Official presentation of economic diplomats - 28 new representatives of Serbia

Future economic advisers who will be working in the diplomatic and consular missions of Serbia, 28 of them, were presented today (January 21, 2010) in the Ministry of Economy.

Economic diplomats will be employed in the embassies and consular offices of Serbia in the countries of European Union, the countries of the region, USA, Russia, China and Japan, which are the most important economic partners of Serbia - the Assistant Minister of Economy, Jelena Marjanović, said to the press.

She said that their job would be to work on promotion of economic potentials of Serbia and to try to attract foreign investors.

According to her words, they are expected to start working in few months, as soon as they finish serious preparations.

Economic diplomats will be the officials of the Ministry of Economy, but their superiors will be either ambassadors or consules. They will receive diplomatic salaries on the basis of the agreement between the Ministry of Economy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs .

According to Ms. Marjanović, there were about 300 candidates, 28 of whom were chosen after strict selection process. Most of them are economists and philologists.

The Minister said that she did not know if any of them was member of some political party because it had not been asked from them to write that in their CVs, while one of the candidates said to the press that they were all members of the party called Serbia.