Serbian diaspora will gather in Stuttgart for Diaspora Meetings, an event dedicated to cooperation improvement in the fields of science, innovation and technological development, to take place on 17 June.

The event targets experts working in institutions and organizations in the field of science, technological development and innovation, in particular those originating from Serbia, and persons interested in cooperation. The event will present key initiatives launched in Serbia within the scientific and technological community. Vukašin Grozdić, State Secretary, and Nenad Paunović, BIO4 campus advisor, will present the completed and future activities of the Ministry of Science, Technological Development and Innovation of the Republic of Serbia. Their presentations will emphasize the Ministry’s commitment to improving cooperation with the Serbian diaspora and using its knowledge and skills for the development of Serbia.

‘One of the greatest assets held by the Republic of Serbia is its people in the diaspora, people who still know where they came from and where they want to return, who maintain strong ties with their motherland. We will have the opportunity to speak with our excellent scientists from best German universities and once again show the programs launched by the Science Ministry together with the Science Fund to establish closer ties between our academic community and the academic community in Germany. I would also like to point out that cooperation with Germany in the field of science is one of the most intensive, namely, the number of papers published by Serbian authors and authors from universities abroad show that Germany is one of the three most important countries for the Republic of Serbia,’ said Grozdić.

Diaspora Meetings are organized under the auspices of Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit – (GIZ) GmbH, in cooperation with the Ministry of Science, Technological Development and Innovation, Science and Technology Parks Belgrade and Niš, Nikola Tesla Serbian Academic Network and German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce.

According to Milica Lješević from GIZ, the Ministry of Science, Technological Development and Innovation recognizes the diaspora as an important potential, bearing in mind the significant number of Serbian students enrolling in universities abroad annually as well as the exchange of knowledge being one of the key drivers of further development in these fields.

Jovana Stamenković and Snežana Antonijević, GIZ project advisors, will present the activities of the Shaping Development-Oriented Migration (MEG) Global Program aimed at involving the diaspora in the process of strengthening ties with Serbia. The participants will thus learn how they can contribute to the development of the motherland.

To take part in the gathering, please register by email at pmd-serbia@giz.de or by phone at +381 63 22 06 77 (Viber, WhatsApp).

Source and photo: Ministry of Science, Technological Development and Innovation