"Partnership for Innovation" in Public Services

With support from the European Union (EU), the Public Procurement Office and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) today presented the "Partnership for Innovation", a procedure within the public procurement system designed to foster collaboration between public sector purchasers and private companies. The goal is to jointly develop innovative solutions currently unavailable on the market.

The event brought together representatives from relevant ministries, local governments, startups, and private sector entities to exchange experiences and take initial steps toward implementing this procedure in Serbia's public procurement system.

Jelena Marušić, Innovation Fund                                                                                 "Our experiences with public-private sector cooperation have been positive and have exceeded our initial expectations. Many of our preconceived notions were challenged. Through the GovTech program, we demonstrated that institutions can successfully collaborate with startups."

Rihard Maša, Head of the Department for Operations II at the EU Delegation, emphasized that this initiative will align Serbia’s public procurement practices with EU policies and standards.

“Innovation partnerships are forward-looking instruments essential for addressing complex public needs while simultaneously promoting innovation and competitiveness,” said Maša.

Suad Ljajić, JKP Gradska čistoća Novi Pazar                                                             "As a public company, we identified the problem ourselves and worked on developing a solution. Successful solutions require a combination of academic expertise and domain knowledge."

Sandra Damčević, Director of the Public Procurement Office, underscored the benefits for citizens as a key outcome of public-private collaboration on new solutions.

“In cases where no commercially available solution exists, a partnership for innovation can be the most effective way to meet clients' needs, especially in matters of public interest. I want to highlight the significance of EU support in developing tender document templates for innovation partnerships, now available on the Public Procurement Office website,” noted Damčević.

Marija Nikolić, Bitgear                                                                                      "Collaboration with the public sector allowed us to test and validate our solutions in practice, providing a valuable foundation for entering into innovation partnerships."

Marijana Trifunović Stefanović, Team Leader of the "EU for PFM Facility in Serbia" project, highlighted the broader impact of these efforts on citizens.

“Whether it’s enabling faster construction and equipping of kindergartens with advanced technological systems to enhance education quality, implementing smart traffic management systems in cities, or adopting sustainable waste solutions, these partnerships yield measurable results that directly benefit citizens,” she explained.

Zoran Tomić, Ministry of Science, Technological Development and Innovation    "It is essential to systematically identify local challenges that can be addressed through this process and then connect them with the innovation ecosystem."

This event was organized as part of the project "EU for Public Finance Management in Serbia", funded by the European Union and implemented by UNDP, in partnership with the Center for Excellence in Finance (CEF) and the Ministry of Finance of Slovakia.