CorD Magazine, November 2018 issue, no. 169

Croatian Ambassador to Serbia

MILJEN KREKA KLJAKOVIĆ,

Production Designer

Ambassador of the Republic of Ireland to Greece, Serbia and Albania

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We Can Do Better

H.E. ORLA O’HANRAHAN

Imagining On A Given Topic

NOVEMBER 2018/ ISSUE NO. 169

H.E. GORDAN BAKOTA

interviews opinions news comments events COMMENT:BOŠKO JAKŠIĆ

Joyless Bosnia FOCUS: SERBIA’S INDUSTRIAL POLICY

LET THE RIGHT ONE IN

MARIYA GABRIEL

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Investments In People Guarantee Success Exclusive

ISSN1451-7833

EUROPEAN COMMISSIONER FOR DIGITAL ECONOMY AND SOCIETY

CONTENTS

COMMENT

BOŠKO JAKŠIĆ

JOYLESS BOSNIA The recent elections in Bosnia-Herzegovina provided new confirmation that there can be no inter-ethnic cooperation and multiculturalism while three constituent nations lead political parties that are based on pure nationalism, instead of on political programmes and ideas

08 INVESTMENTS IN PEOPLE GUARANTEE SUCCESS

MARIYA GABRIEL, European Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society

28 SERBIA – LAND OF CREATIVITY AND INNOVATION

ANA ILIĆ, Advisor to Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabić for the digital and creative industries, film and tourism

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CORD MAGAZINE

DESIGNER: Jasmina Laković j.lakovic@aim.rs CONTRIBUTORS: Rob Dugdale, Maja Vukadinović, Mirjana Jovanović, Miša Brkić,

52 FACES AND PLACES

MILJEN KREKA KLJAKOVIĆ, Production Designer

14 WE CAN DO BETTER

30 INTEGRATING SUSTAINABILITY INTO BUSINESS

H.E. GORDAN BAKOTA, Croatian Ambassador to Serbia

CHRIS JOHNSTONE, Canadian Social Performance Expert and Senior Partner, ERM

44 JAPAN’S CORPORATE ENFANT TERRIBLE YUSAKU MAEZAWA

20 GLOBAL DIARY 22 LET THE RIGHT ONE IN FOCUS

Radmila Stanković, Steve MacKenzie, Zorica Todorović Mirković, Sonja Ćirić EDITOR: Ana Novčić a.novcic@aim.rs a.novcic@cordmagazine.com

SPAIN – CONTEMPORARY ART

55 IMAGINING ON A GIVEN TOPIC

31 BUSINESS DIALOGUE

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48 MODERN-DAY CONQUEST OF THE CONTEMPORARY ART WORLD

EDITORIAL MANAGER: Neda Lukić n.lukic@aim.rs PHOTOS: Zoran Petrović COPY EDITOR: Mark Pullen TRANSLATION & EDITING MRP EDITORIAL Halifax Translation Services

47 THE PROMOTER ĐORĐE MILUTINOVIĆ, Štark Arena advisor

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60 CHILL OUT 62 DESPITE THE WIND & RAIN FASHION

64 CULTURE CALENDAR 66 AFTER WORK

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Comment

Joyless Bosnia

BY BOŠKO JAKŠIĆ

B

osniak, Serb and Croat leaders are ready – purely for the sake of ensuring their survival in power – to prolong the disastrous, and dangerous, situation that has made Bosnia-Herzegovina a dysfunctional country with a mammoth administration and has cat a shadow over its European integration prospects.

It has once again been confirmed that the extent to which national parties are capable of selling ethnic patriotism is only matched by their inability to offer citizens tangible solutions to their problems. An opportunity for a mandate to be given to reforms has again been missed.

From the Bosniak-Croat Federation to Republika Srpska, the echelons of candidates in this theatre of the absurd competed in mutual accusations, espousing corny phrases about the European future and speaking about continuity. It is sad that only one candidate made the economy a priority of his campaign.

Voters wondered if there can be an end to this continuity in a country where corruption, disrespect for the rule of law, poverty and a lack of political interest in improving citizens’ standard of living are the raw reality in a country that was abandoned last year alone by 60,000 people (Bosniaks and Serbs), leading to their diaspora becoming the largest in Europe.

The new three-member Presidency of B-H is a bleak announcement of the extension of the status quo, and – given the degree of

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The recent elections in Bosnia-Herzegovina provided new confirmation that there can be no inter-ethnic cooperation and multiculturalism while three constituent nations lead political parties that are based on pure nationalism, instead of on political programmes and ideas animosity – a question arises as to whether the Bosniak, Serb and Croat who represent the collective presidency can even get together for coffee.

The threesome selected serve to grotesquely suggest that Bosnia will not have a place in the EU for a long time, and that life will not be better for its citizens for a long time. Bosniaks have no eyes to see the Serb member, who to date served as the President of Republika Srpska and who has for years, with the strong support of Moscow, issued separatist threats.

Zagreb is angry with the new Croat member of the Presidency – which it alleges was elected by the votes of Bosniaks - because he has announced that B-H will file a lawsuit against Croatia over a disputed bridge in the border region.

The Serb member of the Presidency is encouraging his Croatian colleague on the idea of his Herceg-Bosna becoming a third entity, and thus further destroying Bosniak dreams of a powerful unitary state, and applauding him for the lawsuit, but everything comes undone when the Croat considers that B-H should recognise the independence of Kosovo.

All combinations are in play, just as they were during the 1992-95 war, when at certain times and in different locations Bosniaks and Croats were against Serbs, Serbs and Bosniaks were against Croats, and Serbs and Croats were against Bosniaks.

The endless nationalist posturing is not stopping, while there are no political reforms, the parliament is marginalised, and a new blockade of federal institutions is being threatened.

The echoes of unresolved ethnic conflicts are spreading throughout the region and beyond, with each player finding allies beyond the borders of B-H: enchanted by the pan-Erdogan movement, Bosniak leaders see their salvation in Ankara, while Bosnian Serbs see theirs in Belgrade and Moscow, and Bosnian-Croats look to Zagreb.

The B-H elections confirmed the existence of conflicting interests of foreign powers in the Western Balkans, which is turning into a “crawling Cold War” in which, unlike the previous one, there are more than two stakeholders.

However, Bosnia has a solution: kick out the nationalists, replace them with politicians who have policies - leftist, rightist, centrist, whatever. Multipolarity will ensure more effective interethnic cooperation and multiculturalism.

How much can the EU help Bosnia, and the whole of the Western Balkans? For now, only a little. Brussels will first have to redefine what the EU is, on which principles and values it is based. For now we have two proposals: a liberal and a illiberal Union. I’m afraid that the second option has more followers among the region’s nationalists and populists.

Interview Exclusive MARIYA GABRIEL

EUROPEAN COMMISSIONER FOR DIGITAL ECONOMY AND SOCIETY

In order provide the region with support for carrying out the digital transformation process as quickly as possible, the European Commission launched its Digital Agenda for the Western Balkans. The aim of this initiative, alongside ensuring the more efficient digitalisation of industry, the advancement of the digital economy and improved cybersecurity, is also to accelerate growth in innovation and research – notes Mariya Gabriel, European Commissioner for Digital Society and Economy, in this exclusive interview for CorD, whilst she also emphasises the importance of training and education along the way.

“Improved connectivity is not enough though, as the real gains come when you invest in people,” says Commissioner Gabriel. During a recent visit to the Science and Technology Park in Belgrade, you expressed great satisfaction with the way in which Serbia used grant funds in the field of science and technology. From next year, the EU is also taking over the

Investments In People

Guarantee Success We need to work together to enhance the skills of our citizens of all ages and backgrounds. The region needs well-trained workers with the proper digital skills to match the demands of this new economy 8

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COOPERATION

The science and technology park in Belgrade is a good example of cooperation, aimed at ensuring positive deliverables

financing of STP for €1.5 mill. How do you foresee the future of our country’s partnership with the EU on this project?

The science and technology park is a good example of cooperation, aimed at ensuring positive deliverables. The EU assistance of € 1.5 million will be provided to the STP Belgrade to upgrade the set of standardised business support services and to create tailor made services, with the purpose of supporting companies in each phase of their development – from identification of business idea and start-up to growth and internationalisation. The aim is also to modernise the organisation of research and innovation and to stimulate cooperation between industry and academia as well as to increase the level of investment in research.

Project should start in 2019.

Bringing together some of the brightest young teams in the country in one place is clearly bringing benefits, ensuring that what is created in Serbia can grow in Serbia. I also want to bring together some of the brightest teams in the the Western Balkans to Sofia on 15th November, during the Start-Up Summit, where we aim to create a network among start-ups from the region with start-ups from Central and Eastern Europe, helping people learn lessons and exchange experiences, so they can grow and create jobs.

