Strategic orientation of public health in transition: an overview of South Eastern Europe.

Two recent developments have redirected the course of Public Health in Europe - the Public Health Mandate of the European Commission and the conceptualization of a New Public Health. For the transition, countries in South Eastern Europe, particularly Serbia, provide support to essential public health reforms in four areas: strategic management, public health information, public health legislation, and public health training and research. The roles of the Dubrovnik Pledge (2001) and the Stability Pact, which has international support, have been central.