies and digitalisation, Serbia has an opportunity to set up a broad DRS that will improve packaging waste collection and recycling results significantly. A deposit system model needs to be set up in a broad way from the perspective of products types, packaging material types and packaging formats and sizes.

The introduction of so-called “smart” or “digital” DRS, with broad scope, allows high collection results and the high quality of various collected packaging as a raw material for recyclers.

A broad system will result in reduced costs per unit, reduced consumer confusion on how to contribute to the collection, a much higher influence on achieving climate goals and conditions to use collected material as recycled content for new production, which will also support the development of local recycling capacities.

Tetra Pak welcomes the government’s commitment to sustainability and looks forward to helping Serbia achieve its ambitious environmental goals.

The estimate of packaging placed on the Serbian market in 2020 is at 66 kg per capita, while the projection for 2030 is 78 kg per capita. The main recommendations for the Serbian packaging waste management system include: the obligation for households to sort waste, the inclusion of the informal collection sector, ensuring equal rules for all actors, a well-functioning monitoring system and for the full net cost of waste collection, sorting and treatment to be covered by all producers and brand owners.

ELNOS GROUP BUSINESS

Proven Business Across

THE NORDIC MARKET Elnos Group is a domestic company that considers Sweden, Iceland and Norway as its second home. Headquartered in Southeast Europe, it operates throughout the continent in the field of electrical energy, specialising in facilities of up to 400 kV

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ith a scope of work that encompasses participation in the most challenging and complex energy projects, Elnos Group has to date confirmed its professionalism and expertise on multiple occasions. Employing more than 600 workers, it operates in 14 business centres in Southeast, Central, Northern and Southern Europe.

NORDIC SPOTLIGHT Over the ten years of its work on the Nordic market, Elnos Group has successfully implemented more than 90 projects. With engagements in Sweden, Norway and Iceland, the company’s teams have so far reconstructed and built thousands of kilometres of transmission lines and dozens of substations in these countries.

Through an expert approach to projects, the staff of Elnos Group have repeatedly left the public breathless with their implementing of (im)possible missions. They constructed the 220 kV Kröflulína 3 transmission line across Icelandic lava fields, participated in the construction of the Búrfell 2 hydroelectric power plant (270 MW) that’s located 100 metres underground, built a 100-metre-high transmission line on the shores of Sweden’s Lake Mälaren, participated in the construction of the longest HVDC interconnection in Europe and much more.

Elnos Group teams travelled to Iceland and Sweden on special charter flights during the period of the complete shutdown of European airports, in order to continue implementing capital projects previously initiated in these countries According to Elnos Group Management Board Vice President Branko Torbica, “Elnos Group is today one of the leading service providers in the Nordic countries, and to date we’ve left our greatest mark by working on the Swedish and Icelandic markets. Our future plans include strengthening our existing portfolio in these two countries,

with the intention of expanding it in the segment of infrastructure and industry. We also aim to develop further on the market in Norway, the country where we formed part of the capital project for the construction of the NordLink HVDC interconnection”.

Adding that the company is also making increasingly significant

strides on other European markets, Torbica explains: “We are increasingly working in Germany and the Netherlands, and during the previous few months we’ve signed our first contracts in Portugal and the UK, while we also plan to enter the Danish market by the end of this year”.

This Group today works in cooperation with local Scandinavian partners on the implementing of projects for companies Svenska Kraftnät, Vattenfall, E.ON, Elevio, Landsnet, Landsvirkjun and many others.

Elnos has such strong business links with the markets of the Nordic countries that it even broke down barriers during the pandemic. It was then that Elnos Group teams travelled to Iceland and Sweden on special charter flights, despite the complete shutdown of European airports then in force, in order to continue implementing capital projects that had previously been initiated in these countries.

According to Elnos Nordic Director of Operations Nenad Vukomanović, “with the establishing of site management at the level of Elnos Nordic, we contributed to the creating of all necessary conditions for even more intensive cooperation with our partners. The Nordic market is one of the most important markets of the Elnos Group and I’m convinced that we’re now on the threshold of a new and even more successful stage of our operations in this part of Europe”.

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BUSINESS

NEDA LAZENDIĆ, COUNTRY MANAGER WV INTERNATIONAL EMERGY

Dedicated To

ENERGY TRANSITION It was a full 11 years ago that Windvision, as a company engaged in wind farm construction projects and wind farm operations in Belgium and France, recognised Serbia’s potential, although adequate legislation was not then in place. And it didn’t regret that choice

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consist of clusters of wind farms that are being developed in several South Banat municipalities, with a total installed capacity of 690MW. The projects are at various stages of development, from planning preparation to detailed project-technical documentation, resolving legal property ownership relations and preparing environmental impact studies. Considering that this relates to several wind farm projects, their construction and commissioning will unfold successively, from 2024 to 2026.

e’ll spend the next five years busily realising, constructing and commissioning the Alibunar 1 and 2 and Banat 1-6 wind farms, as well as developing solar power plants, with which we’ll contribute to Serbia’s energy transition, as one of the country’s national goals - says WV International Emergy Country Manager Neda Lazendić.