IDEAS

The global tech sector might be dominated by a handful of big players, but much of the best innovation still comes from small companies with big ideas

Citizens have plenty reasons to feel reassured that their data is now well protected thanks to GDPR, which offers a range of measures to prevent and sanction data protection breaches

a welcome development. We would like to create digital innovation hubs in the every region and for those to cooperate to avoid unnecessary duplications.

Digital Agenda for the Western Balkans, launched in June 2018 in Sofia. What does this agenda define, so that the region will feel the benefits of digital transformation as quickly as possible?

Growth of innovation and research, with faster digitalisation of industry, advancement of the digital economy and better cyber security are among the goals of the

The principal aim of the Digital Agenda for the Western Balkans is to ensure that the countries in this region - with their close proximity to the EU and,in many cases,their

Do you think that Serbia needs to decentralize such projects, or expand innovation centres to smaller towns?

Yes, I think it does. And not just in Serbia. But then I also think that the Serbian government is well aware of this need as well and is already taking steps to address it. I understand that up until now most investments in projects such as this have been in three main urban areas (and in this Serbia is no different than many other countries); but the focus is now shifting to smaller cities, and this is obviously

PROTECTION

Bringing together some of the brightest young teams in the country in one place is clearly bringing benefits, ensuring that what is created in Serbia can grow in Serbia

ambitions to become part of the EU at some point in the future - can benefit from the digital transformation that we are trying to foster within the EU itself.

The Agenda will mean closer cooperation between the EU and the Western Balkans on key issues such as broadband infrastructure, public sector modernisation and the digitalisation of industry, digital skills and cybersecurity. The ultimate aim is to support the partners in the region to succeed and citizens and the business

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Interview Exclusive to benefit from digital transformation. We can see from our own experiences in the EU that a functioning digital infrastructure is a fundamental prerequisite for the success of any country or region to benefit from digital transformation.

The European Commission is therefore

supporting the roll-out of high-speed broadband to the Western Balkan countries: under the Western Balkan Investment Framework (WBIF), €30 million in EU grants has been made available for the period 2018-2020 to encourage the roll-out of broadband infrastructure in the whole region. It is important that all partners identify good projects and grasp this opportunity.

Another key area is cybersecurity and trust.

The EU and the Western Balkan region have a common objective to improve online security and trust, and I am pleased to say that all of the governments in the region have pledged to align with the EU’s rules on the security of network and information systems. This will mean, for example, creating their own national cybersecurity strategies as well as computer security incident response teams.

As for the general digitisation of societies and economies, all companies in Europe - in the EU and the Western Balkans alike - will need

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to digitise in order to remain competitive. They need to innovate their production processes, business models and products using digital technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, 3D printing, data analytics, and so on. We see that while many large companies

The Western Balkans are facing similar problems as the European Union with the digitalisation of their industry, and Digital Innovation Hubs could certainly benefit companies in that region as well are investing in their digital transformation, most small ones are not. Indeed, only one in five companies in Europe is highly digitised.

To address this challenge within the EU, the European Commission and the Member States are investing in Digital Innovation Hubs, as mentioned earlier. These hubs are offering a set of services to companies – especially SMEs (including start-ups) and mid-caps

– to support their digital transformation. The Western Balkans are facing similar problems as the European Union with the digitalisation of their industry, and Digital Innovation Hubs could certainly benefit companies in that region as well. In fact, some Serbian and Macedonian companies have already benefited from the DIH initiatives within the EU and I fully expect to see more companies do so in the future.

In the end, the ultimate goal of the Digital Agenda for the Western Balkans is to create an environment where citizens can truly benefit from all benefits that digitisation can bring.

Another area where citizens in the region can expect to see change is with regard to their public administrations.

Improved connectivity is not enough though; the real gains come when you invest in people. We need to enhance together the skills of our citizens of all ages and backgrounds.

The region needs well-trained workers with the proper digital skills to match the demands of this new economy. The sixth edition of EU Code Week took place from 6th to 21st October. My objective is to reach 50% of all schools in Europe by 2020. In this context, it is crucial that Western Balkan partners to be fully involved in such initiatives.

If change is what drives society, then innovation is what drives change. And today more than ever, innovation is driven by start-ups. The global tech sector might be dominated by a handful of big players, but much of the best innovation still comes from small companies with big ideas. Start-ups in the EU are supported in a variety of ways, such as through Start-up Europe, an initiative of the European Commission designed to connect start-ups, investors, accelerators, entrepreneurs, corporate networks, universities and the media through an array of networks. Start-up Europe is open to Western Balkan countries. One of the priorities in the Digital Agenda of the Western Balkans is the reduction of roaming prices. Are there certain arrangements already made and can we soon expect a clear schedule when and by how much calls and SMS roaming charges will be reduced?

This is indeed a key priority of the Agenda.

The current regional roaming agreement has

already provided clear benefits to citizens in the four countries it covers: prices have fallen and data usage has risen, reflecting the increasing use of digital by businesses and consumers.

But a new regional roaming agreement is needed that covers the six partners in the region, expanding from Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to Albania and Kosovo as well, and will progressively move towards even lower prices. We are working with partners on this new agreement. The plan is that by 2019 the price of megabytes in roaming will be 70 cents, falling to 20 cents by 2021.This needs to be carefully managed so that it balances the local telecoms operators’ need to invest in further digital developments while delivering lower prices for consumers. The intention is to have the new regional roaming agreement ready by the BEREC session in December in Prague, ahead of the official signing by leaders of the region at the next Digital Summit in Serbia in April next year.

The plan is that by 2019 the price of megabytes in roaming will be 70 cents, falling to 20 cents by 2021 Speaking of cyber security, the event of the year is certainly the entry into force of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Could citizens breathe a sigh of relief and does this act cover most of the cases related to data manipulation?

The GDPR modifies and updates data protection rules at the EU level to make Europe fit for the digital age, benefiting both citizens and businesses.The Facebook/Cambridge Analytica case and the more recent Facebook and Google data breaches highlight the clear need for EUwide data protection rules. Compared to the previous rules and principles, there are some important novelties in the GDPR. People now

have easier access to their own data, the right to transfer it from one service provider to another – for example a bank or mobile provider - as well as a clarified right to be forgotten online and the right to be informed quickly if their data is lost or disclosed.

There are indeed plenty of reasons for citizens to feel reassured that their data is now well protected thanks to GDPR, which offers a range of measures to prevent and sanction data protection breaches. Any organisation found to be in breach of GDPR risks fines of up to 2% or 4% of its global turnover, depending on the seriousness of the infringements.

Even though these maximum amounts would only be levied in the most serious of cases, we can already see that they are a clear deterrent. The prescribed penalties in the EU are very high, have there already been cases in which they have been enforced?

It is the job of the independent data protection authorities of the Member States to monitor

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Interview Exclusive and enforce the GDPR. They must judge each alleged breach of the rules on its own merits, and according to 11 different factors set out in the regulation. These include the seriousness/ duration of the violation, the number of data subjects affected and level of damage suffered, any actions taken to mitigate the damage and the extent to which the organisation in breach of the rules has co-operated with the supervisory authority. Since the regulation only started to apply earlier this year, it is still too early to expect very prominent cases of sanctions. Many of the authorities tell us that they have certainly seen an increase in the number of suspected cases of data protection breaches reported to them since the new rules started to apply. On the other hand, businesses across Europe - perhaps the SME sector most, often find that the application of the GDPR is complicated. Do they have any reason to be concerned about their competitiveness and development?

I am well aware that SMEs in some Member States are concerned that applying the GDPR will prove to be too burdensome and expensive.

The Commission is of course ready to help any company, large or small, to understand what it needs to do to meet the new data protection requirements. Much of the information they need is already available on the Commission’s website, including the seven simple steps that need to be followed to prepare for applying the GDPR. Of course the Commission is also closely monitoring the situation and will report on the application of the GDPR and possible problem areas next year.

It is also important that the way the GDPR is applied does not depend on the size of the company or organisation but on the nature of its activities. Putting it simply, if a company’s activity carries a high risk to people’s rights and freedoms, the rules they have to comply with will be more stringent. For most SMEs that do not have data processing as their core business and that were already compliant with the previous data protection regime, the GDPR does not create many new obligations and therefore they should not be worried about any negative impact on their competitiveness and development.

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The way the GDPR is applied does not depend on the size of the company or organisation but on the nature of its activities Thanks to the SDM Strategy of 2015, the Union has established a regulatory framework adapted to the digital age, and in May this year, the EC proposed the establishment of the first Digital Europe programme for the next EU multi-annual budget to increase competitiveness internationally and develop and strengthen European strategic digital capacities.

