Slovenia News - December 2005

Slovenia News 27 December 2005

Independence and Unity Day, celebrated on 26 December, was marked at a special session of the National Assembly followed by the central national ceremony, held in the Cankarjev dom congress venue. The Constitutional Court held a ceremony on Thursday to mark Constitution Day, which has been celebrated on 23 December since 1997. The Slovenian parliament adopted the first Constitution of the independent Slovenia 14 years ago. The Constitutional Court held a ceremony on Thursday to mark Constitution Day, which has been celebrated on 23 December since 1997. The Slovenian parliament adopted the first Constitution of the independent Slovenia 14 years ago. More » Independence and Unity Day, celebrated on 26 December, was marked at a special session of the National Assembly followed by the central national ceremony, held in the Cankarjev dom congress venue. More » A peaceful and successful year for Slovenia is drawing to a close. The country has enjoyed months of economic growth while achieving the lowest inflation rate in its history and fulfilling the demanding criteria for eurozone membership, Prime Minister Janez Jansa said in his New Year's message on Friday. More » The cabinet has adopted a privatisation programme for the Slovenian Steel Group with which it intends to reduce its stake in the group to 25% plus one share over the next two years. More » Joze P. Damijan was appointed a minister without portfolio for overseeing the implementation of the government-sponsored economic and social reforms, as the parliament concluded its regular December session on Tuesday evening. More » The Slovenian Railways and port operator Luka Koper signed on Friday in Ljubljana a business cooperation deal that upgrades a similar agreement from 1997 that had become obsolete due to increased business between the two companies. More » Slovenia remains in first place in the number of companies purchased in Serbia-Montenegro, while it is in third place behind the US and Russia when it comes to the value of these investments, the Belgrade daily Politika has written. More » Slovenia's Andrej Bajuk has been chosen Financial Minister of the Year for Europe by The Banker magazine, a publication of the Financial Times Group. More » Slovenia's per capita GDP, measured in purchasing power parity, amounted to 79% of the average GDP in the 25-member EU, calculated for 2004, according to data released on Tuesday by Eurostat. More » Slovenia and Greece top the list of supporters of further rounds of EU enlargement with 74% of inhabitants of both countries supporting the process, show the results of the Eurobarometer poll published by the European Commission on Tuesday. More » Austrian Ambassador to Slovenia Valentin Inzko conferred in Ljubljana on Thursday the Austrian Cross of Honour for Science and Art on an acclaimed Slovenian author. Drago Jancar was awarded for his achievements in the field of literature and for promoting Austrian-Slovenian ties. More » Schedule of Events from 27 December 2005 to 1 January 2006 More »

Slovenia News 20 December 2005

Slovenia got good news in the form of a deal on the 2007-2013 EU spending plan last week. Despite bleak forecasts in the run-up to the EU summit, the leaders of the bloc managed to hammer out a deal in a marathon session that lasted into the early hours of Saturday. The deal has been welcomed by Slovenian officials. Prime Minister Janez Jansa is adamant that the public supports the structural reforms promoted by the government. According to him, there are different views about various measures that are being proposed, but overall the public remains supportive. More » Prime Minister Janez Jansa said that Slovenia was leaving the EU summit in Brussels satisfied with the deal that was reached by EU leaders on the 2007-2013 EU spending plan. More » The deal reached by EU leaders on the 2007-2013 EU spending plan is important for Slovenia as well as other EU member states, especially the newcomers, leading Slovenian coalition officials have said. More » President Janez Drnovsek called for an open, fair, honest and constructive dialogue between the state and religious communities, as he closed the tenth forum on Slovenia's future on Wednesday. More » Lawmakers have paved the way to the creation of 17 new municipalities in Slovenia by passing a decision on local referendums in the would-be municipalities. More » KBC wants to raise its share in Slovenia's largest bank, NLB, from the current 34% to 51%, and is awaiting approval from the Slovenian government, management board member of the Belgian banking and insurance group Andre Bergen told the press in Brussels on Friday. More » Gaming company HIT has launched a campaign for a new gaming centre in Sentilj, a town in NE Slovenia on the border with Austria. More » Although Slovenia backed the ministerial declaration adopted at the WTO ministerial conference in Hong Kong, the country is not entirely satisfied with its contents, Economics Ministry State Secretary Andrijana Starina Kosem said on Sunday. More » Home appliance maker Gorenje wants to be on the cutting edge of home appliance production, its chairman told the press in Ljubljana on Monday. According to Franjo Bobinac, Gorenje has very ambitious goals for the next five years. More » The cabinet of PM Janez Jansa is losing support quickly, as its approval rating dropped to 39% in December over November's 46%, according to December's Politbarometer survey. More » Poet Maja Vidmar is the winner of this year's Jenko Award, conferred by the Slovenian Writers' Association for the best collection of poems of the past two years. More » Acclaimed Slovenian contemporary artist and filmmaker Natasa Prosenc is showcasing her video installation "Crossing" at the Los Angeles gallery Overtones. The exhibition is to close on 18 December, the US gallery has said. More » A deal on a Slovenian version of National Geographic was signed on Thursday in Washington by the Ljubljana publishing house Rokus and the National Geographic Society. Rokus' director Rok Kvaternik told STA that the first Slovenian edition of the magazine is to be published in May 2006. More » Slovenian rowing champions Iztok Cop and Luka Spik have been selected for the "Name of the Year" award handed out by public broadcaster RTV Slovenija's radio station Val 202. More » A web gateway to Slovenian winter sports resorts was launched on Tuesday, offering information in Slovenian, English, Italian and German. More » Schedule of Events from 20 to 25 December More »