It was 11 years ago that Windvision recognised Serbia as an attractive environment for doing business, despite conditions being far from ideal. Do good conditions for developing wind farms exist in our country today?

- It was way back in 2010 when Windvision recognised the potential of Serbia, although there was then no adequate legislation and other conditions for large-scale investments. After just two years, in 2012, construction of the Alibunar 1 (99MW) and Alibunar 2 (75MW) wind farms was launched, though they didn’t receive the status of a temporary privileged electricity producer within the scope of the feed-in tariff incentive model and the first quota of 500MW, despite having valid permits. From 2016 until today, we’ve been working to obtain permits for roads, transformer stations and transmission lines, whilst also working on new projects for the construction of the Banat 1-6 wind farms, with a total installed

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In 2020, we began developing new projects for the construction of the Banat 1-6 wind farms, on the territory of South Banat, with a total installed capacity of 690 MW capacity of 690MW, but also on expanding our portfolio in terms of technology – solar power plants with an installed capacity of 80MW. What has happened with the Alibunar 1 and 2 wind farms in the meantime?

- We’ve just obtained new building permit solutions for both projects, which enables us to install the latest technology wind turbines, or more precisely the wind turbines of manufacturer Vestas, V150 model with a unit capacity of 4.2 MW. Their construction depends on the implementation of a new model of subsidies that’s envisaged by the Law on the

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Use of Renewable Energy Sources, and those are auctions. The first are expected to take place at the end of thisyear,andwearecurrentlyworking to ensure Alibunar 1 and 2 emerge with the most competitive price. We believe that green electricity from these wind farms can be available on the network by as early as 2023.

Serbia turned out to be the right place for you, both because of the good wind and because of the great local team. Does that mean you will expand your operations?

- In 2020, we began developing new projects for the construction of the Banat 1-6 wind farms, which

You have knowhow, experience and a reliable partner. Does that guarantee that the projects will be implemented successfully?

- Under the scope of our corporate restructuring, projects in Serbia remained the property of Dutch founder WV-International, which was joined in early 2021 by Norwegian company NBT AS, or Emergy, as it is now called. Funds were thus provided for the realisation of the complete portfolio in Serbia within the planned deadlines. Our partnership with such an experienced investor will certainly help us in most effectively realising our common goals, but I would particularly like to welcome the great cooperation and support of the Norwegian Embassy in Belgrade, H.E. Jørn Eugen Gjelstad and the entire team, as well as cooperation with the Nordic Business Alliance.

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SWEDEN AND THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY

A Long And

EXCITING JOURNEY Known for being one of the world’s most innovative countries, Sweden has good prospects to be at the forefront of circular economy practises. From the perspective of business, this can create many new advantages and opportunities for Swedish companies operating on the global market.

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weden aspires is to become one of world’s first fossil-free nations, as part of its commitment under Roadmap 2050, and a circular economy should play an important role in reaching this goal. In July 2020, the Swedish

The role of government is to create the conditions necessary to encourage and support the good work that is already underway in the country’s regions and municipalities, the business sector, universities and civil society government introduced a national strategy for the circular economy, outlining the country’s determination to accelerate its transition to a circular economy. This should help achieve Sweden’s ambitious environmental and climate change objectives.

Time will be needed to transition from a linear economy, where valuable material is used only once and then discarded, to a circular economy that is smart and much better for the environment. In general, the timeline describing the evolution of Swedish waste management over the last 50 years can

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be described as following: - 1970s and ‘80s: recycling processes introduced, leading to less than 1% of Swedish household waste ending up in landfills today. The other 99% is recycled in various ways. This is in stark contrast to 1975, when only 38% of household waste was recycled.

This is referred to as the Swedish Recycling Revolution, as the rapid increase in environmental awareness and recycling over the last several decades has led to something of a ‘revolution’.

- 1990s: eco-cycling, which is aimed at waste prevention, changing consumption habits and introducing more efficient production methods. Swedish towns and municipalities developed a tradition of using a systematic approach by taking into account that municipal practises and functional policy areas are interrelated and impact one another.

