Serbia: Insufficient funding for flood defenses

BELGRADE – Serbian minister of agriculture Snezana Bogosavljevic Boskovic said Wednesday that the funds earmarked for the construction and maintenance of flood defense systems from 2006 to 2013 were at a record low of EUR 100,000 to 800,000, despite expert assessments that EUR 30 million were required.

Illustration – Photo: Supplied

The numbers show how difficult the situation was for the government in the face of devastating floods in May, said Bogosavljevic Boskovic at the Serbian government during the debate on the government report on floods and the bill on flood damage repair, adding that the government was forced to react with minimum available funds and based on the Law on Waters which showed numerous deficiencies.
The minister specifically pointed out the problem of water flows of the second order being under the jurisdiction of local self-governments, which proved unable to meet their obligations both financially and in terms of human resources.
Around 90,000 ha of arable land were flooded in May, the minister said, adding that some of waterlogged fields were reclaimed after the water receded.
“We are happy to say that farming can resume on around 16,000 ha of land for which we already provided the hybrid corn and soybean seeds. The distribution of fuel to the farmers will start tomorrow, and the distribution of funds intended for fertilizer inputs will commence very soon,” said Bogosavljevic Boskovic.