Serbia's public sector bypasses bidding on 7 billion euro in contracts for 2025

Serbia's public sector awarded contracts worth approximately seven billion euro in 2025 by sidestepping the Law on Public Procurement. This amount represents nearly half of all contracts signed by the public sector that year, a figure described as exceptionally high by both domestic and international standards.

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The fiscal weight of this sector is best illustrated by its sheer volume: in 2025, total public procurement contracts in Serbia reached 15 billion euro, or nearly 17 percent of GDP.

The Fiscal Council, in its assessment of the draft fiscal strategy for 2027–2029, highlighted that public procurement is a crucial element of fiscal policy, influencing the scale and quality of public spending. In 2025, total public procurement contracts reached 15 billion euro, nearly 17 percent of Serbia's GDP.

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The paradox in Serbia is that the legal framework is largely aligned with advanced European standards, but in practice, there are systemic issues and major departures from these standards.

A major concern is the use of interstate agreements, which account for about 25 percent of the value of contracts awarded outside the regular system. These agreements are generally not published, contributing to a lack of transparency. The Council noted that while the new Fiscal Strategy includes some improvements in transparency, its overall impact is currently limited.

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In 2025, public entities bypassed the Law on Public Procurement to sign deals worth approximately seven billion euro (nearly 8% of GDP). This represents just under half of all contracts signed by the public sector that year, a figure that is exceptionally high by both domestic and international standards.

The reliance on exemptions from general regulations for significant projects is not a new trend, as the Serbian government has systematically employed this practice for years. The Fiscal Council emphasized that public procurement extends beyond formal procedures, raising fundamental questions about the efficiency of taxpayer money, the justification of prices for goods and services, and the setting of national development priorities.

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These account for about 25 percent of the value of contracts bypass the regular system and, as a rule, are never published.