- 2000s: sustainability has been successfully introduced in Sweden by combining citizen engagement, high ambition levels, set by both the public and private sectors, and international solidarity. As a result, Sweden has repeatedly ranked as the world’s most sustainable country over recent years.

- 2010s: the circular economy takes off in Sweden, as a country that is particularly well placed to take a leading role in enabling the production and delivery of resource-efficient goods, solutions and services. Sweden’s national strategy for the circular economy was introduced in 2020.

It is important to note that if the Swedish transition to a circular economy is to succeed, it needs to be implemented jointly by politicians, the business sector, the public sector, academia, private citizens and civil society.

The role of government is to create the necessary conditions to

encourage and support the good work that is already underway in the country’s regions and municipalities, the business sector, universities and civil society.

Each strategy should have a vision at its core.The Swedish government hopes that this strategy will lead to “a society in which resources are used efficiently in toxin-free circular flows, replacing new materials.” As such, work on a national circular economy strategy will focus

on the following key areas: • Sustainable production and product design.

• Sustainable ways of consuming and using materials, products and services.

• Toxin-free and circular eco cycles.

• The circular economy as a driving force for the business sector and other actors, through measures to promote innovation and circular

business models.

Known for being one of the world’s most innovative countries, Sweden has good prospects to be at the forefront of circular economy practises. From the perspective of business, this can create many new advantages and opportunities for Swedish companies operating on the global market. It should also lead to the creation of new companies and jobs, while contributing to reducing environmental impact.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Ronny Arnberg has worked at Borlänge Energi AB since 1972, where he currently holds the position of President of Development and International Division. Borlänge Energi is a public utility company wholly owned by the Municipality of Borlänge, which is located some 200km northeast of Stockholm. The company delivers a whole range of services to its customers, such as tap water, electricity and district heating, waste handling, broadband access and management of all green areas within the municipality. Ronny helped to develop and implement the municipality’s first ever waste plan, which included a 100% waste sorting system for recycling.

Since 2012, he has also been involved with IVL - Swedish Environmental Research Institute, serving as project manager and sales coordinator. In his work at IVL, he is focusing on the following key areas: - Coordination and supervision of projects related to waste management technologies and approaches, including business models and management aspects; - Carrying out feasibility studies and strategic planning related to recycling and the use of waste materials in efficient and environmentally sound ways; - Mentoring and supervising master thesis students in international projects.

Ronny’s participation in international projects ensures that he has extensive experience of working in international, multi-cultural and multi-language settings. In this part of Europe, he assisted and advised on the creation of Albania’s National Energy Plan in 2013. Since 1998, he has played an advisory role in multiple EU-level projects related to water, sewage, waste and energy in Romania. He maintains several professional memberships, such as serving in the role of Vice President of Swedish Environmental Technology since 1999.

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BY JENS MÅGE

NORWEGIAN EXPERTISE CONTRIBUTES TO BIOWASTE MANAGEMENT IN SERBIA

Smart Way To Get

STARTED IN SERBIA Biowaste management is a starting point and a prerequisite for all waste management in a circular bioeconomy. It preserves the environment, creates new green jobs and enables Serbia to meet the recycling targets and requirements of the EUs new Green Deal and waste directives.

In August this year, fires again broke out in Vinča, a mega landfill located 12-15 km from the centre of Belgrade. The toxic smoke could be felt throughout the city. Unfortunately, this is not an unusual phenomenon in Serbia.

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enmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, with the support of the Nordic Council of Ministers, have launched the project “Boosting Circular Economy in Serbia - Nordic Experience”.

The embassies invited experts from the Nordic countries to present good practice examples and show the importance and benefits of a circular economy. The first conference was held in Novi Sad on 15th September, and I was invited from Avfall Norge to share experiences from Norway.

Status of waste management in Serbia - My knowledge of Serbia was very

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limited before this visit. I thus really appreciated learning more about the country and meeting many engaged Serbs and people who are now involved in developing the country in a circular direction. This includes the Nordic ambassadors and staff at the Nordic embassies.

Serbia has significant production of coal and steel, with high emissions.

Environmental regulations and their enforcement, including following up on environmental violations, are insufficient to meet today’s expected standards. This results in a lot of pollution, together with emissions from traffic, coal power plants, heating with lignite and wood in houses, apartment and office buildings. In addition, there are the constant

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fires at landfills and dumpsites, as well as discharges due to a lack of waste management.

Only 11 of around 160 Serbian municipalities have some form of sorting and waste treatment. In practise, virtually all waste heads to landfill sites untreated. And most of these sites are not “sanitary” landfills, and are thus categorised as dumpsites.

Landfill fires - a big problem - Belgrade and other cities in Serbia and the Balkans regularly top lists of the most polluted cities in the world.

