Projects & Practical Work

Digital Tools & Data

Poljosaveti — A Platform for Agricultural Advisory Work

Poljosaveti is the name of a web and mobile platform used by Serbia’s agricultural advisory services. It helps advisors record their work and supports processes including soil analysis, advisor certification and the collection of farm economic data.

I have worked on its development since 2009. My role has included helping move the original desktop system to a web platform, following and testing the migration of existing functions, identifying new needs and planning further development with decision-makers, colleagues and developers. Later work included integrating a soil-analysis application I had developed and moving advisor-certification records from MS Access into the platform.

psss.rs — Bringing Advisory Knowledge to the Public

PSSS stands for Poljoprivredna savetodavna i stručna služba — Serbia’s agricultural advisory and expert services. I created their public portal, psss.rs, in 2009 and led three major upgrades during the period I worked on it, through 2022.

The portal helped farmers find their local service and advisors, read expert articles and bulletins, and ask professional questions through a forum. Its interactive map led to individual service presentations. Each service had a page with a map of its area and tabs for general information, advisor profiles, current advisory and educational activities, bulletins and contact details. Activities recorded in Poljosaveti could also be transferred to the public portal.

Alongside the portal, I established PSSS’s presence on Facebook, Twitter (now X), YouTube and Instagram. I created content and managed these channels, extending the sharing of advisory information beyond the website.

RuralInfoSerbia — A Portal for Rural Centres

Rural centres support local development and cooperation in rural communities. In 2011, I created ruralinfoserbia.rs, a portal for Serbia’s network of rural centres, and established its RuralInfoSerbia Facebook page.

The work was delivered through IPN as a special project funded by Serbia’s Ministry of Agriculture. The portal’s successor is now ruralsrbija.rs, while the Facebook page remains active.

Farm Economic Data — From Excel to a Digital Tool

For years, advisors recorded technological and economic data from farms in Excel forms. Differences in how the same crop, variety or input was written made it difficult to combine and analyse the information. Together with a colleague, I developed the forms and underlying requirements for collecting these data across eight areas of agricultural production.

Through a FAIRshare use case that I led, the process was developed into a software module within Poljosaveti. Drop-down choices, calculations and logical checks made recording easier for advisors and produced more consistent data for analysis. I worked on the tool’s development, testing, improvement and presentation to project partners.

FADN — Implementation and Data Validation

I was part of Serbia’s national team implementing the Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) from 2011. My initial responsibility was the IT implementation: working with the EU consultant and software developer, overseeing development and testing the application.

During implementation, I was also involved in monitoring data entry and validating farm records. Since Serbia took over financing in 2015, I have continued to work on annual data validation. Today, the software flags potential errors, which we review against farm questionnaires and exported records. Visits to participating farms provide another way to check how income and costs are collected and recorded.

Farm Economics & Analysis

Banka Poštanska Štedionica — Farm Economics for Lending Data

In 2021, 2022 and 2024, IPN worked with Banka Poštanska Štedionica on economic analyses of arable, vegetable, fruit and livestock production. The bank used the results in its system for assessing applications for short-term agricultural loans.

I carried out the work from selecting and checking data through calculations and adaptation to the bank’s Excel templates, as well as communication and coordination. The project showed how structured farm economic data could serve a practical purpose beyond the advisory system.

Ministry-Funded Special Projects

I provided external consultancy to agricultural advisory services and other research institutions on 11 special projects funded by Serbia’s Ministry of Agriculture. The work drew on my experience with advisory processes, farm data and digital tools, including the development of methods, analysis, professional materials and project delivery.

Alongside these assignments, I have been engaged for more than 17 years in research activities financed through Serbia’s science-funding system. That work has also contributed to scientific publications on which I am an author or co-author.

Advisory Services & Innovation

Monitoring Agricultural Advisory Work

As Coordinator of Advisory Activities at IPN, I monitor the work of around 280 agricultural advisors. This includes visits to advisory services and farms, checks of activities carried out in the field and recorded in the software, and reporting on planned and completed work.

I took over an established monitoring process and improved a substantial part of its Excel-based reporting system. By incorporating exports from Poljosaveti, refining the scoring tables and connecting monthly activities with plans, I helped make differences between planned and completed work easier to identify and review. The resulting reports support the Ministry’s oversight of advisory work.

CECRA Training & Co-Creation

Together with my colleague Slađan Stanković, I delivered the first three CECRA (Certificate for European Consultants in Rural Areas) training modules for Serbian agricultural advisors. Following training of trainers through i2connect, I also delivered a module on co-creating new methods of advisory work with my colleague Marijana.

The exercises begin with real challenges advisors face and use a selected farm to explore what could be improved — from communication and production practices to marketing. In the YOUNG EUFRAS Training Program 2026–27 (European Forum for Agricultural and Rural Advisory Services), Slađan and I are preparing the first two CECRA modules for an international group of participants.

FAIRshare — Designing an Online Cross Visit

During the COVID-19 restrictions, we designed FAIRshare’s first online cross visit around farm videos and interactive workshops. I developed the agenda, organised and delivered the visit, gave a presentation and wrote the report.

Project partners adopted the approach for subsequent online exchanges and carried it into other collaborations, including i2connect. It was a practical way to keep advisors learning directly from one another when visits to farms could not take place in person.

GFRAS — Bringing an International Exchange Online

I helped develop an online GFRAS (Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services) seminar that brought participants from different parts of the world together during the pandemic. I contributed to its concept, monitored the technical delivery and led a workshop presenting the state of agriculture in Serbia.

WiseFarmer — Learning Across Generations

WiseFarmer brought younger and older farmers together to exchange complementary knowledge: younger participants shared digital skills, while older farmers shared production experience and practical knowledge.

I helped implement the project in Serbia by finding stakeholders and advisors, taking part in the selection of farmers and monitoring the learning activities. A further result was a monographic publication co-authored by Slađan Stanković and me.

STAR — Monitoring Local Projects

In the Serbian Transitional Agriculture Reform Project (STAR) project, I monitored the implementation of micro-projects carried out by participants across Serbia. During field visits, I used checklists to review whether planned activities were taking place and whether project funds were being used as intended.

This assignment built on my experience in monitoring agricultural advisory work and applied it to projects delivered with World Bank collaboration.

SCAP — Training Farmers in the Field

In late 2023, IPN was engaged by the Serbia Competitive Agriculture Project (SCAP) project team to deliver field training for farmers and prepare a brochure covering the training content. I wrote the brochure and coordinated this part of the assignment, from organising the training sessions to reporting to the SCAP and World Bank project team.

OrganicAdviceNetwork — Connecting Organic Advisors

Since 2024, I have been involved in OrganicAdviceNetwork through SEASN. My work includes identifying advisors who could join the network, introducing them to its aims and supporting exchanges of good practices and cross visits. The goal is to help useful experience travel between advisors and reach farms where it can be applied.