First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia Ivica Dacic attended today in Srbobran the ceremony on the occasion of distribution and first usage of construction materials for the end users of the Regional Housing Programme, carried out in the Republic of Serbia under Subproject 2.

"I am very glad to be with you again, this time here in Srbobran, and mark the beginning of distribution and usage of construction materials for the end users of the Regional Housing Programme carried out in the Republic of Serbia under Subproject. As Chair of the Serbian Government's Commission for coordinating the process of permanent refugee integration, I have participated in events like this for a few months now, which has demonstrated the level of dedication and intensity invested in the activities to implement the Regional Housing Programme in the Republic of Serbia. Over this short period, in the previous two months only, I have laid foundation stones for the construction of housing in Vrsac, Paracin, Prokuplje, Krusevac and Sremska Mitrovica. I have put in my best effort to respond to every invitation of the Commissariat for Refugees and Migration, and I can say with pride and immense pleasure that the Programme is in full swing throughout Serbia."

The Minister said that Subproject 2 envisaged the purchase of 250 village houses, construction of 200 housing units, 120 prefabricated houses and the distribution of 249 packages of construction material – coming from the Programme Fund, as well as 70 packages financed through contributions of the Republic of Serbia. He stressed that the distribution of construction materials to 319 families had already started in 28 local self-government units.

Minister Dacic recalled that, in April, it had been five years since the Donors' Conference in Sarajevo, which announced grants for the realization of the Programme.

"It took a lot of patience and perseverance for the Programme to come to life and continue towards implementation. And all of this we achieved cooperating with our international partners, beneficiary states, including selfless efforts and dedication of our national institutions, headed by the Commissariat for Refugees and Migration.

We owe a debt of gratitude to our international partners as well, of which the EU is the largest donor, as well as to bilateral donors which recognized the importance of the Programme and helped it pick up pace."

The First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs underlined in particular that the Regional Housing Programme demonstrated that if there is a will, a path to solutions can be found.