A report from the Global Alliance for Health and Pollution from 2019 stated that Serbia has set a record in Europe for pollution-related deaths measured per capita.

Biowaste must be sorted and treated separately - In 2025, landfills will account for 8-10% of man-made greenhouse gas emissions, according to international waste organisation ISWA’s pioneering report from 2016. Today, Serbia does not have adequate landfill fees or other incentives to reduce the amount of biowaste discarded at landfill sites. The renovation fee for households is artificially low (about a tenth of Norway’s), which is far from enough to secure investments in infrastructure and solutions for waste management.

The experience from Norway and other Nordic countries is that positive change comes through legislation and the enforcement of regulations, national objectives, municipalities’ own goals, climateand waste management plans and market requirements, including the demand of inhabitants for a better environment.

Over recent years, development has also been largely driven by the UN Sustainable Development Goals, transition to a circular economy - new ambitious goals and regu-

lations from the EU, including the Green Deal and “Fit for 55” and taxonomy - sustainability criteria for investments.

contaminated starting point. ‘Shit in - shit out’ applies just as much in the recycling industry as it does in many other industries.

Waste management provides renewable energy - An investment in sustainable waste treatment and recycling is also a great opportunity for more renewable and local energy production and new green jobs in Serbia.

For example, biowaste can be converted into sustainable biogas that replaces fossil natural gas or diesel, but also into biofertilizer that replaces fossil fertilizers. The residual waste, i.e., products that cannot be reused, repaired or recycled, can be incinerated with energy recovery and district heating. Even the ashes from the incineration process can eventually be used as a resource.

Precious metals can be extracted in “urban mining” processes and the salts from the ash can be utilised in new industrial processes.

Norwegian company NOAH will soon start building a pilot plant for salt recycling on the peninsula of Herøya in Norway. The project is called Resalt and the goals are to reduce the amount of hazardous waste that is stored and produce high-quality salts from a number of industrial streams.

Biowaste must be handled as a resource, sorted out at source and treated separately. All other material recycling and utilisation of household waste as a resource into new products depends on wet biowaste being sorted. In Serbia, as much as 50% of household waste consists of biowaste. This waste has up to 70% water-content and will contaminate all other waste streams if not separated at source.

Moreover, due to its low calorific value, this wet biowaste is not suitable for waste incineration. Nor will incineration of biowaste meet the EU standard for recycling.

You cannot make new high-quality recycled materials from a dirty and

New green jobs in the circular bioeconomy - The first treatment plant in Norway (incineration) was built in Oslo in the late 1960s. The country today has as many as 16 industrial biogas plants, 50 composting plants and 20 incineration plants of varying sizes.

Norway and other Nordic countries are considered as being very

a study by Avfall Norge. Additionally, value creation comes from all other materials and value chains in the circular economy, reuse, repair and new business models and business opportunities in almost all product types, deliveries and services.

Another study from Norway has shown that the transition to a circular economy in general can contribute to the creation of 50,000 new jobs, reduce CO2 emissions by about seven per cent and improve the trade balance by more than two percentage points.

The programme proposal includes five regions with 25 municipalities.

Garden waste from households is planned to be treated by home composting, assisted by local training programmes conducted by NGOs and communication arrangements.

The government will then support and tender the purchase of composting bins, collection solutions with “big bags”, collection vehicles and open composting plants (windrow composting) for the collection and treatment of green waste.

Improved biowaste management

If Serbia is to achieve the goals and requirements of the EU’s circular economy targets, the country must make major improvements to the whole waste system advanced and have world-leading companies in deposit return schemes of empty bottles (PET and aluminium, with 90% collection rates) as well as advanced sorting systems (Tomra) and advanced biogas systems for sewage sludge (Cambi). Still, the country needs to improve collection and recycling rates from today’s level of around 35-40% for biowaste on the whole.

From the value chains of biogas and biofertilizer from biowaste, Norway can - with its 5.3 million inhabitants - create 20,000 new green jobs within 10-20 years, according to

Serbia begins with garden- and park-waste - Biowaste, i.e., green waste, garden/ park waste and food/kitchen waste, accounts for 50% of total waste production in Serbia, with over a million tons annually.

Speaking at the Novi Sad conference, Assistant Minister Sandra Dokić, responsible for strategic planning and European integration at the Ministry of Environmental Protection, presented a draft of a programme for the collection and treatment of garden- and park-waste.

is key to recycling household waste and diverting such waste away from landfills, with all the associated environmental problems. This programme can therefore be a smart way to get started in Serbia.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Jens Måge is a circular economist specialising in the circular bioeconomy, biowaste collection and treatment and textiles. He is an advisor at Avfall Norge and a board member of the European Compost Network, ECN

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FINLAND

Stepping Boldly Towards

A CIRCULAR ECONOMY Since the creation of Finland’s roadmap to a circular economy, ever more countries have recognised the importance of advancing a circular economy to mitigate climate change and tackle a host of crises, from resource scarcity to biodiversity loss and climate change.

