Amendments to the Law on Navigation and ports on inland waters for the abolition of monopolies and the reduction of the grey economy in water transport

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure, prof. Dr. Zorana Mihajlovic, said today that the amendments to the Law on navigation and ports on inland waters to abolish the monopoly and allow the entry of private capital in technical maintenance of navigable streams.

"It is also a way to try to reduce the gray economy, which de facto exists in water transport, and I believe that there will voting for changes to the law," said Mihajlovic to the reporters in parliament.

Draft of Law begins today with a debate in the Assembly and it started with repealed of monopoly of the Directorate for Inland Waterways in relation to the performance of specific tasks of technical maintenance of international and interstate waterways.

They are primarily related to dredging activities in order to maintain the prescribed depth of the fairway, and performing hydrographic measurements that are determined that they will be more efficiently performed by the private sector, and under the supervision of the Directorate for Inland Waterways.

One of the aims of amendments to the law is harmonized with the Law on Private Security, in order to promptly create the conditions for the application of all necessary measures for combating piracy, smuggling, stealing, smuggling and other illegal activities on waterways.

Solutions in the Draft Law is expected that by April 2017 will be adopted the Regulation on Security of the inland waterway transport, which will set out standards in relation to the implementation of measures to protect the safety of the water transport, which will begin the fight against all forms of illegal activities in the industry traffic.