What areas does this proposal target?

A truly integrated European Digital Single Market is clearly a pre-condition to enable the European digital sector to be competitive at world level. In the last few years, we have made close to 60 initiatives, including 29 legislative proposals on data flows, cybersecurity, copyright, consumer protection, VAT, telecom regulation or online platforms. The good news is, a significant part of these proposals have already come into force or are about to do so.

However, we also need to step-up signifi-

cantly our budgetary effort to ensure our technological leadership and autonomy. European digital businesses have to invest – and we have been helping them to do this notably through the European Fund for Strategic Investments and the Capital Markets Union. In parallel, we need to scale up public investments. Under the Digital Europe programme, were are proposing to invest €9.2 billion over the seven years from 2021 to 2027 in core digital capacities: high-performance computing, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity,advanced digital skills and support to public administrations.

Our proposal is built around five core elements. There is a proposed €2.7 billion to fund projects in supercomputing and data processing in Europe, which is crucial for the development of many areas – from health care and renewable energy to car safety and cybersecurity.Then there will be €2.5 billion to help spread AI across the European economy and society, including the development of common ‘European libraries’ of algorithms that would be accessible to all, and to help the public and private sectors to identify and acquire whichever solution would work best for their needs.

For cybersecurity and trust we are proposing a budget of €2 billion that will be invested in safeguarding the EU’s digital economy, society and democracies through boosting cyber defence and the EU’s cybersecurity industry, financing state-of-the-art cybersecurity equipment and infrastructure as well as supporting the development of the necessary skills and knowledge. Some €700 million will be set aside for boosting advanced digital skills.

Finally, €1.3 billion will ensure the digital transformation of public administration and public services and their EU-wide interoperability and facilitate access to technology and knowhow for all businesses, in particular SMEs, using the network of Digital Innovation Hubs, one-stop shops providing access to technological expertise and experimentation facilities.

There will also be funding support for digital action through two other EU programmes.

Digital infrastructure projects will benefit from €3bn available under the Connecting Europe Facility, while research and innovation in next generation digital technologies will be supported with around €16 billion from the Horizon Europe programme.

Interview H.E. GORDAN BAKOTA CROATIAN AMBASSADOR TO SERBIA

Commenting in this CorD interview on the message of Croatian officials that Serbia’s route to the European Union leads via Croatia and that it will not be lenient in insisting on the resolving all bilateral issues, Ambassador Bakota suggests that this be understood as an incentive for Serbia to meet the criteria that have been met by other countries prior to joining the Union. Your Excellency, a year has passed since your arrival in Serbia. How would you rate this period, during which one presidential visit – that of Aleksandra Vučić to Croatia – was also realised?

We Can

Do Better

The past year was dynamic, and there were ups and downs in bilateral relations. As you mentioned in the question, President Vučić’s visit to Croatia in February should certainly be singled out. The meetings of President Kolinda Grabar Kitarović and President Aleksandar Vučić, as well as those with Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, were important because they showed the desire of both parties to improve relations, and especially to accelerate work on resolving the open issues that burden our relations. A series of meetings were held after both, both at ministerial and expert levels, through the work of mixed committees for addressing open issues.

I would like to point out in particular that a need was recognised to intensify cooperation in resolving the fate of missing persons and that the issue of minority status was an important topic.

I’m glad to be able to note that there have been

What it is crucial is to ensure is the realisation of all rights guaranteed by the existing national and international legal framework for the protection of minorities. Relations with the countries of Southeast Europe and EU enlargement will among the main priorities of Croatia’s presidency of the EU in the first half of 2020, says Ambassador Gordan Bakota 14

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RELATIONS

Croatia remains committed to strengthening good neighbourly cooperation and developing relations, and I will personally continue to exert maximum efforts to this end

MINORITIES

Issues related to minority rights – both of Croats in Serbia and Serbs in Croatia – are a very important segment of our bilateral relations

positive developments in a number of areas since the visit. Just one example: education ministers agreed to open a Croatian grammar lectorate at the University of Novi Sad, which is of great importance to the Croatian minority in Serbia.

Economic cooperation is advancing well.

Due to the large number of our companies that operate in Serbia, but also those wanting to establish contacts or open businesses in Serbia, the Representative Officer of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce in Belgrade has been opened.

We also have a very high quality and dynamic exchange/cooperation in the field of culture, especially in terms of excellent theatrical performances, exhibitions and concerts.

I think we can confirm that, compared to previous years, dialogue has been intensified and progress realised. But, we can certainly do better and more in our relations. And that requires constant investments of efforts in creating a positive atmosphere in which it is possible to work on improving relations. Unfortunately, over the course of this year there was a series of events and incidents that don’t contribute to this but rather, on the contrary, impact negatively on our relations. However, Croatia remains committed to strengthening good neighbourly cooperation and developing relations, and I will personally continue to exert maximum efforts to this end.

SEE countries and enlargement as Croatia does.

As such, relations with SEE countries and EU enlargement will be among the main priorities of the Croatian EU Presidency in the first half of 2020. Then, based on our initiative and as a follow-up to the Sofia summit, a new meeting will be held between leaders of the EU

When Croatian Prime Minister Plenković says that Serbia’s route to the EU leads via Croatia, should that be considered a threat or an incentive?

Croatia strongly supports the European Union enlargement process for all countries in SEE, including Serbia’s accession negotiations. It is in our strategic national interest to have a neighbourhood that shares the same European values and standards

As an incentive, of course. And I’ll just cite a few facts that show why I think so: Croatia strongly supports the European Union enlargement process for all countries in SEE, including Serbia’s accession negotiations. It is in our strategic national interest to have a neighbourhood that shares the same European values and standards. I think that in the Council of the EU there are few countries that so systematically and honestly advocate for cooperation with the

MIGRATION

A strategic, comprehensive and integrated response to the issue of illegal migration is vital to Croatia, but also the EU as a whole

and the Western Balkans in Zagreb. The Zagreb Summit will be held 20 years after the summit of leaders held in Zagreb that opened the prospect of European integration to Croatia and other SEE countries. This provides a powerful message that we want to offer a hand to our neighbours and help them on their journey.

Croatia underwent that long and demanding journey to EU membership and we consider that our experience of that process can be of great help, so we will continue providing direct political and expert support.

All countries wanting to become members must be aware that the route to membership is conducted only through the fulfilling of criteria.

Those criteria – both political and technical – are well-known. That’s why our main message to Serbia and other SEE countries is that it is crucial to fulfil the criteria and prepare for new steps. And we are also ready to help them in that. Respect for the status and rights of minorities is one of the topics of bilateral

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Interview relations that is insist ed on in particular.

How would you comment on individual incidents regarding national minorities?

As you have yourself stated, issues related to minority rights – both of Croats in Serbia and Serbs in Croatia – are a very important segment of our bilateral relations.

of the Croatian Government and participate actively not only on resolving minority issues, but also on issues of concern to all citizens. In this way, the high level of protection of the rights of national minorities is further affirmed and incorporated into the wider political culture.

Simultaneously, Croatia strongly condemns

all individual and isolated incidents that impact on members of national minorities in Croatia.

On the other hand, we welcome the communication established between Serbia’s highest representatives and representatives of the Croatian minority in Serbia. We believe that through direct communication the Croatian community will achieve the full implementation of its rights as envisaged by the bilateral agreement, Serbian laws, international conventions and what is expected of Serbia within the scope of the EU accession process. Are you satisfied with preparations for elections for the national council of the Croatian national minority?

I would firstly like to point out the conviction that the Serbian minority in Croatia and the Croatian minority in Serbia can and must play a major and positive role in building overall bilateral relations. What it is crucial is to ensure is the realisation of all rights guaranteed by the existing national and international legal framework for the protection of minorities.

Croatia and Serbia have a concluded minority protection agreement that has formed the basis for the creation of an Intergovernmental Committee on Minorities, which represents a forum for discussion on all issues related to the implementation of minority rights.

I would remind that the constitutional legal framework in Croatia guarantees great rights for all national minorities. Thus, political representatives of the Serbian national minority in Croatia have a Constitutionally guaranteed number of MPs in the Croatian Parliament. Moreover, they form part of the parliamentary majority, support the work

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Political representatives of the Serbian national minority in Croatia have a Constitutionally guaranteed number of MPs in the Croatian Parliament. Moreover, they form part of the parliamentary majority, support the work of the Croatian Government and participate actively not only on resolving minority issues, but also on issues of concern to all citizens

The fact is that preparations for national minority council elections are taking place only a few months after the adoption of the new National Council Act. National minorities have, thus, little time to prepare for activities envisaged by the new Act. As they don’t have conditions for direct elections, members of the Croatian minority will again elect a new council of the Croatian National Council via the electoral assembly.

