The Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia Prof. Dr Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic received today at the National Assembly House William Infante, newly appointed Resident Coordinator of the United Nations Development Programme in Serbia.

UNDP Resident Coordinator deemed the cooperation between UNDP and the National Assembly very productive so far, which presents a good foundation for future activities. He pointed out that all UN organizations in Serbia (UNDP, UNCEF, UNHCR) will continue to provide the National Assembly with expert support in the fields of human and children’s rights protection, strengthening its surveillance function over regulatory bodies, such as the Ombudsman and anti-monopoly commission, as well as over the executive government, particularly in the issue of implementing the adopted legal regulations.

The National Assembly Speaker briefed the UNDP Coordination on the results of the cooperation between this organization and the National Assembly so far, which had contributed to develop parliamentary democracy and diplomacy in Serbia. The Assembly Speaker stressed that the modifications to the Rules of Procedure have increased the National Assembly’s efficiency, adding that passing the Law on the National Assembly would enable the strengthening of its control function.

The dominant topics of the meeting between Assembly Speaker Djukic-Dejanovic and Coordinator Infante dealt with protecting the rights of the most vulnerable population categories, combating poverty, specific types of support, first of all regarding the training of the deputies and employees of the Support Service, organizing public hearings on human and children’s rights, including the media into specific activities, as well as intensifying regional cooperation in resolving the issue of refugees and internally displaced persons.