VISIT OF THE DELEGATION OF THE FRENCH EMBASSY TO THE EUROPEAN AFFAIRS FUND OF AP VOJVODINA

The director of the European Affairs Fund of AP Vojvodina, Aleksandar Simurdić, hosted today the representatives of the Embassy of France in Belgrade, led by Francois Xavier Cowandy, the attache for cooperation, and Vladimir Marinković, the head of the French Institute in Novi Sad. Today’s meeting was an opportunity to discuss topics of common interest in order to strengthen bilateral relations between entities from the territory of AP Vojvodina and France.

Cooperation with local self-government units is recognized as one of the areas of cooperation that can greatly contribute to the acceleration of European integration processes through the exchange of examples of good practice between municipalities and cities from the territory of Vojvodina and regions in France. The mentioned cooperation will be a significant support to the Fund in the implementation of the planned goals, when it comes to promoting the local and regional development of AP Vojvodina.

Considering the significant role of the French Institute in Novi Sad in the field of cultural events and the promotion of Serbian-French friendship, the European Affairs Fund of AP Vojvodina will in the coming period, in cooperation with the Institute, work on strengthening support for cultural entities, in order to build new ways of cooperation between the French and Serbian cultural scene.

During the meeting, the importance of strengthening cooperation in the field of education and schooling was emphasized, in order to facilitate fundraising through European funds and programs, and in this regard, frameworks were proposed for intensifying cooperation of the academic community through networking with leading universities and institutes from France and Serbia, which can contribute to increasing the visibility and recognizability of the University in Europe.

Finally, in the light of the French presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of next year, with the fact that Novi Sad will take the title of European Capital of Culture in 2022, activities are planned that will contribute to the promotion of the European agenda in AP Vojvodina, that will be prepared jointly by the European Affairs Fund of APV and the French Embassy in Belgrade.