Key message: Financial support from the budget is about 10% of the total budget of national parks
Assessment: The indicator shows from which sources the national parks of Serbia are financed. It shows the proportion of annual budgets coming from different sources of income. Sources of income are divided in 8 categories:
- Incomes from forestry activities,
- Incomes from hunting tourism,
- Incomes from fee for use of a protected area,
- Incomes from the state budget (Ministry of Environmental Protection),
- Incomes from the state budget (Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management),
- Incomes from projects (international or national),
- Other incomes.
Budget structure provides information on the general management of a national park and state commitments (support) to the national parks’ managers. Currently, support from the state budget is low (on average, less than 10% of the total budget. The highest proportion of budget comes from direct use of natural resources (primarily wood) and it makes over 50% of the total budget of 76 national parks on average. Such management practice, where financing is based on forestry activities, is not in line with the modern concept of protected areas, and is not sustainable. This indicator can be used to track developments in management practice of national parks. Supposedly, improved and sustainable practice will lead to less incomes from forestry and more incomes other sustainable sources. As well, increase of incomes coming from the use of natural resources can indicate that the state of natural values/biodiversity is worsen (i.e. intensive exploitation or overexploitation of forests cause decline of certain species/habitats).
Indicator name: Expenditures from the budget
Institution/Author: WWF Adria/Goran Sekulić, Environmental Protection Agency/Slaviša Popović
Use and interpretation:
Serbian Environmental Protection Agency in its Annual Reports on Economic potentials and activities of importance for the environment and Annual Reports on State of the Environment of the Republic of Serbia. The indicator relates to the total area of Republic of Serbia.
The indicator pertains to all budget expenditures of the Republic, AP Vojvodina and cities and municipalities (including salaries) which were disbursed from the ‘‘environmental protection’‘ budgetary function.
Units in which it is expressed:
− Percent gross domestic product (GDP)
Description of source data:
Ministry of Financies
Periodicity of collecting: per year
Calculation procedure:
Total expenditures relating to all the expenditure budget of the Republic, AP Vojvodina and cities and municipalities (including salaries) that are executed with the function Environmental Protection according to the functional classification of public expenditure.
The total expenditure in relation to the gross national product (GNP) are calculated as the ratio of / GDP ratio and of expenses for protection of the Environmental Protection, and are presented as a percentage.
The structure of the source of financing environmental shows the percentage of the individual sources of funding in relation to the overall funding.
Most effective forms of presentation:
The best way of presenting this indicator as tables and charts that provide an opportunity to monitor progress in relation to this indicator and record the observed trends.
Updating the indicator:
Statistical data are updated once a year.
Closely related indicators
-Investments and current expenditures
-Revenues from fees and charges
-Funds for subsidies and other incentives
-International financial suport
Additional information and comments
The Environmental Protection Agency is collecting data through the Environmental Information System, ’ as well as direct cooperation with relevant institutions for certain thematic areas prepared ’Reports on Economic potentials and activities of importance for the environment’’ on the basis of articles 76 and 77 of the Law on Environmental Protection („Official Gazette of RS ”, no. 135/2004, 36/2009, 36/2009 – dr. the law, 72/2009 – dr. the law and 43/2011 – US i 14/2016).
Reports gives an overview of economic potentials and activities of importance for the environment based on available data, industry, energy, agriculture, tourism and urbanization. In this way, an insight is obtained on the achievement of goals and measures of environmental policy defined by strategic and planning documents, such as: National Environmental Program („Official Gazette of RS ”, number 12/10), National Strategy for Sustainable Use of Natural Resources and Goods („Official Gazette of RS ”, number 33/12), and National Sustainable Development Strategy („Official Gazette of RS ”, number 57/08).
The main source of environmental financing the republican budget and distribution of funds depends on the balance of the budget possibilities. Other sources of funding include municipal budgets, financial resources of the economy, and funds can still be provided through donations, loans, funds from international aid, funds from instruments, programs and funds of the EU, UN and international organizations. The economic instruments applied in the Republic of Serbia are: fees, as well as incentive funds and subsidies.