The first ever IBM development center in Serbia was opened Dec, 20, according to a statement by the Serbian government, and Prime Minister Ana Brnabić pointed during the opening that this was a great day for Serbia due to the center being that of a major global company and a forerunner of the entire IT industry.
Brnabic also opened the first office for the US company in Novi Sad and added that “when IBM comes to you, it’s a big signal and says that we are an important destination on the world business map.”
Brnabic added that “until now [IBIM] only sold their solutions in Belgrade, but the technology for their needs was not previously developed in Serbia.”
The opening marks a big investment month for Serbia, with the IBM opening following that of the opening of offices an the announcement of future investment by US electric vehicle maker Rivian.
During the opening the mayor of Novi Sad, Milan Đurić, noted that Novi Sad is recognized as the center of the IT industry in Serbia, and that some 38 engineers are already employed on site, the the government stating that this figure will soon double. Duric added that approximately 10,000 persons are employed in the IT industry in Novi Sad by approximately 900 IT companies.
The new center will service and support Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia and Albania.
IBM General Manager for Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia and Albania Nikola Polic pointed out the importance of the new Novi Sad investment.
“This is of great importance for local IBM, because we are finally opening another office in Serbia that will deal with very specific technology development,” he said, as cited by Novosti.rs.
“It is important for Serbia, because it shows that it is an excellent place for large technology companies to come,” he added. “Thanks to this development center, we will be able to provide better services and support to users in the wider region.”
Image courtesy of Pittigrilli, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons.