The process of collecting signatures for Croatian electors has been completed, which was additionally complicated and demanding for the Croatian community, due to new legal provisions and short deadlines. We expect that chosen electors, in a democratic and constructive atmosphere, to decide on the new convocation of the Croatian National Council on election day.

How would you assess economic relations between the two countries? Is there any basis to the impression that this cooperation goes far beyond communication at the political level?

Economic cooperation between the Republic of Croatia and the Republic of Serbia can, without any doubt, be seen as the leading light of our bilateral relations. This cooperation has in recent years been marked by a positive trend of continuous growth in volumes of trade and high levels of Croatian investments in Serbia, which now amount to more than 750 million euros. I would also positively evaluate the fact that investments in the opposite direction have also been instigated, primarily in the tourism sector. I’m glad that Croatia is visited every year by growing numbers of tourists from Serbia and I’m sure that improved infrastructure connectivity will contribute to this growth being even more significant. Economic cooperation

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Interview could certainly be much better if individual problems were solved, such as the incompatibility of certain regulations and procedures, which would ensure the equitable and more efficient flow of goods. Although economic relations have their own development logic, the political atmosphere continues to play a very important role in the development of these relations, as every change in the political domain, whether positive or negative, reflects on economic relations in a certain way.

aggression and collective expulsion. How would you comment on these statements?

Could you tell us more about the joint project to modernise the railway from Belgrade to Zagreb, with EU support?

This relates to the railway line that was an integral part of pan-European Corridor 10, which stretched from Salzburg to Thessaloniki. Unfortunately, due to the events of this region in the ‘90s, a new Trans-European transport network was established that didn’t include this route. However, a 2015 agreement between the EU and the Western Balkan 6 saw that network expanded and this line was recognised as the main route of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) for connecting the EU with Serbia, which also enabled co-financing for the reconstruction of tracks from EU funds. Reconstruction of this line is primarily essential for the return of freight traffic from southern and central Europe, which is in the interest of both countries. That’s why a Memorandum of Understanding on its renewal and modernisation was signed in Belgrade on 9th March this year. Croatia has to date invested around 130 million euros in the modernisation of this line, and is currently in the process of compiling project and all other necessary documentation for which the necessary funds have been secured. This busy route is today utilised on a daily basis by an average of three international passenger trains and 10-12 freight trains, while the reconstruction of the remaining sections of this rail route will give it a maximum capacity of 230 passenger carriages and 166 freight cars per day, which creates new possibilities to further improve trade cooperation.

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Economic cooperation could certainly be much better if individual problems were solved, such as the incompatibility of certain regulations and procedures, which would ensure the equitable and more efficient flow of goods The Council of Europe recently criticised the Croatian authorities for their relations towards migrants, warning against police

The Interior Ministry of the Republic of Croatia officially responded to the inquiry by Human Rights Commissioner Dunja Mijatović regarding the management of borders and access to international protection in Croatia.

I would firstly like to stress that all reports of non-governmental organisations and other organisations regarding the alleged use of means of force by police officers against migrants have been checked within the scope of possibilities, given that there is insufficient specific dana in the reports.

It hasn’t been confirmed in any of these cases that police officers used forced means against migrants, while allegations that police officers committed acts of theft against migrants have also proved to be unfounded.

Turning people away, which is prescribed by the Law on Schengen Borders, implies measures to prevent illegal entry attempts via external borders beyond border crossings.

It is due to police officers refusing them entry into Croatia or carrying out other prescribed procedures to return them to the countries from which they illegally entered Croatia that migrants accuse Croatian police officers of violence. They do this based on the expectation that such accusations will help them in new attempts to enter Croatia and continue their journey to their intended final destination.

A strategic, comprehensive and integrated response to the issue of illegal migration is vital to Croatia, but also the EU as a whole. Croatia wants to become part of the Schengen area as soon as possible, and key efforts to that end are directed towards protecting the EU’s external borders, towards Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro. Croatia didn’t opt to establish physical barriers in dealing with this challenge, but it has significantly strengthened the capacity of the border police, so that now more than 6,500 police officers work to ensure compliance with European and Croatian regulations.

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GLOBAL DIARY

Nuclear weapons

“I plan to pull out of a major arms control treaty with Russia. Kremlin breached the accord on intermediate-range nuclear weapons. We’re not going to let them violate a nuclear agreement. We’re going to terminate the agreement.” – DONALD TRUMP, US PRSIDENT

SERBIA WINS VOLLEYBALL WOMEN’S WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP Serbia claimed the title for the first time in history at the Volleyball Women’s World Championship after edging Italy 3-2. The game was the second encounter between Serbia and Italy in the tournament this year, with Serbia beating Italy 3-1 in the previous match.

It was the first time for Serbia, ranked third in the world, to win the FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship. The ‘Blue Ladies,’ as they are affectionately called, are the first team to have won the European and world title in a row since the Soviet Union in 1989 and 1990.

THE VORTEX, BLOOMBERG HEADQUARTERS, LONDON

2018’S ARCHITECTURAL PHOTOGRAPHY AWARDS From a seashore chapel in Qinhuangdao, China, to an abandoned power station in Budapest, some of the world’s most eclectic buildings have appeared in images shortlisted in the annual Architectural Photography Awards.

The 20 finalists, named across four main categories (exterior, interior, buildings in use and “sense of place”) will be exhibited at the World Architecture Festival in Amsterdam from Nov. 28-30. Winners will be announced on the last day of the event.

Photographs from almost 50 different countries, including Australia, Canada and India, were entered into this year’s competition.

MACEDONIA AGREES TO NEW NAME Greece and Macedonia reached an historic agreement to end a bitter 27-year name dispute that had kept the smaller and younger country out of international institutions such as Nato and the EU, the two countries’ prime ministers announced.

Greece’s Alexis Tsipras and Macedonia’s Zoran Zaev said the former Yugoslav republic’s new name for both domestic and international purposes would be Republic of Northern Macedonia. Macedonia will also amend its constitution to reflect the change as part of the deal.

The nationality of the country’s citizens will be listed on official MACEDONIA’S PRIME MINISTER ZORAN ZAEV (LEFT) AND documents as “Macedonian/citiGREECE’S PRIME MINISTER ALEXIS TSIPRAS zen of the Republic of Macedonia.”

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Catastrophe

“Only when we become convinced that there is an incoming attack on the territory of Russia, and that happens within seconds, only after that we would launch a retaliatory strike,” he said. “It would naturally mean a global catastrophe.”– VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIA’S PRESIDENT

VIKTOR ORBÁN ADOPTS RHINO

2018 INDONESIA EARTHQUAKE A magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck Indonesia’s Central Sulawesi province on Sept. 28, triggering a tsunami and landslides that caused widespread destruction and loss of life. So far, more than 2,000 people are known to have died and at least 2,500 are seriously injured, according to the Indonesia disaster management agency. About 1.5 million people in Central Sulawesi are likely affected.

With about 65,000 houses damaged or destroyed, more than 330,000 people are homeless or without adequate shelter. The people affected

by Indonesia’s 2018 earthquakes will need help for years as they rebuild their lives, homes, and communities.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán adopted a rhinoceros at Nyíregyháza zoo, 230 km east of Budapest.

“I have received a special request from the zoo at Nyíregyháza to adopt a rhinoceros. I did it, but adoption goes hand in hand with being a godfather so we have to give him a name now,” the prime minister announced on his Facebook profile, asking his followers to help him choose a name for the animal.

The options are: Csülök (Trotters), Fülig Jimmy (a character from several famous Hungarian books), Chico, Antione, Bernardo or Désiré.

WORLD’S LONGEST SEA-CROSSING BRIDGE OPENED World’s longest sea-crossing bridge which stretches 55 kilometres and cost £14billion to build was open last month in China Construction started in 2009 on the 55-kilometre crossing connecting Hong Kong to mainland China. Workers used 420,000 tonnes of steel to build the bridge, which would be enough to build 60 Eiffel Towers Stretching across 55 kilometres, it is 22.5 kilometres longer than the width of the English Channel from Dover in the United Kingdom to Calais in France.

Officials expect the bridge to be in use for 120 years and say it will cut travel time by 60 per cent

АNNUAL FOAM FIGHT

FRANCE PROBES MATCH-FIXING IN PSG-RED STAR GAME

Hundreds of students at a Scottish University of St. Andrews’ Lower College gathered on a school lawn to fling shaving cream for the student body’s annual foam fight, part of the school’s traditional “Raisin Weekend.”

