Despite progress in implementation of the Law on Climate Change, there is still room for improvement

PET’s Program Director and Co-founder Mr Bojan Gajić was one of the speakers at the panel discussion Three Years of Implementation of the Law on Climate Change in Serbia, organized by the Renewables and Environment Regulatory Institute (RERI) on Tuesday, 5th March 2024, where one of the conclusions was that while the second Analysis of the Law on Climate Change of the Republic of Serbia has noted progress in the implementation of the Law, there is still a lot of room for improvement.

The panel was organised as a part of the conference Presentation of the Analysis of the Law on Climate Change of the Republic of Serbia under the auspices of the project “Civil Society for Energy Transition.” Mr Mirko Popović, Programme Director of RERI presented the main findings of the Analysis, pointed out the importance of regular reporting on the implementation of regulation and strategies, emphasizing that the “delay in adoption will also imply the law implementation”. 

The panelists discussed various perspectives on the state of implementation of the Law on Climate Change, as well as recommendations enabling improvement of the practice in climate change mitigation and adaptation.

As one of the panelists, Mr Bojan Gajić, offered valuable insights on the importance of local governments in the implementation of the Law, highlighting the linkages between green energy and climate change. He also emphasized that it is necessary to address the lack of capacities in the local governments and raise awareness among their representatives on climate change issues since the majority of initiatives on the ground are happening at the local level.

 “We heard today that the Ministry is ready to take more intensive steps and adapt the new legal framework and involve all stakeholders. I think it is necessary to include local governments and prepare obligations and measures to control the fulfillment of those obligations,” as Mr Gajić added.

The panel also included Ms Dragana Radulović from the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Dr Ivan Simić, Assistant professor at the Faculty of Architecture.