“Serbia and France have excellent cooperation in various fields and mutual visits dedicated to public administration reform are a symbol of willingness and readiness to cooperate more closely in that field“, said Minister of Public Administration and Local Self-Government at a meeting with expert of the French Directorate-General for Administration and the Civil Service (DGAFP) Jean-Marc Chneider, who arrived in Serbia on 20 September. That cooperation will be specified in detail under the Administrative Agreement between the Serbian Ministry of Public Administration and Local Self-Government and the French Ministry of Public Administration, which is expected to be signed during the French President’s visit to Serbia. Mr. Ružić said he was sure such type of agreement would provide a formal framework for continuation of dynamic and, in the first place, sustainable cooperation which had provided significant contribution so far to implementation of demanding reforms and gradual acceptance of EU standards. Mr. Chneider pointed out the importance not only of establishing, but also of sustainability of this cooperation, which should be continual and long-term, emphasizing the long tradition of French public administration. In addition to this visit, in April this year, France seconded its expert Claudine Justafre to the Ministry of Public Administration and Local Self-Government, who provides a valuable support in implementation of public administration reform, in particular improvement of human resources management and establishing the competences of the National Academy for Public Administration. Two more visits by the French Government are expected until the end of the year.