BELGRADE (Serbia), December 6 (SeeNews) - Serbia has signed an agreement to receive 80 million euro ($86.2 million) in non-refundable financing from the European Union for public administration reform, prime minister Aleksandar Vucic said.

The financing will be granted via the EU's Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA), Vucic said in a statement on Monday.

The agreement was signed during a visit to Belgrade of EU enlargement commissioner Johannes Hahn.

The funding was granted because Serbia has a stable macroeconomic environment and expects its economy to grow by at least 2.8% in 2016, Vucic told reporters during a news conference after the signing ceremony. A video footage of the news conference was posted on the website of the European Commission.

"In the medium and long term, it is a strong and indispensable contribution of the European Union towards aligning the public administration of Serbia to European standards," Hahn said at the news conference.

Hahn also expressed expectations that Serbia will open two additional chapters in its accession negotiations with the EU next week.

According to the Serbian prime minister, the opening of the Public Procurement chapter is certain, while decisions on other chapters hinge on relations between Serbia and Kosovo.

Serbia has opened four chapters since the start of accession talks with the European Union in January 2014, namely Judiciary and Fundamental Rights; Justice, Freedom and Security; Financial Control; and Other Issues: Relations with Kosovo. The country now expects to open three further chapters: Public Procurement, Science and Research; and Education and Culture.

($ = 0.928194 euro)