The Raisin Weekend is designed for first year students to thank upperclassmen for serving as “parents” and mentoring them at the school. The weekend’s name comes from the traditional gift of a bag of raisins presented by the new students to their older counterparts.

Paloma Paige, president of the St. Andrews Students’ Association, said she was surprised when she first learned of the tradition, but she learned it was a valuable experience for making friends and becoming acclimated to the school.

The French financial prosecutor’s office said it was investigating suspicions of match-fixing in a Champions League soccer match between Paris St Germain and Serbian club Red Star Belgrade.

Earlier last month, French sports newspaper L’Equipe wrote on its website that European football’s governing body UEFA had alerted French authorities to possible match-fixing in the Oct. 3 fixture, based on a tip from a “credible” informant.

L’Equipe said the informant had told UEFA before the match that a high-level Red Star official was planning to place nearly €5 million (!) in bets on a five-goal-difference win by PSG, with the complicity of several players. This prompted the investigation.

Paris St Germain beat Red Star 6-1.

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Focus

Serbia’s industrial policy

Let The

Right One In Business as usual is not an option for Serbia and the Western Balkans, which is why the new industrial policy should be sectorspecific and rely on new policy measures

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he Serbian Government is currently devising a new industrial development strategy, as well as a strategy for smart specialisation. While a new industrial policy represents a precondition for closing Chapter 20 in EU accession negotiations, covering entrepreneurship and industrial policy, it is also a must given the idea that Serbia has to develop a new growth model. Serbia has tried to re-invent its industrial policy several times in the recent past and thus to the challenges faced following the devastation of the industrial sector during the transition period, the low share of production in tradeable goods, a lack of competitiveness and weak economic growth fundamentals. The most recent such document, adopted in 2011 and valid until 2020, caused a major dispute among the professional public. In the meantime – mostly with the help of FDI – Serbia has increased industry’s share of GDP significantly and re-

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corded strong growth in exports, albeit with little effect on economic growth.

What should a new industrial policy concept in Serbia look like? Should it be horizontal or sector-specific? Can small economies allow themselves to develop in every area, or should they focus solely on individual branches? Are there models that Serbia should seek to emulate or not? Should an agreement on the distribution of forces in the industrial sector be reached at the regional level? Should role models be sought among European countries or in Asia? Can there be an industrial policy without people? What challenges are posed to policymakers by education and demography?

Our interlocutors offered valuable advice on how to shape the new industrial policy and, even more importantly, how to implement it. They also caution that overexposure to Chinese investments, which are coming easier than those from the EU, might be risky in the long run.

H.E. ORLA O’HANRAHAN

AMBASSADOR OF THE REPUBLIC OF IRELAND TO GREECE, SERBIA AND ALBANIA

WE PLAN FAR AHEAD ALL POLICY REFORMS ARE DEVELOPED THROUGH ACROSS-GOVERNMENT COMMITMENT AND ENGAGEMENT WITH BUSINESS AND STAKEHOLDERS. THIS IS ABOUT BUILDING RESILIENCE IN OUR ECONOMY AND TAKING STEPS TO PREPARE FOR THE CHALLENGES WE FACE he Irish Government, together with key economic agencies - Enterprise Ireland, the Industrial Development Authority, Tourism Ireland and Bord Bia (the Food Board) - is planning ahead to ensure that our economic policy is robust enough to weather these challenges and protect Ireland’s economy in the future.

One of those policies is “Enterprise 2025 Renewed”, which focuses on building resilience in Ireland’s enterprise base by driving productivity growth and encouraging firms to invest in talent, skills, research and innovation.

‘Ireland Connected’, published in March 2017, sets out a vision to create a strong, open economy and make Ireland an attractive location to live and do business. This strategy sets the following specific targets to strengthen exports and increase levels of foreign direct investment, including to increase indigenous exports to a level of €26 billion by 2020; generate 30,000 additional jobs in the tourism sector by 2020 and €5 billion in overseas tourism revenue by 2025; secure 900 new foreign direct investments in a four-year period to 2019 and increase international student numbers by over 25 per cent.

We implement these strategies throughout all our key economic sectors in an effort to diversify and plan for the future. These sectors include agri-food, ICT and tourism, which I know are also key sectors in Serbia.

In the ICT sector, Ireland is the world’s second largest

exporter of computer and IT services. With a highly creative and talented workforce, an open economy and a competitive corporate tax environment, Ireland has successfully enticed eight of the top ten global information technology companies to establish a significant presence. The sector’s traditional players with long-established operations in Ireland, such as Intel, Hewlett Packard, IBM, Microsoft and Apple, have been joined

EXTENSIVE ANALYSIS IS BEING UNDERTAKEN BY GOVERNMENT ACROSS ALL ISSUES AND KEY SECTORS THAT MAY BE IMPACTED

BY THE CONSEQUENCES OF BREXIT by the newer vanguard of the internet and social media revolution, including Google, Facebook, Amazon and Twitter. All of this investment has established Ireland as the internet capital of Europe. Our worldwide experience for creativity and communication is also attracting games companies, with Big Fish, A, Demonware, Pocap, Zynga, Riot Games, Jolt and Serbia’s Nordeus all present in Ireland.

Irish companies are currently partnering with Serbian IT businesses, or in some cases setting up branches in Serbia. Serbia is gaining a reputation as an increasingly popular location for Business Process Outsourcing and Shared Services (BPO/SSC).

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Serbia’s industrial policy ALEKSANDAR MARKOVIĆ, CEO, METALAC A.D.

A STRATEGY IS WORTHLESS WITHOUT A CLEAR ACTION PLAN EVEN THE BEST INDUSTRIAL POLICY IS WORTHLESS WITHOUT GOOD IMPLEMENTATION AND CONTROL. ON PAPER WE HAVE EVERYTHING, FROM THE MINISTRY TO AGENCIES, YET IMPLEMENTATION CANNOT BE FELT possible to follow a model and develop according Regardless of what the industrial policy looks to the ‘copy-paste’. However, if I were to take like, the essence is not in the concept but in the something from the Irish model, that would implementation. Most strategies that are made be its relationship towards education, because well conceptually fail on implementation, and that is the backbone of a modern economy. If that’s what needs to be focused on. The previous we imply under the Asian model an economy development strategy for industry, which by the based on low labour costs, I do not think that’s way is still valid, also looked good on paper, but the road to the country’s sustainable developin the end it was mostly boiled down to a list of nice wishes. There was no clear action plan that could be followed by someone DEMOGRAPHY IS A CHALLENGE FOR ALL OF US, in terms of its implementation and efAND PROBABLY THE TOUGHEST ISSUE. I’M NOT fects. I personally think it’s better to opt AN OPTIMIST WHEN I CONSIDER THE ANSWER for sector-specific policies, because they allow us to focus on chosen branches.

We know, for example, that the branches of the ment. We should praise our top engineers and Serbian economy that have a constant competitive technologists, not cheap labour. We hear often advantage are the ICT sector, organic foods and of late that the fourth industrial revolution has health tourism, and those branches don’t have changed the paradigm in the economy. In other the same needs. That’s why it’s better to adopt words, the rules of the game haven’t changed, sector-based policies in order for the state to rather the game has changed, and now we’re support the development of each branch individunot helped in the new game by old knowledge.

In all of this, education has changed the least. ally. Both small and large economies naturally We still teach children to remember facts and develop everything. The state’s industrial policy data, but that no longer has any value, because serves to identify which branches of industry everything is easily accessible in the digital world. have a competitive advantage and what the state Now resources are skills, the management of that should do to maximise the effect. And which data and its use, and educational systems adapt branches will have their development dictated to that poorly. primarily by market trends. I do not think it’s

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PROCESSING SECTOR SHOULD BE AT THE FOREFRONT CURRENT INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION AND GOODS EXPORTS RELY ON THE ACTIVITIES OF FOREIGN MULTINATIONAL COMPANIES AS A MARGINAL PART OF THEIR VALUE CHAIN. THE SOURCE OF THEIR KEY COMPETENCES ISN’T IN SERBIA NOW AND WON’T BE. UNDER SUCH CIRCUMSTANCES, SHOULD THEY BE HELPED AND, IF SO, HOW? The ‘new’ industrial policy mustn’t be focused in isolation on the processing industry, but should rather include the construction and ICT sectors.

So, I don’t consider that it should be neutral, rather it should focus actively on sectors that are expected to be the biggest contributors to economic growth and social mobility. In that sense, the order of priorities should be such that the processing sector, in the medium term, is found at the forefront.

