The Ministry of Economy has proposed a new Regulation aimed at establishing a Support Program to improve the safety and quality of products and services. If adopted, the program will allocate 90 million dinars in subsidies to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and entrepreneurs.
The proposed support will enable MSMEs to co-finance activities such as product conformity assessments with Serbian and international technical standards, as well as obtaining necessary conformity marks. Additionally, the subsidies will help businesses align their operations with internationally recognized management systems, undergo accreditation procedures, and acquire Serbian standards.
The primary goal of this program is to enhance product and service quality, thereby improving market access and competitiveness for MSMEs, which will benefit the overall Serbian economy.
According to the Ministry, the funds will be provided as a co-financing scheme, covering 40% to 60% of justified costs (excluding VAT) for eligible project activities. The program aims to boost the use of standards in production, product certification, and management systems.
The program’s development involved consultations with representatives from the Serbian Chamber of Commerce and quality infrastructure institutions like the Institute for Standardization of Serbia and the Accreditation Body of Serbia. Feedback from industry stakeholders included requests for extended implementation deadlines for medical devices, increased subsidy limits for high-class medical devices, and eligibility for producers who have received other forms of state support.
The Ministry highlighted the urgent need for this regulation due to high interest from businesses. It also noted that work on the draft Quality Infrastructure Development Strategy for 2025-2030 is underway, which will outline future steps for advancing metrology, standardization, accreditation, and conformity assessment.
