Training for representatives of public prosecution offices and the Ministry of Interior on the advanced use of the Public Procurement Portal in pre-investigation and investigation proceedings was held in Sokobanja from 1 to 3 July 2026.
Organised within the framework of the “EU Support for Public Finance Management” project, the seminar brought together public prosecutors, prosecutorial assistants and police officers from across Serbia, with the aim of enhancing their skills in detecting, monitoring and prosecuting irregularities and potential abuses in public procurement procedures.
The seminar was opened by Mladen Alempijević from the Public Procurement Office, Marijana Trifunović Stefanović, Project Manager of the “EU Support for Public Finance Management” project, and Aleksandar Kostić from the Judicial Academy. They highlighted that the training programme has been successfully implemented for a year and a half and has made a significant contribution to strengthening institutional capacities for the effective use of the Public Procurement Portal. In line with users’ needs, the programme has been further enhanced by introducing a greater number of practical exercises and case studies.
“The Public Procurement Portal brings together reliable information that can significantly facilitate and accelerate the work of public prosecutors and the police. It is therefore important that these users are familiar with and make full use of all its functionalities, so that they can apply them as effectively as possible in pre-investigation and investigation proceedings,” said Marijana Trifunović Stefanović.
During the training, participants gained additional knowledge on using data from the Public Procurement Portal to quickly collect relevant information, as well as on the procedure for extraordinary monitoring of public procurement procedures. Particular emphasis was placed on strengthening cooperation between public prosecution offices, the police and the Public Procurement Office. Participants were also introduced to the key elements of the Guidelines for Public Prosecutors on Submitting Requests for Monitoring, which, with the support of the project, are expected to be finalised by the end of the summer.
The seminar is part of a broader set of activities aimed at strengthening institutional capacities and improving the efficiency of the public finance system through the development of practical knowledge, improved information exchange and more effective cooperation among the relevant institutions in detecting and prosecuting irregularities in public procurement.
At the same time, the seminar contributes to the implementation of activities envisaged by the 2026 Action Plan under the Public Procurement Development Programme in the Republic of Serbia for 2024–2028, as well as by the Action Plan for the Implementation of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy for 2023–2028.
The seminar was organised within the framework of the “EU Support for Public Finance Management” project, funded by the European Union under IPA 2021 and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in partnership with the Centre of Excellence in Finance (CEF) and the Ministry of Finance of the Slovakia.