By Laura Järvinen, Sitra Leading Specialist, and Riku Sinervo, Sitra Specialist

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n a planet that’s being ravaged by the climate crisis and biodiversity loss, wellbeing can no longer be based solely on the manufacturing of new goods and introducing of new natural resources.

The circular economy is an economic model that aims to optimise the system as a whole and tackle the root causes of biodiversity loss, climate change and natural resource depletion.

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Rather than producing more and more goods, in a circular economy we get more value from what we have, and we retain that value within the economy for as long as possible, through smarter designs, digital solutions and a shift from owning products to using services.

But how can we actually make the transition to a circular economy? In 2016, Finland was the first country in the world to prepare a national circular economy roadmap, under the leadership of the Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra. This roadmap provides a plan to move the country

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away from a ‘make-take-waste’ linear economy model to one that protects resources and eliminates waste along value chains.

The roadmap has proven to be a strong tool in launching a circular change and creating a strong commitment throughout Finnish society. Finland today has a variety of ongoing circular economy activities in several sectors, a governmental programme for advancing the circular economy, and the highest number of circular economy higher education courses in the world.

Since the creation of Finland’s

roadmap, ever more countries have recognised the importance of advancing a circular economy to mitigate climate change and tackle a host of crises, from resource scarcity to biodiversity loss and climate change.

Circularity is even shaping many visions for the future. For instance, the EU’s new Circular Economy Action Plan featured as a key element of the European Green Deal, which is itself an ambitious plan to build a carbon-neutral economy. The roadmap can be an important route to kickstart new circular initiatives.

Here is a selection of Finland’s key lessons learned from the creation of its circular transition roadmap.

CONTEXT IS KEY The most important aspect of creating a circular economy roadmap is to design solutions that work for a particular context and that keep a country’s particular perspective in mind. Circular solutions cannot simply be imported from other countries without alteration. They must make the most of a country’s capabilities and resources.

To that end, Finland brought together a core working group that included 50 changemakers from all sectors of society. In addition, hundreds of participants took part via workshops and online commenting. With everyone around the same table, it was possible to create a shared mindset regarding a path towards a sustainable future.

OOPERATION IS REQUIRED C FOR PROGRESS Winning solutions are not simply created using the old ‘top-down’ way of doing things, but rather by demanding diverse cooperation and persevering with effort and commitment. Expertise from government, business, academia, civil society and the public are all needed for change to take root and grow.

A just transition to a circular economy also requires cooperation across borders. According to Circularity Gap Report 2021, the world economy is only 8.6% circular.

As most countries are too small to be entirely self-sufficient in circularity, it is essential to find ways to make global resource extraction and processing more sustainable. It will also be crucial for circular principles and practises to be adopted globally.

INVEST IN EDUCATION System-wide change is not possible without a major investment in education. Professionals, experts and decision-makers, both now and

in the future, play a decisive role in building a new future.

Knowing the importance of education, it was back in 2017 that Finland created an education initiative for students to study the circular economy. This was a new initiative that ranged from primary schools to universities. The study packages and teaching materials were developed together with schools in a series of projects for circular economy education in 2017-2019. Since then, circular economy teaching has established itself as a permanent part of the Finnish curriculum.

LEARNING FROM FINLAND Finland’s road map was more than just an official document. Several projects of significant importance to Finland’s circular transition were agreed on during the road map process. For instance, governmental innovation and funding organisation Business Finland launched a four-year, 300-million-euro circular economy programme. Technology Industries of Finland, together with Sitra and Accenture Strategy, created a playbook for circular economy business development

System-wide change is not possible without a major investment in education. Professionals, experts and decision-makers, both now and in the future, play a decisive role in building a new future Moving forward, education will come in the form of upskilling, as the principles and practises of the circular economy will impact almost every job. Vocational education, and lifelong learning in particular, need new solutions, allowing professionals in different sectors to apply the principles of a carbon-neutral circular economy to their own work.

for Finnish SMEs operating in the manufacturing industries.

Such efforts led to one-of-a-kind experiments, such as the regenerative agriculture pilot project called Carbon Action, which gathered more than 110 farms to tests different farming methods for enhancing soil carbon sequestration. This experiment then evolved into the Carbon Action Platform, which

develops and researches ways of accelerating soil carbon sequestration and verifying the results scientifically.