Why? The fourth industrial revolution is underway around the world. Digital technologies are finding applications in all segments of society, and in technologically developed countries that includes manufacturing processes, where intelligent automation of the production process is being sought, and represents a precondition for

IVAN NIKOLIĆ, PH.D., DIRECTOR FOR RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT, INSTITUTE OF ECONOMIC SCIENCES

creating production methods through the intelligent factories of the future. The results of analysis of the efficiency of investments in the last decade, which we recently published in MAT, show incontrovertibly that the fastest growing capital efficiency in Serbia has been recorded in the service sector with so-called professional-creative activities. According to the new development paradigm (the key elements of which are creativity, knowhow, originality, ideas etc.), these activities are potentially the greatest sources of economic prosperity. The very concept of growth and development is changing, and the current allocation of investments is moving towards

THE INDUSTRIAL POLICY SHOULDN’T BE NEUTRAL, BUT RATHER FOCUSED ACTIVELY ON SECTORS THAT ARE EXPECTED TO BE THE BIGGEST CONTRIBUTORS TO ECONOMIC GROWTH AND SOCIAL MOBILITY, AND THOSE ARE THE ICT SECTOR AND CONSTRUCTION increasing the share of intellectual property in the structure of fixed assets (software and research & development as the most important constituent elements), which encourages the stronger development of activities in which these resources are more represented, in relative terms. On the other hand, a country with this kind of income per capita and this level of development, and considering the existing liquidity of public finances, should push construction to the maximum. In periods of accelerated economic growth, investments in construction outgrow GDP growth. This is a fact that must be valid until we reach the mid level of development.

JENS BASTIAN, ECONOMIC

CONSULTANT AND FINANCIAL ANALYST

FOCUS ON A SECTOR-SPECIFIC APPROACH A PROACTIVE INDUSTRIAL POLICY CONCEPT IN SERBIA SHOULD LINK DOMESTIC NEEDS AND CONDITIONS WITH EXPERIENCES FROM OTHER COUNTRIES AND EUROPEAN INSTITUTIONS OR ORGANISATIONS First and foremost, an industrial policy should ing national policies in agreed priority areas and be proactive and inclusive. This implies that creating a critical mass of initiatives. Regional various civil society representatives are included cooperation in industrial policymaking should in the formulation and execution of industrial focus on sectors such as R&D, energy, transport, policymaking, that it is not (!) a top-down policy tourism, agriculture and business start-ups. initiative and that it has a long-term strategic Countries such as Serbia, Hungary, Macedonia outlook, even when obstacles are encountered and Greece are increasingly being targeted by along the way.

China, with Beijing’s investment footprint growing Under these preconditions, a proactive indusin Southeast Europe. trial policy concept in Serbia should link domestic For these countries, the expanding Chinese needs and conditions with experiences from other footprint can present itself as a funding alternacountries and European institutions or organisative to cumbersome and time-consuming EU tions, e.g. the European Trade Union Confederation in Brussels. As Serbia is in the I HAVE RECENTLY PUBLISHED, TOGETHER complex process of accession negotiations WITH THE FRIEDRICH-EBERT FOUNDATION with the European Commission regarding BELGRADE AND ZAGREB OFFICES, POLICY various chapters, EU rules, regulations and RECOMMENDATIONS FOR A NEW ECONOMIC financing instruments (e.g. the EFSI Juncker Investment Plan) have to be considered when AGENDA IN SOUTHEAST EUROPE, INCLUDING THE formulating the Serbian version of an active ADVOCACY OF INDUSTRIAL POLICYMAKING industrial policy.

Given the experience with previous attempts programmes. Policymakers in Beijing, Tirana, Skopje, Belgrade, Sarajevo, Budapest and Podgorica at industrial policymaking in Serbia, I would frame these investments in infrastructure projects encourage those sitting at the negotiating table as a win-win strategy. to focus on a sector-specific approach.

I always underline in meetings with Chinese and The track record of economic and social transSerbian or Hungarian investors that such a pivot formation in the Western Balkans suggests that towards Beijing must continue to apply rules and business as usual cannot continue to be the roadmap regulations in procurement and tender processes going forward. Instead, I would argue for new that are based on the priorities of the European policy instruments. One such avenue consists Union accession process for the countries of the of encouraging policymakers to elaborate and Western Balkans. Equally, the medium-term implement a more efficient industrial policy, both lending risks may create dependencies that are at national and regional levels. difficult to overcome.

A regional industrial policy calls for coordinat-

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Serbia’s industrial policy KATARINA OBRADOVIĆ JOVANOVIĆ, ASSISTANT MINISTER OF ECONOMY

MILORAD FILIPOVIĆ,

TENURED PROFESSOR OF THE UNIVERSITY OF BELGRADE, FACULTY OF ECONOMICS

WE MUST CATCH THE DIGITISATION WAVE

ONLY SUPPORT THAT WHICH IS COMPETITIVE

THE CONCEPT OF THE NEW INDUSTRIAL POLICY SHOULD OFFER AN ANSWER TO THE QUESTION OF HOW WE WANT OUR INDUSTRY TO LOOK IN THE NEXT 10 YEARS, AND THE WAYS IN WHICH WE PLAN TO ACHIEVE THAT. IT IS IMPORTANT TO VIEW REALISTICALLY – IN RELATION TO THE CURRENT INDUSTRIAL STRUCTURE – WHERE CHANCES EXIST FOR ADVANCEMENT AND FASTER GROWTH, WHERE WE HAVE A COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE, WHICH AREAS NEED TO BE STRENGTHENED, AND WHICH SLOWLY ABANDONED

IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW INDUSTRIES, THE EMPHASIS SHOULD BE PLACED ON THOSE BRANCHES THAT ARE THE MOST INNOVATIVE AND THAT CAN BE POSITIONED SUCCESSFULLY ON THE GLOBAL MARKET, AND THOSE ARE PHARMACEUTICALS, MEDICAL EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURING, TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND THE ICT SECTOR, ARMS PRODUCTION, THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY AND MODERN AND TECHNOLOGICALLY INNOVATIVE FOOD AND BEVERAGE PRODUCTION

The leading principles of the new industrial policy concept will certainly be restructuring in the direction of innovative sectors and products with higher added value, alongside a gradual shift away from competitive advantages based on reduced labour costs, better integration into international value chains and capturing the “wave” of digitisation. Realising structural changes in industry is only possible with sector-specific measures, and in this the word sector should be considered in a much narrower sense than, for example, the food or machinery industries. We need to more clearly understand where our competitive advantages lie within the wider sectors, not limiting ourselves to official statistical classifications, in order to direct future development measures towards them. It is also important for the reconsidering of choices of sectors to remain open, for that to continue after the adoption of the policy document, in order to confirm that the right priorities have really been selected, to correct mistaken choices and to include new priorities that have been singled out in the meantime.

The fact that many areas will not be prioritised doesn’t mean there aren’t important ones among them, nor that they will remain without any support.

However, if we want faster economic development and a change in the industrial structure, we must focus the majority of our limited resources in the areas where we have the greatest chances of being competitive at the international level, while high quality horizontal support measures should be provided for other areas.

Another important strategy in Serbia is also currently being drafted – the Strategy for smart specialisation. It envisages the identifying of areas in which the country or the region has a critical mass of knowhow, industrial capacity and competence, and in which it has innovative potential to position itself on global markets. The industrial policy and smart specialisation strategies must be closely linked and that’s why they’re being developed together.

During the last almost 30 years of its transition process, the Republic of Serbia almost completely lost the industrial capacities it had built up until then. It is now clear that Serbia needs a completely new industrial policy that could lead, in the next ten years (not earlier), to the creation of the basis for a new structure of industry in Serbia. In the development of new industries, the emphasis should be placed on those branches that are the most innovative and that can be positioned successfully on the global market. For me, those are: pharmaceuticals, medical equipment manufacturing, telecommunications and the ICT sector, arms production, the automotive industry and modern and technologically innovative food and beverage production. So, we need to identify those market segments where we have already created some comparative advantages (not natural ones!!) and make their development a priority.

The future development of Serbia, and of the country’s industry, should resolve two key issues: 1) will it stop and possibly reverse the “brain drain” through the proper establishing of a different system of values in a society where an individual’s knowhow will be valued and appreciated; 2) how can the “dormant capacities” of domestic capitalists be activated and the entrepreneurship of Serbian citizens encouraged, in order for us to succeed in achieving the highest possible GNP, and not GDP. The difference between these two sizes is increasing, and based on the growing investments of foreign capital, which is not only increasingly present (we don’t have a single company among the top 10-20 exporters, in terms of number of employees, profits etc., that is under domestic ownership and isn’t a public company!!!!), but also more efficient according to all indicators. The difference between GNP and GDP already exceeded €2 billion in 2016 (2017, according to previous statistics, was €2,541.6 million or more than the value of foreign investment!!!).

