Dubravka Đedović

Dubravka Đedović Handanović
Born	(1978-11-06) November 6, 1978 Belgrade, SR Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia
Occupation(s)	Financial expert, politician
Years active	2001–present
Known for	Minister of Mining and Energy of Serbia since 2022

Dubravka Đedović Handanović (; previously known as Dubravka Nègre; born 6 November 1978) is a Serbian financial expert and political figure who has held the position of minister of mining and energy since 2022.

Originating from Belgrade, she completed her undergraduate studies at the Faculty of Economics within the University of Belgrade. She further obtained a master's degree through programs at Bocconi University and the UCLA Anderson School of Management. Beginning her professional journey at CNN International, she later shifted to the finance sector by joining the European Investment Bank (EIB) in 2004 as an operations manager. After working there until 2012, she returned in 2016 to serve as director of the Regional Representative Office for the Western Balkans. Đedović departed from EIB in 2021 and subsequently held a position on the executive board of NLB Komercijalna banka from December 2021 until October 2022.

Early life

Dubravka Đedović was born on 6 November 1978 in Belgrade, then part of the Socialist Republic of Serbia within the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. She attended primary school in Belgrade’s Braće Jerković neighborhood and earned a degree specializing in banking and finance at the Faculty of Economics, part of the University of Belgrade. She completed her master's studies at both Bocconi University and UCLA Anderson School of Management. Additionally, Đedović has contributed scholarly work on public-private partnerships and serves as a lecturer at University College London.

Career

Her professional career commenced as a television producer with CNN International, where she covered events such as the War in Afghanistan in 2001, receiving recognition from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. Transitioning into finance, she assumed the role of operations manager at the European Investment Bank starting in 2004. Based in Luxembourg, she oversaw projects across sectors including education, energy, and telecommunications until 2012. Her achievements in managing partnership initiatives were acknowledged with awards such as Project Finance Deal and EMEA Finance Magazine European Deal in 2013.

Between 2016 and 2021, Đedović directed the EIB’s Regional Representative Office for the Western Balkans, where she played a key role in supporting economic reforms in Serbia. The EIB’s investments under her guidance focused primarily on small- and medium-sized enterprises alongside transportation infrastructure development. In December 2021, she joined the executive board of NLB Komercijalna banka, stepping down in October 2022 upon her appointment to a ministerial role.

Minister of Mining and Energy

Although initially rumored to be appointed minister responsible for public investments, on 23 October 2022 Đedović was officially named as the minister of mining and energy within Ana Brnabić’s third cabinet. She took office on 26 October, succeeding Zorana Mihajlović. The publication Vreme characterized her appointment as indicative of a pro-Western stance within the ministry. Đedović is an advocate for Serbia's integration into the European Union.

Within her inaugural week, she emphasized the necessity to reform the energy sector. In early November 2022, she announced an increase in electricity tariffs and pointed out that "lithium mining should be taken into account." Soon after, she declared that "Serbia will become a significant supplier of rare minerals globally."

Personal life

Đedović was born to parents who were both engineers; her father also pursued entrepreneurship in Yugoslavia, while her mother was employed by a company based in Slovakia. Until 2020, she was married to Christophe Nègre, a French-Luxembourgish businessman, and she is a mother of four children, two of whom are adopted. She is fluent in English, French, Italian, and Russian. Đedović describes herself as yugo-nostalgic. In 2023, she entered into marriage with Serbian composer Damir Handanović, and the couple is expecting a child.