Belgrade, 22 September - With the support of the Government of Japan, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Serbia in cooperation with the Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Ministry of Mining and Energy selected the best project ideas that were received in response to the "Challenge Call for Innovative Solutions for Decarbonisation That Contribute to a Just Green Transition in Serbia". This public call was announced in July of this year.

Out of a total of 32 received proposals for innovative solutions, the expert jury chose 21 which will receive mentoring and technical support for further development. In the first phase, the selected teams will undergo training in areas such as the principles of a just green transition, pollution reduction technologies, business planning, project management, as well as assistance in the preparation of specific analyses, project documentation, and the like. The phase of preparing projects for co-financing will last from the end of September to December 2022.

After this phase, co-financing will be provided for the best projects to be implemented in practice. Part of the co-financing, in the amount of 600,000 US dollars, will be provided from the project funds, and the candidates will also undergo training on attracting additional sources of financing. UNDP will also organise the presentation of projects and solutions to commercial banks and the donor community in order to secure further sources of financing.

Serbian companies from the public and private sectors, as well as Japanese companies operating in Serbia, independently and in partnership with Serbian companies, participated in this Challenge Call. Ideas were proposed for new or improved technologies that will contribute to greater energy efficiency and energy production from renewable sources, as well as waste separation and reuse. In addition, solutions were proposed for the retraining of workers from sectors that depend on the intensive use of fossil fuels.

The implementation of these ideas will contribute to the reduction of environmental pollution and greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), as well as the creation of new jobs in industries that are not based on the use of fossil fuels.

You can see the list of selected solutions on this LINK.

The “Just Green Transition and Decarbonisation in Serbia” project with the financial support of the Government of Japan, is implemented by UNDP in partnership with the Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Ministry of Mining and Energy.