The Chairman of the National Assembly and the head of the OSCE Mission to Serbia today signed, at Assembly House, the Annex to the Memorandum on Understanding, thereby confirming their mutual intention to continue and expand their co-operation. Chairman Markovic and HE Hans Ola Urstad signed the document making it possible to implement the Parliamentary Support Programme to support the programme of ‘Public Access to the Assembly: establishing institutional mechanisms to ensure openness of the Assembly to the public’, funded by the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Mr Markovic underlined that the Assembly was today ‘open’ to all members of the public, thanks to the partnership and assistance of ‘those with experience’, and expressed his pleasure at the continuing co-operation. Mr Urstad said that this was only one of the projects successfully implemented by the National Assembly and the OSCE Mission so far. The signing of the memorandum of understanding between the National Assembly and the OSCE Mission was also attended by HE Andreas Zobel, German Ambassador to Serbia, who reiterated that his government was prepared to extend its full support to the implementation of the National Assembly ‘openness’ programme.

The project is to include public relations training for Assembly employees, study visits for Assembly Support Service staff to regional parliaments, a study visit to the German Bundestag, assistance to the National Assembly in issuing publications about its buildings and parliamentary activities, as well as field trips for Support Service staff to remote regions of Serbia to present the nation’s highest legislative institution.