State Secretary at the Ministry of European Integration Mira Radenović Bojić and Head of Cooperation at the European Union Delegation to Serbia Nicola Bertolini attended on 26 February 2025, the final conference of the cross-border cooperation project between Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina “Via Dinarica,” in which the EU invested EUR 282,594, out of the total project value of EUR 337,555.
Since the beginning of the project’s realisation, 350 kilometres of new hiking trails have been mapped and marked in Serbia, while in Bosnia and Herzegovina, 320.6 kilometres of existing trails have been maintained and a 160-kilometre route has been mapped to connect trails in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, creating a unique Via Dinarica – Green Trail route, with a total length of 825 kilometres.
State Secretary at the Ministry of European Integration Mira Radenović Bojić emphasised that the Via Dinarica project, implemented by the Development Agency Zlatibor from Užice, and the City of Sarajevo and the Municipality of Vareš in Bosnia and Herzegovina, was an example of good practice in the proper and high-quality use of EU funds.
“Local self-governments in Serbia must be ready to reform and adapt their capacities to successfully apply for European Union funds and thereby strengthen their economies”, Radenović Bojić pointed out.
Over the past seven years, the European Union has invested EUR 14 million in cross-border cooperation projects between Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. “Our priority goal is to help and economically strengthen the local population. The European Union is a friend and partner of Serbia and will continue to be so in the future,” Bertolini stated at the conference on Zlatibor.
The Via Dinarica project has contributed not only to the development of tourism infrastructure but also to strengthening the capacities of local communities for sustainable management and promotion of tourism offerings.
Assistant Minister of Tourism and Youth Višnja Rakić stated at the final conference on Zlatibor that 2024 had been the year of tourism in Serbia.
According to her assessment, tourism is a link between all other economic sectors, and the increase in tourist traffic and revenue has also been influenced by infrastructure development, primarily road construction.
During their visit to Zlatibor, Radenović Bojić and Bertolini also toured two other European Union-supported projects: the dairy “Naša Zlatka” in Kriva Reka and the “E-Cross Pass.”
As part of the “E-Cross Pass” project, a total of 595.5 kilometres of hiking trails along Route E7 have been successfully developed and marked, including 339.4 kilometres in Serbia and 255.6 kilometres in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
These trails connect Western Serbia and the Tuzla Canton. Of particular importance is the connection of two protected areas: the Konjuh Protected Landscape in Tuzla Canton and Tara National Park, which has enormous potential for tourism development and environmental conservation.
Source: FoNet