„The Peace Highway“ will connect people, towns, but also businesses and is a chance for economic progress in the Southern Serbia, this is one of the conclusion after the start of works on the first part of the project. Once the project is completed, the time for travel between Nis and Merdare will be around 45 minutes.

The cost of the 33 kilometers long Niš –Plocnik section of the project is 255 million EUR, 40 million EUR coming as a grant from the European Union, while over 180 million EUR is secured through favourable loans from European Investment Bank and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, while the rest will be coming from the Serbian budget. The highway will continue to Merdare in the next phase the cost of the complete road is expected to be around 650 million EUR.

EU Ambassador to Serbia Emanuele Giaufret said that this project is part of a more global approach by the EU.

„The Peace Highway is not an isolated project. It is the first expression of the EU’s new Global Gateway approach. It is thus part of a wider EU concept for which we need to see the full picture. Regionally and globally. So Serbia is in a way the forerunner in this initiative. Successful economic integration within the region and with the EU will only be possible with enhanced connectivity. The Peace Highway will have also an economic dimension for growth and jobs“, said Ambassador Giaufret.

He also reminded to the fact that the EU is supporting the modernisation and reconstruction of the railway Corridor X, section Belgrade – Nis – Presevo, project with importance for regional connectivity, just as this highway effect stretches beyond the starting and finishing point.

„The name speaks for itself: this is indeed a peace project which is meant to help foster good relations, free travel, free flow of goods and services – in the EU spirit. The “Peace Highway” is one of the bridges for the peace and reconciliation in the Western Balkans“, the Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia concludes.

“This is a big step forward for our country,” the President of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic emphasised and thanked the European Union for the financial assistance for this project.

„It will mean a new life for Prokuplje, Blace, Žitorađa, Kuršumlija, Prolom Banja, Đavolja varoš, but also new investments and a lot of work for all people. In Pomoravlje and Nis, we are already working on the design of the Belgrade-Nis-Presevo, modernising the Nis-Dimitrovgrad railway, and we are already working with the Europeans. All that costs more and more, the material is more and more expensive, that is why we need the support of the EU “, said President Vučić.

“Peace Highway” is one of the investment flagships projects within the EU’s Economic and Investment Plan for the Western Balkans. The plan is supporting major road and railway connections in order to support the better connection between the economies of the Western Balkans within the region and with the EU.

Global Gateway, the new European Strategy to boost smart, clean and secure links in digital, energy and transport and strengthen health, education and research systems across the world, the European Commission announced recently. It stands for sustainable and trusted connections that work for people and the planet, to tackle the most pressing global challenges, from climate change and protecting the environment, to improving health security and boosting competitiveness and global supply chains.

Global Gateway aims to mobilise up to €300 billion in investments between 2021 and 2027 to underpin a lasting global recovery, taking into account our partners needs and EU’s own interests.