With a roadmap in place, the circular economy has established itself in the public discourse and materialised at a practical level as tangible actions.

Good initiatives have been generated, for example in the areas of mobility services, nutrient cycle and promotion of the use of waste materials from the construction sector. The Finnish Government’s Circular Economy Programme, published in early 2021, represents an important milestone in Finland’s circular economy work. Finland aims to reduce the use of natural resources by 2035 and has committed to achieving climate neutrality by the same year. Such goals are only possible when the growth of the economy and people’s wellbeing are no longer based on the wasteful use of natural resources.

Supported by research institutes, small and agile companies have been able to develop solutions that use resources in a more efficient manner than was the case before. The circular economy also has strong support among Finnish citizens. According to a 2021 Sitra survey, 82% of Finns believe that a circular economy creates new jobs and wellbeing in Finland.

The Finns don’t have all the answers – they are learning as they go, like the rest of the globe. However, they have learned first-hand the importance of adapting and scaling up existing solutions, investing in a participatory process, working together and investing in education. These factors – sparked by their roadmap – have been the key elements of Finland’s transition to a circular economy.

A longer version of this article was originally published on 9th June 2021 on the website of the World Economic Forum

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EXAMPLES OF GOOD PRACTICE FROM DENMARK

The Circular Economy Is

AN INSPIRING JOURNEY Climate change, biodiversity loss and resource scarcity oblige us all to rethink our businesses and our responsibility. The fact that we, at Odense Waste Management, have amassed so much knowledge over so many decades gives us a special obligation to actively use this knowledge to, among other things, encourage the implementation of a circular economy. We invite you to make use of our knowledge, and we look forward to assisting in the development of the circular economy in Serbia, as well as in other countries.

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here is a worldwide need to manage waste in a much better way by being innovative and finding new paths, so that we can make better use of our resources. Circular thinking must be integrated into the entire consumption and production chain.

Companies and consumers must find ways of using resources in a far better way than we do today.

In Odense, Denmark, the City Council is about to approve a new waste management plan that contains several initiatives supporting a circular economy. The 200,000 citizens of Odense are encouraged to upcycle, reuse and recycle more.

The plan also contains actions that support new business within the circular economy.

These initiatives link to the recently released “Climate Action Plan 2022”, which will, among other things, make Odense climate neutral by 2030 through the removing of 490,000 tons of CO 2 in Odense Municipality.

Serbia is also embracing the circular economy: a roadmap has been developed by the Ministry of Environmental Protection and a three-year action plan is currently being developed. Odense Waste Management participated in the

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recent conference “Boosting Circular Economy in Serbia – Nordic Experiences”, which was organised by the embassies of Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden in Novi Sad and presents initiatives from Odense to inspire local actions in the circular economy in Serbia.

3 EXAMPLES OF CIRCULAR PROJECTS IN ODENSE Odense Waste Management is a limited company owned by Odense Municipality. We have been collecting municipal waste since 1885.

Apart from having collected waste from citizens and small enterprises for decades, we have also collected experience and knowledge about all aspects of waste management. The fact that we have accumulated so much knowledge through so many decades gives us a special obligation to actively use this knowledge to encourage the implementation of a circular economy.

The last decade’s focus on the cradle-to-cradle concept, the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the circular economy has given us the opportunity to capitalise on our knowledge with concrete projects producing tangible results. Let us present three of them here.

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ONATION OF EQUIPMENT: D FROM WASTE PREVENTION IN DENMARK TO BETTER RECYCLING AND BETTER WORKING CONDITIONS IN BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA AND SERBIA In 2019, Odense Waste Management was set to replace outdated equipment due to the introduction of a new waste collection system.

The fibreglass containers no longer met the required standard or the needs of Odense and were originally intended to be shredded. However, a request from the City of Prijedor in Bosnia-Herzegovina, which was in need of new equipment for waste collection, encouraged us to rethink and take a more circular approach. We decided to send 2,000 old containers to Bosnia-Herzegovina and this donation made it possible to introduce the collection of more waste fractions in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Requests soon followed from nine other cities in Bosnia-Herzegovina and from Serbia’s Guča and Lučani. In total, OdenseWaste Management was able to donate 8,602 waste containers.

According to the Head of theTransportation Department at Odense Waste Management, Lars T. Hansen, “it was a big job to get the containers to Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia, but having seen what a difference they make I have no doubt that it was worth the effort”.

ROMOTING CIRCULAR P CONVERSATIONS THROUGH THE SECOND-HAND SHOP, REUSE WAREHOUSE AND COLLABORATION PLATFORM FOR GREEN ENTREPRENEURS IN ZIRKEL In 2020, Odense Waste Managementopeneditsdoorstozirkel,ahouse of circularity where items collected from recycling centres’ containers for “Reusable effects” are collected, distributed, exhibited or sold.