Slovenia News 13 December 2005

The event of the week, if not the whole year, was the 13th OSCE ministerial council, one of the most high-profile political events Slovenia has hosted in its history, which, however, ended without a ministerial declaration. PM Janez Jansa, whose government celebrated its first year in office, was in London to discuss the British EU budget plan proposal with PM Tony Blair, labeling it "acceptable". Jansa moreover nominated Joze P. Damijan a minister without portfolio for structural reforms, pending parliament's green light. Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel has highlighted OSCE chairmanship and Slovenia's standing in the EU as two key achievements after one year in office. More » Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel said on Thursday that the arrest of Croatian General Ante Gotovina, wanted for war crimes by the Hague tribunal, was good news. More » PM Janez Jansa nominated economist Joze P. Damijan (38) minister without portfolio in charge of structural reforms, and sent the nomination to parliament for approval on Tuesday. More » The government has updated the 2005-2008 convergence programme, which will be sent to the European Commission and the EU Council. The report shows a positive picture regarding compliance with the criteria for the adoption of the euro, Finance Minister Andrej Bajuk said after Wednesday's government session. More » Inflation rate meet the euro changeover criteria, economic growth will reach 4% by the end of the year and Slovenia's international position is better than ever, Prime Minister Janez Jansa assessed Slovenia's state of affairs after his first year in office. More » For the government, local administration is a crucial factor of development. Therefore, it will make an effort to improve the situation in this field and ensure the autonomy of local communities, PM Janez Jansa pledged as he addressed a meeting of Slovenian mayors in Postojna on Monday. More » Slovenia estimates that the British proposal for the 2007-2013 EU spending plan is an acceptable compromise if changes to some of most important segments, such as CAP and development, are made, PM Janez Jansa told the press in London on Thursday after meeting British PM Tony Blair. More » Finance Minister Andrej Bajuk labelled a 2006 budget bill good, while a 2007 bill still remains to be finalised, as he presented both documents at an extraordinary session of the parliament on Thursday afternoon. More » Hofer Slovenija, the Slovenian arm of the Aldi Sued discount chain group, plans to invest pver EUR 100m in Slovenia by the end of 2005, a quarter of all direct foreign investments in the country this year, the company said on Thursday. More » The European Institute for Telecommunication Standards (ETSI) opened a testing centre for new technologies on Friday in Beld. More » Slovenia would like that the June 2006 EU summit to decide whether the country will join the eurozone. This would give the country ample time to manufacture euro coins before the planned 2007 euro changeover, Finance Minister Andrej Bajuk said on Tuesday. More » Slovenia granted a total of EUR 250m in state aid in 2004, which represents 0.96% of its GDP, the European Commission said on Friday in Brussels. More » Slovenian cultural politics has been struggling with international promotion for quite some time now, having the most difficulties with language-bound literature. Largely relying on their own ingenuity, a number of Slovenian authors have nevertheless made it onto bookshelves abroad. More » Schedule of Events from 13 to 18 December More »

