On 25 March 2026, the members of the National Landscape Fire Management (LFM) Network gathered in Belgrade for a workshop focused on strengthening the policy and operational framework for managing landscape fires in Serbia. The event was organised within the Landscape Fire Management in the Western Balkans (LFMWB) Programme and brought together around 30 LFM stakeholders.
The workshop opened with welcoming remarks from Vladimir Nikolić, Director of the Forest Directorate at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management of the Republic of Serbia, and Cvetan Nikolovski, Team Leader of the LFMWB Programme. They emphasised the importance of coordinated efforts across institutions and sectors to address the growing challenges of landscape fires in the region and highlighted the role of the National LFM Network in supporting knowledge exchange and policy development.
The first part of the workshop focused on the presentation and validation of the LFM Gap Analysis in Serbia, presented by Ana Stefanović, LFMWB’s Country Project Staff. The analysis identifies key gaps in the current system, with a particular focus on prevention, preparedness, suppression, and post-fire management, providing a foundation for defining priority actions and strengthening the overall LFM approach in Serbia. The participants actively contributed through group work sessions aimed at developing concrete actions for an Action Plan, building on the findings of the analysis.
In the second part of the workshop, the development of national LFM policy guidelines was initiated. Vladimir Pavlović from the Belgrade Open School introduced the proposed structure and process for preparing the guidelines. Through facilitated group discussions, participants provided inputs and recommendations that will inform the drafting of policy guidelines aimed at strengthening landscape fire prevention, preparedness, and post-fire restoration.
The workshop demonstrated strong engagement and commitment from national stakeholders to jointly advance the Policy Guidelines in Serbia, ensuring that future policies and practices support more resilient landscapes and communities.
The workshop was organised within the framework of the LFMWB Programme, which is financed by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and coordinated by Farmahem – Skopje as a Regional Executive Agency, with backstopping support from Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation.