Country Profile: Serbia

• Country Size: 77,589 km²
• Citizens: 6,689,039 (2024) | Tendency: falling
• GDP per capita: 13,523.72 $ (2024) | Tendency: rising
• EU Innovation Scoreboard: Emerging Innovator (2025) | 51.5%
• BEDA Member Organisation: Belgrade Design Week

Dedicated design policy status

No

Design in other policy agendas

• Innovation Strategy – The Smart Specialisation Strategy of Serbia 2020–2027 mentions design in multiple contexts: as a sector within the creative industries, in product and packaging design, software development, design protection, and funding for art and design schools. It also highlights The Design Hub in Gornji Milanovac as a case of design-business collaboration. [Integrated]
• Circular Economy Strategy – The Roadmap for Circular Economy in Serbia refers extensively to circular design and eco-design principles across sectors. [Integrated]
• CCI, industrial/development, digital, architecture strategies – No strategies or references to design were identified. [Overlooked]

Observations

Design in Serbia is most visible through innovation- and sustainability-oriented strategies, where it is framed as a driver of product development, efficiency, and circular practices. These references, coupled with the establishment of initiatives such as the Design Hub in Gornji Milanovac, indicate a growing ecosystem for design. Translating this momentum into formalised policy structures could strengthen the sector’s long-term positioning.

Sources

• Serbia Smart-Specialization-Strategy-of-the-RS-for-the-period-2020-to-2027, o. J.