"Serbian Economic Miracle"

by Ranko Milovanović ^[1]

article presented at the XII International Conference "Danube - River of Cooperation" (October, 11-14 2001) and published in Danubius 1-2/2001

During my stay at a well-known Heildeberg University, where I was attending courses in German language and literature, I had an exceptional opportunity to listen to the lecture of Professor Dr. Ludwig Erhard, creator of an " economic miracle" of the Federal Republic of Germany.

That lecture made a strong impression on me and stimulated me to think what "economic miracle" could be done in our country? Positive results of the "economic miracle" in Germany were immediately felt everywhere and at every place, both for all German citizens, and numerous foreign workers in Germany.

After my extensive travels throughout European countries and professional agricultural practice I performed there, I came to a conclusion that only a synchronization of agriculture and tourism could be an " economic miracle" of Yugoslavia.

This approach was very well estimated by the highest professional circles, and especially by Professor Dragoslav Avramoviæ. I am still of a very firm convinction that only a connection of these two strong economic granches, we dispose of so superiorly, represents the only and most natural way out of the crisis we were and still are in. The acceptance of this project would immediately, and at the very beginning, realize two extremely important things:

• First, our economy would free itself of an enormous surplus of work force of rural origin that dispose of significant property in villages.
• Second, returning them to their properties and families, understandably, by a certain stimulus, we would get far larger and more qualitative proction of healthy food. By that, we would iprove, beside already existing aspects of tourist offers, an offer of " village tourism" by food products out of domestic production and other diverse contents offered by rural households.

Rural tourism already represents a significant and very profitable activity in many European countries and the world.

If we would stimulate more intensively, and in a greater extent, the development of rural tourism with us, then, we would achieive a bigger and more numerous connection of our citizens with places and regions they come from.

In fact, a substance of the " Economic Miracle of Serbia" expressed in synchronization of agriculture and tourism, authored by myself, is nothing else than a stimulus for many regions in Serbia, having agricultural and touristic possibilities, to create their own regional " mini economic miracles" , and by that, accelerate their regional development, but also a development of Serbia as a whole. There are a lot of such regions along the Danube river and its affluents. One of such examples is the " Obedska bara" (" Obed Swamp" ) in an immediate vicinity of Belgrade, by the Sava river, surrounded by towns in the Srem-area: Asanja, Obrez and Kupinovo.

Therefore, for us, as well as for all Danubian countries, the Danube is really a big " river of cooperation" for the development of agriculture and tourism.

[1] Agricultural Engineer and Tourism Manager

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