Slovenia News 6 December 2005

The OSCE ministerial council did not adopt a ministerial declaration today. Instead, OSCE chair Dimitrij Rupel just circulated the chairman's statement, which is not politically binding. The ministerial did however adopt the road-map for a reform of the organisation, which was the subject of intense debates at the Ljubljana ministerial. The 13th OSCE ministerial council was opened Monday in Ljubljana by Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel. The two-day meeting is a culmination of Slovenia's one-year stint as the chair of the security organisation. The key foreign affairs event for Slovenia in 2005 is the country's presidency of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). The one-year presidency was crowned with the organisation's Ministerial Council, which is taking place these days in Ljubljana. The presidency has taken a lot of time and effort, especially burdening Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel. Nevertheless, top Slovenian politicians assessed that heading a 55-countries strong organisation increased Slovenia's reputation and recognition among the international community. Meanwhile, the country has also been gearing up for a new project, as it is to head the European Union in the first half of 2008. More » "To join the EU, Bosnia-Herzegovina needs more stable institutions which would be not depend on their national affiliations," FM Dimitrij Rupel, the OSCE chairman, told the opening of an international conference devoted to the 10th anniversary of the Dayton Peace Agreement. More » The OSCE ministerial council did not adopt a ministerial declaration on Tuesday. Instead, OSCE chair Dimitrij Rupel just circulated the chairman's statement, which is not politically binding. More » The government has adopted amendments to the securities market act to include provisions prescribed by the EU prospectus directive. The amendments, adopted at Tuesday's correspondence session, are expected to improve investor protection and the effectiveness of the securities market. More » The cabinet adopted on Thursday a decree which deals with cooperation and coordination between the government and other institutions responsible for Slovenia's foreign policy. More » Joze P. Damijan, the economist who authored the government's economic reform package, has agreed to take over as minister without portfolio for the coordination and monitoring of Slovenia's development strategy. More » Slovenian gaming company Hit and US casino operator Harrah's Entertainment have formed a joint venture to build a major new gaming and entertainment centre near Nova Gorica, an investment worth US$ 700m scheduled for completion in 2009 provided that the government loosens gaming legislation. More » The European Commission approved an EUR 185m financial package to fight animal diseases in the EU in 2006, with EUR 900,000 going to Slovenia, the Commission said on Wednesday in Brussels. More » Economics Minister Andrej Vizjak said at Thursday's session of the EU Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council that small transit countries, like Slovenia, are faced with having to invest heavily to ensure reliability of the entire region's electricity infrastructure. More » Slovenia on Tuesday proposed to the EU the establishment of a European innovation centre that would network in one place all subjects which take part in an innovation process, as well as form a support environment on the national level. More » Slovenia got off well in the European Environment Agency (EEA) report "The European Environment - State and Outlook 2005". Although the agency has noted a two-fold increase in greenhouse gas emissions attributed to traffic, it praises Slovenia for the high share of renewable energy sources and a slight reduction of municipal waste. More » An institution promoting Slovenia and Slovenians is opening its doors in Brussels on 1 December. The opening ceremony of the Slovenian House, "the window to Slovenia" in the administrative capital of the EU, however, was marked last Wednesday. More » Finance Minister Andrej Bajuk outlined the tax changes being prepared in Slovenia as he took part in the Luxembourg Financial Forum meeting on Friday. He also presented his views on proposals for tax harmonisation in the EU. More » Slovenia's largest bank, NLB, is to spend SIT 18.4m (EUR 77m) this year and the next for upgrades to its information technology system connected to the changeover to the euro, international accounting standards and Basel II capital-adequacy rules. More » Ciril Stokelj, former Slovenian ambassador at the EU, took up the office of European Parliament General Secretariat director responsible for inter-institutional cooperation and foreign policy on Thursday. More » The 21th Book Fair was opened with an award ceremony at the Cankarjev dom art centre on Tuesday evening. The key speaker Boris Pahor, acclaimed Slovenian writer from Trieste, used the occasion to express concern for the evaporating language awareness. More » A two-week exhibition on Maks Fabiani, a pioneer of modernism in Slovenian architecture, is to open at the Museum of Architecture in Ljubljana on Tuesday. More » Architect and professor Vojteh Ravnikar is the recipient of the prestigious Herder Prize, awarded each year for achievements in the field of culture, the Ljubljana Faculty of Architecture said on Friday. More » Schedule of Events from 6 to 11 December More »

Archive

year month 2008 1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12 2007 1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12 2006 1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12 2005 1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12 2004 1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12

© Government Communication Office, Gregorčičeva 25, SI-1000 Ljubljana
tel.: +386 1 478 2600, fax: +386 1 251 2312, www.ukom.gov.si/eng/, e-mail: gp.ukom@gov.si