IPA III represents the third generation of the European Union’s Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance for the Western Balkans and Turkey. The European Parliament adopted IPA III on 15 September 2021, with retroactive application from 1 January 2021.
What does IPA III entail?
· Financial support and incentives aimed at facilitating political, institutional, social, and economic reforms in candidate and potential candidate countries for EU membership;
· A secured budget of EUR 14.2 billion for the seven-year period from 2021 to 2027;
· Introduction of a new performance-based approach to the allocation of funds to beneficiary countries;
· A strategic focus on the rule of law, strengthening of democratic institutions, economic governance, and market competitiveness;
· Funding also directed towards projects related to sustainable economic development and progress in the fields of energy, climate change, digital transformation, and similar areas;
· In order to manage the EU pre-accession assistance programs under IPA III, the Government of the Republic of Serbia adopted, on 21 June 2025, the Decision on the Designation of Authorities, Persons, and Bodies for the Management of the EU Pre-accession Assistance Programs under the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA III) for the 2021–2027 period (hereinafter referred to as the “Decision”);
· The Decision designates the authorities, bodies, and persons responsible for managing the programs. For instance, the State Secretary in the Ministry of European Integration has been appointed as the National IPA Coordinator; the Ministry of European Integration has been designated as the Technical Secretariat of the National IPA Coordinator; and the State Secretary of the Ministry of Finance has been designated as the National Authorising Officer, etc.;
· The Decision also involves the participation of other ministries in program coordination, such as the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management; the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs; the Ministry of Education; the Ministry of Tourism and Youth; among others.
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