"These countries have managed to get out of repressive political regimes and a long period of instability and war. Now, there is democracy here," Lamierre said speaking about progress in Serbia and Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia, Albania and Croatia.
"We have a stable growth, reduced inflation rate and increase of foreign investments and cooperation among the countries. Trade and investments helped overcoming ethnical divisions," the EBRD director said at the EBRD annual assembly which is being held in Belgrade this weekend.
He called on the countries from the region to be inspired by the example of former communist countries such as Hungary and Poland which entered the EU last year.
Montenegrin Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic expressed hope that the EBRD session would be an opportunity for the region to get new economic and financial opportunities,
The Prime Ministers of Macedonia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, Vlado Buckovski and Adnan Terzic, said the meeting was a sign of the EBRD readiness to continue investing in the development of the region.
The meeting is attended by some 3,000 people - representatives of banks, governments, finance ministers, investors and company managers and 59 state delegations, including Croatia's led by State Secretary in the Finance Ministry Martina Dalic.