The zirkel second-hand shop aims to shows the beauty and possibilities of many discarded items in a different

With Serbia embracing the circular economy, there is a lot that it can learn from Danish experiences. Representatives of Odense Municipality’s Odense Waste Management participated in the recent conference “Boosting Circular Economy in Serbia – Nordic Experiences” and showed their knowhow and creative setting. zirkel is not a traditional second-hand shop, but more of a showroom for the better use of discarded materials, upcycling and circular thinking. Visitors to the zirkel second-hand shop are inspired to be creative and to see discarded materials in new contexts.

The zirkel reuse warehouse is packed with items that the second-hand shops of humanitarian organisations have access to and are able to pick up and sell in their own shops. Several filled containers are transported every week from recycling centres to zirkel, where they are sorted and neatly stacked on shelves for collection by humanitarian organisations. The zirkel warehouse is a resource bank for entrepreneurs, artists and educational institutions. zirkel is also a platform for collaborations with entrepreneurs, artists, local enterprises and educational institutions that want to work together

to promote upcycling, redesign and circular thinking. zirkel is an example of how items from recycling stations can be used in numerous ways, as opposed to being incinerated, deposited or recycled.

It is also an example of how we can promote circular thinking by collaborating and experimenting. “ CIRCULAR IN ODENSE” – CREATING GREEN ENTERPRISES AND PRODUCTS The EU-funded “Circular in Odense” project aims to help green entrepreneurs, from idea to prototype, and at best also to business.

Over the three years of this project, Odense Waste Management has succeeded in helping 10 partners work with different circular issues, from textile recycling to a packaging-free grocery store and social urban furniture. The project runs until

the end of 2021 and offers everyone a business idea, based on the circular economy, assistance with business development and the possibility of becoming a partner and receiving financial business start-up support.

The “Circular in Odense” project has initiated new circular prototypes and new circular businesses, while it has also inspired others to seek green business opportunities. This provides an important contribution to the circular conversation locally and globally.

The 10 partners’ business cases are an excellent source of inspiration for other entrepreneurs who aspire to make a difference by establishing a circular production chain.

“Circular in Odense” is an example of how a company can use its knowledge and passion to speed up circular development. It is our experience that, by being willing to invest time and share materials from the recycling centres, our relatively small contribution is a catalyst for many emerging entrepreneurs with ideas of how to make circular production and consumption chains.

OOPERATION IS KEY FOR C US AND FOR THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY For many people, waste collection and waste management are associated with a low status. However, for our 180 employees, waste management is associated with high importance: our employees are proud to be waste collectors, waste guides and waste experts. We think it is very interesting to be able to use the knowledge we’ve accumulated over many years to make a difference in the green area.

We invite you to utilise our knowledge and look forward to assisting in the development of the circular economy in Serbia and other countries.

Michael Dino Hansen is Waste Management Specialist at Odense Waste Management Ltd. Dorthe Lind Christensen is Senior Advisor, CSR and Sustainability, at Odense Waste Management Ltd.

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INTERVIEW IVA PETROVIĆ, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE NORDIC BUSINESS ALLIANCE

We Learn

FROM THE BEST We believe that we can together turn problems into opportunities and achieve results for a cleaner and brighter future. Those of us in the North started earlier, so we have learned some lessons the hard way. And we want to share those lessons with Serbia, so that this society can avoid our mistakes and reproduce our success stories “There has already been a lot of talk about that and the good news is that, in the last year, there have been encouraging indicators that the state is now more prepared to get to grips with resolving these problems, at least when it comes to increasing investments in communal infrastructure – we have announcements of larger investments in the sewerage network, wastewater treatment plants, sanitary landfills and the like,” says Nordic Business Alliance Executive Director Iva Petrović. “What is less known is that the construction of the lacking infrastructure would simultaneously pave the way for changing the growth model in Serbia and shifting from a linear model of the economy to a circular one. That in itself represents a step towards a greener future for Serbia, because it implies less pollution, more efficient production and reduced use of resources.”

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erbia is facing great challenges in the field of environmental protection, which was neglected during the previous period, due to the low level of environmental awareness in the society. Weak institutions, the failure to implement regulations and very low investments in public utilities infrastructure over the last 20 years have led to

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SerbiatodaybeingamongEurope’smostpolluted countries – which poses a serious threat to the health of citizens and impinges on their quality of life. The first step in resolving environmental problems demands the strengthening of the state’s institutional capacities, but also huge public investments in communal infrastructure totalling almost 10 billion euros.