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Feature ANA ILIĆ, ADVISOR TO SERBIAN PRIME MINISTER ANA BRNABIĆ

FOR THE DIGITAL AND CREATIVE INDUSTRIES, FILM AND TOURISM

Serbia – Land Of Creativity And Innovation The Creative Industries Council was established to providing the creative industries and creative artists with the systemic support of the state, and to provide a framework for sustainable growth

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he creative industries are among the world’s fastest growing economic sectors. They also have the potential to completely change how a country is perceived by international counterparts. In order to support the development of the sector, and take advantage of the creativity and innovation in the country, Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabić founded the Creative Industries Council. Speaking to CorD about how this exciting sector is being supported by the government is Ana Ilić, Advisor to the Serbian Prime Minister for the digital and creative industries, film and tourism.

The Council for Creative Industries is an initiative of the RS Prime Minister Ana Brnabić who has made the development of creative industries and the knowledge-based economy one of her key priorities.

The role of the Creative Council is to advise the Prime Minister and help her team to make informed decisions that guide the development of the sector in the most efficient ways. Not only does the council want to ensure that artists and creators can become sustianable and reach as extensive an audience as possible both domestically and internationally, we also want to ensure that Serbia is recognized for its immense creative potential, innovative ideas, and originality.

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We started almost a year ago, and as of six months ago we’ve worked with the officially formed Creative Industries Council. We quickly compiled a list of over 20 initiatives that offer systemic solutions to problems faced and associated topics, then divided ourselves into smaller groups in order to be more efficient and constructive. On many issues we’ve also consulted with experts who are not members of the Council.

We have determined the initiatives that are a priority and are now working on their implementation. All members of the Council work on a voluntary basis and really invest a lot of time and energy in all these activities,” says Ilić.

I don’t think those of us in the country are even aware of the significance and value to our society of the talent and achievements of these people who did it all without the systemic support of the state

In which areas do you think Serbia could position itself at the creative leader of Europe?

In many ways the benefit of the creative industries is that it isn’t really about competition in the traditional sense. It’s not like there’s a limit to creativity.

I always refer to JK Rowling and Harry Potter, and how the imagination of just one woman has been converted into a multi-billion euro endeavour – and this has been achieved without diminishing any of her “competitors”. What’s more, creativity can’t really be outsourced or duplicated, and it’s not something that usually is limited by the comparative cheapness of the labour force. So building creative industry capacity has obvious benefits for our country.

Having said that, all areas of the creative industries in our country have tremendous potential. There are many successful individuals and organisations already in existence that achieve great results even beyond the borders of our country. What’s been missing is a platform for us to achieve even greater visibility. In the field of the visual arts we have great painters and sculptors who exhibit around the world - Ivan Grubanov, Tijana Kojić, Ivana Bašić, Ɖorđe Ozbolt and Gala Čaki, to mention just a few. In the domain of software design and gaming, we have real giants like Nordeus and Eipix. Apart from that, in

Serbia we are developing the technologies of the future that we don’t even have an adequate name for yet – for example technology for the digital transformation of people, which is the work of Serbian company 3Lateral. ‘VR all Art’ is a platform that offers virtual reality exhibitions of artworks even for our National Museum, which was developed

by Vitomir Jevremović. Many of our musicians already have very successful international careers, like LP Duo, Sixth June, Ana Popović, Nemanja Radulović, Isidora Žebeljan, Stefan Milenković, Gramophondzie et al. I don’t think those of us in the country are even aware of the significance and value to our society of the talent and achievements of these people. And what’s more they did it all without the systemic support of the state. Our view is that the state should recognise this work, these results and potential, and ask all these people how we can help and work with them to improve their ability to scale up and reach bigger audiences and increase capacity. That’s what we’re doing.

conceived their promotion, or perhaps additional education?

Firstly through support for participation in major events, such as festivals and fairs, both in the country and elsewhere in the world, providing opportunities for young people to exhibit their works, build international partnerships and networks, and reach a much wider audience. Likewise, through a comprehensive marketing campaign of our own, we will promote our most successful individuals and initiatives around the world through all channels and platforms at our disposal. We also want foreign artists and creative individuals to come and work in our country. Serbia deserves to be a hub of creativity and innovation, and I believe it will soon become that through the smart

organisation of the Creative Serbia: the future is creative conference held in Belgrade earlier this year as a way to familiarise the public with the concept of Serbian creativity and innovation. The Council also participated actively in devising the re-launch of the National Museum and developing its new visual identity. We’ve additionally supported many important cultural and artistic events: the October Salon, Bitef, Bemus, the Belgrade Jazz Festival, the General Assembly of the European Association of Composers, while for the first time ever we’re bringing to Belgrade and Serbia the international conference DLD - Digital Life Design, amongst other things.

Beyond this, there is an entire array of reforms that we’re working on with ministerial staff that will

In which way will the creative industries or individual actors be supported by the state, given that such support is crucial to young people?

The first step, which is also the most important, has already been taken, and that is that the state has finally recognised the Creative Industries as an industrial sector of its own, including recognition of its potential to contribute to both the country’s social and its economic growth. According to their very nature, the creative industries are cross-sectoral, encompassing multiple areas of government administration, from economy, to culture, to trade to tourism. That’s why it’s very good that the initiative for supporting the creative industries comes right from the centre of government, from the Prime Minister. It is really ideal to coordinate everything from there.

So as well as traditional support to culture and art, the state has now initiated systemic support for those areas that are based on the creative economy, on cultural and creative outputs that stimulate economic growth. The state will now support this sector through multiple systematic measures, including legal and regulatory reforms, but also via numerous new activities and projects that should ensure the improved functioning of the sector, as well as the promotion of the sector and the country in global markets.

and tangible steps that we are going to take. The end goal is for artists and creative individuals to be able to live well from their work right here in Serbia; for them to stay and work in the country and to still reach their audiences and markets both here and worldwide.

Ideas are classed among the most valu-

Do you already have some planned projects?

able resources, but their realisation is also

We have many projects that we’re working on.

Even before the formal establishment of the Council, most of the Council members participated in the

dependent on economic factors. If we take young artists for starters, how have you

It’s very good that the initiative for supporting the creative industries progresses from the centre of government, from the Prime Minister.

As it encompasses many sectors, It is best to be coordinated from there

improve the conditions for creative industry participants and stakeholders. These range from incentives for opening and operating art galleries, to ensuring the more secure and long-term funding of the most important events and festivals, to the creation of creative hubs and resolving the status and retirement of professional dancers. In the coming weeks there will be plenty more events, discussions and panels initiated by the Council.

We’ve also devised the communication platform of Serbia Creates, which is slowly getting started and offers a new approach to positioning Serbia by affirming the country’s contemporary characteristics of creativity, innovation, and originality. Serbia Creates frames authenticity, ingenuity, excellence, trust, and openness as core elements of the Serbian character and promotes Serbian people as creative, innovative, reliable and resilient partners. It ultimately profiles Serbia as a great place to visit, invest, study or do business. Strengthening the creative sector is important for Serbia to start thinking differently about itself, and this is also the first step in changing our image in the outside world.

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Comment CHRIS JOHNSTONE,

CANADIAN SOCIAL PERFORMANCE EXPERT AND SENIOR PARTNER, ERM

Integrating Sustainability Into Business Canada has a long history of mining – as a driver of the nation’s economic growth, a creator of jobs, a force behind new technology and innovation, and a national export, with our companies operating in more than 100 countries

A

s an industry, mining is constantly evolving to keep pace with global demands for resources and new ways of doing business. With half of all public mining and exploration companies listed in Canada, and nearly a third of the world’s mining equity raised on Canadian exchanges in 2017, there is no question that Canadian companies will play a key role in shaping the industry’s future.

The global trends that are influencing the mining industry, and to which it is working to respond, are not simple – climate change, population growth, increased urbanisation, digital transformation, the emerging middle class. These megatrends are forcing recalculations in every sector of the global economy. Every business is looking to grow commercially, while wrestling to understand and fulfil regulatory requirements and societal expectations. But mining’s challenges go one step further. The same trends that drive demand for metals and minerals also exert pressure on other natural resources and require continuously higher levels of innovation.

We are seeing many Canadian companies rising to the occasion and seizing the opportunities that come with being an industry leader, especially in the area of sustainability. We are seeing smart technology reducing health and safety risks on the mine face by allowing remote work and monitoring. Steps taken to diversify the

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workforce, from the boardroom to the exploration camp, are allowing companies to attract a new generation of talent that reflects the communities where companies operate. Platforms for dialogue and participatory decision-making are helping companies build stronger relationships with local communities and reduce costly project delays.

