Ana Brnabić

"Serbia is changing and changing fast, and if you will, I am part of that change, but I do not want to be branded ‘Serbia’s gay PM’. The message we need to send is about competence, professionalism and trustworthiness."

"The reason why I am not focused on that now is because I deeply, truly believe Serbia will be a more tolerant society once people have jobs, better paid jobs, don’t have to care about their own livelihood, or the future of their own children, and do not have to worry about two or three generations living in the same flat."

"The citizens of Serbia have a right not to be portrayed by a loud minority. We can have a culture where we disagree, as long as there is tolerance and no violence. We all have different views and values, but I don’t want to change people’s thinking by law."

"If we do not have rule of law and effective and transparent judiciary, everything else will start crumbling down."

"When people feel that they are empowered… then they can do whatever they want to do. It’s their country to change."

"It is important to launch core reforms in education and healthcare and boost production primarily through developing agriculture and IT sector. We see the latter as a potentially key sector for future development because there is a real need today for several thousand programmers."

"Serbia is thinking about its economic interests, its role in political frameworks, it is thinking about the best interest of its citizens. Our strategic path is the EU, but we have traditional ties with the Russian people and economic ties, because Russia is a big market."

"We are living in exciting times of the fourth industrial revolution, which is giving opportunities to countries like Serbia, who were not winners of the third industrial revolution but can become winners of the fourth. In the fourth industrial revolution we are all given a chance to restart from scratch and rebuild our nation. I thought this was a fantastic opportunity for Serbia. Digitalisation along with education reform to prepare our youth for the jobs of the future were the cornerstones of my government."

"It is important that we agree about the priorities and reach a social understanding on what we can and must jointly achieve in order to take Serbia among theranks of successful states. The time before us will show how courageous as society and individuals we are to jointly push boundaries and step into the future for the sake of all of us. And I believe in the citizens of Serbia."

"Digitalisation opens up new possibilities for a better quality of life of the citizens through a greater number of services, for services that are cheaper, for providing more accessible information and knowledge, for people to inter-connect. Although it is often connected with technology, digitalisation is much more than that, because it provides opportunities for new and better-paid jobs. Digitalisation may increase our export and, even more importantly, it is our chance to stop the brain drain and even reverse the trend."

"The role of the state should be to stimulate and allow an open, dynamic economy, to develop infrastructure, to provide as best quality and cost-effective services as possible, to eliminate administrative barriers, to encourage, support, and legally protect every entrepreneurial initiative, with accountable and well-structured social policy in line with economic possibilities."

"My mission is to modernise our society in all its segments. By working on digitalisation, we will create society that provides equal opportunities to all of its citizens. This Government has a good basis that has been laid by the previous one and I am going to lead it in such a way as to retain the focus on the set goals, with digitalisation and education listed as my top priorities."

"I am aware that these are the challenges before which many would back away, but we have to set big goals and to work diligently and with dedication in order to make such a step forward because of all of us and the generations to come. We are responsible towards them,just as our ancestors were responsible towards us. Dedication, decisiveness, openness andcourage are the values on which my work will be based and I invite you all to join me so that we could leave the remnants of the past where they belong – in the past. I am looking into the future because now is the moment when we can do the right things, with no delay, nowaiting and no excuses."

"Serbia now has a chance that will not repeat for a long time, to make use of the major changes brought about by digitalisation and to completely reverse its economic destiny within a short time. The new potentials before us do not depend on anyone and anything else, but only on ourselves and our readiness to win in the big international competition. We are entering a dynamic process of digitalisation, modernisation, integrative education and work, the period of rapid growth, new opportunities, a significantly higher standard ofliving and an overall better life of all the citizens of Serbia."