Around ten representatives from the fields of agriculture and agricultural sciences have been proposed as candidates for the National Assembly on the Students Win electoral list. This indicates that agriculture is a high priority for the coalition, which has announced plans for a thorough overhaul of the sector.

Among the candidates are farmers Zlatko Kokanović (17th on the list), Saša Tomas (26th), Đoka Ćurčić (43rd), Milan Bogunović (106th), Dragan Bogojević (127th), Predrag Večerinac (177th) and Saša Obradović (223rd), alongside veterinarian Aleksandar Vasov (68th), agronomist Mladen Krstić (134th) and veterinary surgeon Igor Cegledi (128th).

Farmers representing the student list say that they will soon present a framework plan for agricultural development alongside students, detailing the primary changes they intend to make in the sector.

Key priorities include tackling the consequences of climate change – most notably droughts – combating import lobbies and monopolies, modernising agriculture to improve Serbia’s global competitiveness, enhancing education for future farmers, tightening controls on imported food, and improving the social standing of women in agriculture.

One of the interviewees and student list representatives noted that these agricultural reforms must be implemented as soon as possible. Otherwise, he warned, farming could disappear from Serbia, leaving the country almost entirely dependent on imported fruit, vegetables and other food products.

Tomas: Agriculture plan to be unveiled soon

A recently published report by the Fiscal Council revealed that while Serbia allocates substantial funds to agriculture, the sector has stagnated for over a decade despite this financial support.

Asked where the system has been going wrong, farmer Saša Tomas (26th on the Students Win list) told Danas that while significant funds are indeed allocated for agricultural production, the lack of a serious strategy has led to poorly distributed resources.

He also highlighted a lack of continuity in subsidies and grants, noting that rules change every six months and that there is no legislation defining long-term subsidisation methods.

Consequently, farmers operate in a state of uncertainty, and without a change in strategy, they face no future at all, he added.

Tomas pointed out that the current administration has completely failed to address climate change or engage agricultural experts, noting that farmers have faced severe droughts over the past five years – a trend set to worsen.

Discussing the student agricultural plan, Tomas explained that farmers from across Serbia and students have collaborated on a development strategy. The plan is set to be presented during the political campaign to both farmers and other parts of society eager to understand the upcoming reforms.

He highlighted massive imports and the influence of cartels and monopolies on the domestic market as major issues. “Prices for our products are devastated while citizens pay high prices at the other end, meaning the margin goes straight to individuals and interest groups,” Tomas said.

While these groups rake in excess profits, domestic producers go under and citizens pay high prices for food, he added. Tomas also warned of extensive legal and illegal imports – smuggled fruit, vegetables and arable crops – which he claims further disrupt the domestic market.

As a solution, he advocates for stricter border controls, noting that Serbia currently lacks around 800 phytosanitary inspectors at border crossings.

Asked whether it is possible to protect domestic producers without driving up prices for consumers, Tomas replied that the market must first be regulated. Producers must be given the conditions to operate profitably, which is impossible in a market burdened by cartels and monopolistic behaviour.

Citing this year’s sunflower harvest as an example, he claimed that prices were dictated by a handful of people while the state failed to intervene, either through the Commission for Protection of Competition or via other institutional measures. Should nothing change over the next few years, he warned, Serbia could become entirely dependent on imports for fruit, vegetables and other foodstuffs.

Bogunović: Hard to attract youth back to the countryside without a regulated market 

Farmer Milan Bogunović (106th on the Students Win list) stated that while he cannot guarantee the student plan will solve every problem in agriculture, it aims to introduce order and reform the sector.

He highlighted three main pillars of the student plan: combating climate change, fighting the cartelised market, and improving the social status of farmers.

“It is all solvable; the extent to which we succeed remains to be seen,” Bogunović told Danas.

He particularly emphasised the overlooked position of women in agriculture. A woman working and earning on an agricultural holding has no right to maternity leave, while farmers themselves receive no paid annual leave. “When I go to the social welfare office and say I am a farmer, they tell me: Ah, unemployed,” Bogunović noted.

To tackle climate change and droughts, Bogunović believes changes are needed in sowing structures, crop varieties and soil tillage technology. He cited reduced tillage as a method to retain more moisture for certain crops, noting that machinery and techniques for such practices are currently underutilised in Serbia. Therefore, he argues that reforms must begin at universities and through student education.

“We haven’t ventured out into the world to see how things are done; our faculties – especially agricultural ones – have been degraded over all these years,” Bogunović said.

Students should travel abroad and learn production methods that deliver higher yields and savings, which would also help in tackling climate change, he added. Asked whether young people can be persuaded to return to the countryside and take up farming, Bogunović admitted it is currently very difficult, primarily due to the unregulated market.

Ćurčić: Fighting cartels will be a tough battle

Farmer Đoka Ćurčić (43rd on the Students Win list) highlighted three key priorities in the students’ programme “Political Minimum for Agriculture”: a long-term strategy, targeted subsidies, and dismantling monopolies.

Regarding a long-term strategy, Ćurčić stressed the need to develop agriculture in step with global standards to ensure domestic producers remain competitive, particularly regarding machinery and production methods. He described the current state of affairs as catastrophic, noting that Serbia lacks competitiveness and that the state has no proper long-term agricultural development plan.

On subsidies, Ćurčić emphasised that they must be targeted and that receiving them must not depend on political party membership.

The third vital point is freeing and regulating the market, which he described as “heavily closed” due to monopolies and cartels.

He specifically highlighted the challenge of getting products to market and the need for both small and large producers to have fair market access.

Asked if fighting the import lobby will be easy, Ćurčić replied that it will not. While monopolies existed in the past, he believes they have “crossed the line” over the last 15 years and become intolerable. “It will be a tough fight,” Ćurčić said, adding that measures proposed in the student programme, such as lustration and asset background checks, could help resolve monopoly issues and regulate the market.

Regarding the survival of rural communities, Ćurčić believes that creating proper living conditions and infrastructure would be enough for current residents to stay, start families and live decently. Key requirements include local schools, nurseries, doctors’ surgeries and bus links connecting villages to larger towns.

(Danas, 18.09.2026)

https://www.danas.rs/vesti/ekonomija/studentski-plan-za-poljoprivredu/