These are this year’s key topics for the European Union, the Nordic countries and their embassies, and also, to a certain extent, for Serbia. What activities have you planned and what will be in your focus?

- That’s right. At the heart of the European Green Deal, which is the EU’s new strategy for long-term economic development, are the fight against climate change and low-carbon development, more efficient production and a toxin-free environment by the middle of this century. The Nordic countries, as pioneers of sustainable development in Europe, fully share the vision of such a Europe, and that vision is also extremely relevant for Serbia, as an EU membership candidate country and a country with an economy that is closely connected to

the European common market. Given that Serbia is at the very beginning of its transition to a circular economy, the basic idea of this project is to propel this process forward by transferring the many decades of successful experience of the Nordic countries in the areas of waste management, wastewater treatment, reliance on renewable energy sources and other activities that simultaneously enable economic growth and a cleaner environment. Through several workshops to be held in Novi Sad, Kragujevac, Niš and Belgrade, experts from the Nordic countries will present best practice examples and point out the incontrovertible benefits brought by a circular economy.

When it comes to developing a circular economy in Serbia, which areas could primarily absorb the technological knowhow of Nordic companies?

- The management and processing of waste, as well as wastewater treatment, are areas where Nordic countries have extremely rich experience, which is why these two areas naturally impose themselves as potential very fertile ground for future cooperation.

Specifically, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden are practically leaders of Europe as a whole when it comes to all forms of waste treatment – incineration, recycling, composting – as reflected in the fact that only about 1% of municipal waste generated in these countries ends up in landfill sites. On the other hand, we have a completely different picture in Serbia, where only about one per cent of municipal waste is processed, with the remaining 99% discarded at landfill sites.

A large part of that waste ends up in one of the approximately 3,000 illegal dumps in the country or in municipal landfill sites that often don’t satisfy even the minimum environmental requirements. We need strategic solutions for some important segments of waste management, such as recycling and packaging waste, which is also an area where we can learn a lot from the Nordic countries.

You recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with representatives of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce & Industry’s Centre for Circular Economy that aims to strengthen these two business associations in the area of developing the circular economy. What are the next steps?

- Apart from the Nordic Business Alliance, the Nordic embassies’ partners in the implementation of the project “Boosting circular economy in Serbia - Nordic experiences” also include NALED, the Serbian Chamber of Commerce & Industry, the Chamber of Commerce of Vojvodina and the cities of Novi Sad, Kragujevac and Niš. As such, a natural need arose for cooperation between the two business associations, in which the key contribution of the CCIS Centre for Circular Economy in this phase is to identify domestic companies for which the workshops that we organise are relevant – whether those are companies that the transfer of the technology and experiences of Nordic partners should be directed

Political decision-makers and local institutions must be the leaders of this transition, which will result in the better management of waste and wastewater, improved air quality and greater reliance on renewable energy sources towards or domestic innovative companies and start-ups that are just starting to engage in the circular economy. Further cooperation

should enable the fortifying of existing links within the scope of the established network between the Nordic embassies, domestic institutions, experts and local partners – all with the aim of providing support to Serbia in the development of a low-carbon and permanently sustainable circular economy.

What do you expect from the upcoming conference on the circular economy?

- I believe that, after this conference, all key actors in Serbia will have a better understanding of the concept of the circular economy - how it works and what their role is in the transition process. That is extremely important, because although there’s been a lot of talk about the circular economy in Serbia lately, it seems that the general public still isn’t fully aware of what’s actually meant by this model of economic development. Apart from providing an overview of the technological solutions that the Nordic countries have implemented successfully, an important stride forward should also be made by overcoming the prejudice that environmental protection is just an economic expense and developing an understanding that transitioning to a circular model brings tangible opportunities for economic growth and job creation. It is precisely this fact that should provide additional motivation for the Government and local authorities in Serbia to intensify their efforts when it comes to strengthening all elements of the state system for environmental protection, as well as launching an investment cycle in this area.

In cooperation with the Belgrade Running Club’s Nordic Walking School, you recently promoted this sport. What makes it attractive during these days when it seems that the pandemic will again confine us to four walls?

- It is no coincidence that Nordic walking was the Nordic Business Alliance’s first public event after last winter’s wave of the pandemic abated. After a long and difficult year, we all had a need to move, socialise, connect, try new things, gain new experiences and build new friendships. But the first step is for us to be healthy. And Nordic walking distinguishes itself as the most inclusive form of training, because everyone can join, regardless of their age and level of physical fitness, which is also an ideal combination of the values that we nurture at the Nordic Business Alliance.

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