Southern and Eastern Serbia


The Southern and Eastern Serbia is one of five statistical regions of Serbia. It is also a level-2 statistical region according to the European NUTS. It was formed in 2010. The region has a total population of 1,563,916, according to the 2011 census.

Formation

In July 2009, the Serbian parliament adopted a law which divided Serbia into seven statistical regions. At first, it was decided that in the territory of current statistical region of Southern and Eastern Serbia there would be two statistical regions – Eastern Region and Southern Region. However, in May 2010, the law was changed, thus the Eastern and Southern region were merged into a single statistical region named Southern and Eastern Serbia.

Districts

The statistical region of Southern and Eastern Serbia is composed of 9 administrative districts:

Economy

Southern and Eastern Serbia region is the poorest in the country. Only Niš and Požarevac have GDP above the national average. The devastated areas include Babušnica, Bela Palanka, Bojnik, Bosilegrad, Vladičin Han, Golubac, Žagubica, Kuršumlija, Kučevo, Lebane, Medveđa, Svrljig, Surdulica, Trgovište and Crna Trava.
The GDP of the region in 2017 was €6,640,000,000, or 13.8% of Serbia's GDP. The GDP per capita is €4,249.

Cities and towns

The largest cities and towns of the region are:
City or townPopulation
of city proper
Municipal population
Niš187,544260,237
Smederevo64,175108,209
Leskovac60,288144,206
Vranje55,13883,524
Požarevac44,18375,334
Pirot38,78557,928
Zaječar38,16559,461
Bor34,16048,615
Prokuplje27,33344,419
Smederevska Palanka23,60150,284
Aleksinac16,68551,863
Velika Plana16,08840,902

Demographics

According to the 2011 census, the population of Southern and Eastern Serbia is 1,563,916. The most populated city is Niš with around 260,000 people in metro area. Other urban centers are Smederevo, Leskovac, Zajecar and Vranje with more than 50,000 people living in city proper area. The region is heavily affected by depopulation. Most critical situation is in municipalities of Gadžin Han, Crna Trava, Ražanj, Trgovište, as well as Bulgarian populated Dimitrovgrad and Bosilegrad. The good example of depopulation is Crna Trava that had 13,614 people in 1948, while in 2011 only 1,663 people were recorded.
Albanians boycotted the 2011 census. It's estimated that 50,000 Albanians live in the municipalities of Preševo, Bujanovac and Medveđa. They are making up to 90% of population in Preševo, 50% in Bujanovac and 15% in Medveđa. These municipalities have a positive birth rate.
According to the census, only the Niš had more people than in 2002.

Transport

is passing through Podunavlje, Nišava, Jablanica, Pčinja and Pirot District.
The construction of Niš-Merdare highway should start in the spring of 2020.
Constantine the Great Airport is an international airport located in Niš. It connects the region with important European cities such as Berlin, Vienna, Ljubljana, Rome, Salzburg and others. Niš is also the location of Corridor X branching with one branch going to Sofia and another towards Skopje.