Companies looking beyond their own operations are understanding the life-cycle of their products and identifying opportunities for material reuse that benefit the triple bottom line.

We are seeing many Canadian companies rising to the occasion and seizing the opportunities that come with being an industry leader, especially in the area of sustainability Companies are supported in this progress through myriad international initiatives. The Government of Canada has a broad framework and network of resources to promote and en-

able responsible business conduct by Canadian mining companies operating abroad. Industryled initiatives like the Mining Association of Canada’s Towards Sustainable Mining, which is increasingly being adopted by industry associations around the world, are contributing to measurable improvements in companies’ social and environmental performance.

But these sustainability success stories are only the introduction to what must be a much broader dialogue. Integrating sustainability into business operations and culture is critical to the industry’s continued growth and its ability to adapt to the new realities of mining. This includes the ability to respond to investor pressure, as they stress test their portfolios around issues like climate change and supply chain accountability.

Mining companies need to prime their people, processes and facilities for a new era, one where sustainable practises sit at the forefront of their operations and all decision-making.

It’s time for a new narrative for the sector, one that is focused on holistic value creation and building “the mine we want to see”. Companies that will succeed in this new era will be generating social, environmental and economic value not just at mine sites, but up and down the value chain. Canadian mining, with its deep roots, unmatched talent pool and broad institutional support, can lead that charge.

Leaders’

WARREN BOWERS, Lower School Principal, the International School of Belgrade

DR DRAGAN KOSTIĆ, director, Free Zone Pirot

Diversity Makes Our School Culturally Rich

Best In Europe And Third In The World

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DARREN GIBSON, CEO, Luštica Bay

MEETING POINT Stojan Rangelov, B.Sc. engineer, co-owner of company Putevi Ivanjica (Roads of Ivanjica)

Vibrant, Inclusive & Sustainable Safe Roads Made Year-Round To EU Standards Resort Town PAGE /36

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VLADIMIR NOVAKOVIĆ, General Manager Apatin brewery

Three-CenturyLong Tradition PAGE /41

LEGAT 1903

Discover The New Best Place For Business Dining PAGE /43

WARREN BOWERS, LOWER SCHOOL PRINCIPAL, THE INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF BELGRADE

Diversity Makes Our School Culturally Rich Students nowadays have immediate access to information at their fingertips and can find facts with the push of a button. Our job as educators is to show them what to do with that knowledge

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e need to give them opportunities to work in groups with effective communication skills and to solve problems independently using creativity and critical thinking skills, notes Warren Bowers, Lower School Principal at the International School of Belgrade, sppeaking to CorD. The International School of Belgrade (ISB) has been engaged in teaching foreign children in Belgrade since as far back as 1948.

How do those seven decades look to you now, from today’s perspective?

The world we are preparing our students for now is completely different to that of 1948. Serbia itself has gone through more changes than most countries over that time and the fact that ISB has remained in action over the past 70 years is a testament to its resilience, its quality and its ability to grow with changing needs and expectations. The

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school has grown to become the top-quality, highly-respected international school that we have today thanks, in part, to the history and traditions of the past.

Some of the major achievements of which the school is particularly proud are the fact that ISB remained open throughout the period of the ex-Yugoslavia wars in the 1990s, when most expats left the region. Additionally, gaining authorization to implement the three programmes of the International Baccalaureate (IB) was a natural and important outgrowth of the ISB commitment to educate globally-minded citizens who contribute positively to society. ISB became authorized by the International Baccalaureate Organization to offer the Diploma Programme, the Middle Years Programme, and the Primary Years Programme during the 2005-2007 years, and in May 2010, ISB was one of 583 International Baccalaureate World Schools to offer all three IB programmes.

International Schools (CIS) and the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC). As well as this, we adhere to standards set by the Serbian Ministry of Education. All of these accreditations mean that our programmes are subject to external standards, are top quality and recognised internationally.

Our curriculum is described as transdisciplinary, with the curriculum areas intersecting and connecting and often being taught together. For example, if the students are learning about plants and other living things, they will be reading about this and their writing might look at the genre of a report. If students are learning about the impact that significant people have on us, their reading and writing might be biographies.

We make learning interesting and exciting and students enjoy working this way.

ISB has always focused on strong academics, and at the same time embraced

What kind of education does the school represent and which standards does your curriculum adhere to?

The educational programme here at ISB is truly international. We have students from more than 40 different countries from all over the world and we highlight and celebrate the diversity they represent. The Lower School at ISB uses the Primary Years Programme (PYP) of the International Baccalaureate for the curriculum framework. On top of being authorised by the International Baccalaureate Organization for many years to teach all three programmes of the IB, we are also accredited by the Council of

On top of being authorised by the International Baccalaureate Organization for many years to teach all three programmes of the IB, we are also accredited by the Council of International Schools (CIS) and the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC)

teaching methodologies that enable students to gain the skills to be able to apply their knowledge, and to critically analyse issues from various perspectives.

Which age categories does the school cater for and are there any prerequisites for enrolling to study?

ISB as a whole school has students from Pre-Kindergarten to Grade 12. In the Lower School, our students finish at Grade 5 before moving to middle school for Grade 6. So our youngest students are 3 years old and our oldest primary students are 11 years old.

We have a Learning Support department that helps students who find aspects of the curriculum challenging and we provide additional English language classes to those who are new to English.

We have entrance assessments in literacy and mathematics to determine the proficiency of our applicants in these two areas and set up the programs to successfully meet their needs.

What is the typical profile of the ISB teaching staff?

One of the great things about ISB is that we do not have a ‘typical profile’ for our teachers. We have teachers from many different parts of the world and from many different backgrounds. It is this diversity, and the diversity of our student body, that makes our school culturally rich. Many of our teachers have worked in different countries throughout their career and some of our teachers have a Serbian background but were raised in other countries. All of our teachers are fully-qualified and experienced and many have a Masters degree. We have a very good reputation in the international schools’ community which makes ISB a sought after place to work.

Having amassed a great deal of experience leading international schools around the world, how are your first impressions of Belgrade?

I am grateful every day to be living and working in such an interesting and beautiful city as Belgrade. This is my fifth international school experience and I have to say that the transition to Belgrade has

We have a Learning Support department that helps students who find aspects of the curriculum challenging and we provide additional English language classes to those who are new to English

been second to none. The people have been extremely welcoming and friendly, especially my Serbian colleagues at ISB. I’m enjoying exploring the markets, with the incredible selection of fruit and vegetables, and discovering the various eating spots around the city. I like live music and am enjoying the local bands at various events. It’s only been three months since I moved here, but I’m already excited to call Belgrade home.

Apart from equipping them with knowledge, do you train the pupils with some other skills?

Students nowadays have immediate access to information at their fingertips and can find facts with the push of a but-

ton. Our job as educators is to show them what to do with that knowledge. We need to give them opportunities to work in groups with effective communication skills and to solve problems independently using creativity and critical thinking skills. It is vital for schools to create environments where students can try things out and make mistakes as part of their learning process. We need to teach our students to be resilient and flexible when things do not work out the way they want them to and to help them manage disappointment. Being open-minded and being able to see things from different perspectives is becoming more and more important in our swiftly changing world.

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Recognition

“It is important that everyone understands that it has been clear from the very beginning of the dialogue process that normalization of relations, or dialogue in general, will not happen without de facto recognition of the territorial integrity of the Republic of Kosovo. That should be clear.”

– GERMAN PARLIAMENTARIAN PETER BEYER

LOCAL NEWS HEMOFARM

INTERNATIONAL AWARD FOR DON’T LET IT BURST’ CAMPAIGN ‘Don’t let it Burst’, the campaign of Hemofarm Foundation for prevention of high blood pressure, was awarded the Silver Drum award in the category of OOH /Out-of-Home/ advertising at 25th Golden Drum International Festival, organised in Portorož (Slovenia) this year.

Bearing in mind that high blood pressure is currently the most widespread disease, as well as that each second citizen of Serbia suffers from high blood pressure, Hemofarm Foundation conducted the ‘Don’t let it Burst’ national campaign this year with the aim of improving the health culture and encouraging citizens to check their blood pressure on a regular basis. ‘The award we won at this, 25th Festival, symbolically coincided with the 25th birthday of Hemofarm Foundation.

We found it particularly important to do something significant for our citizens in this year of our jubilee. If we managed to save even one life with this educational campaign on the importance of high blood pressure prevention, it would be the best award for us’, Suzana Đorđević, Director of Hemofarm Foundation pointed out.

ALIPLAST

ALIPLAST TO BUILD ITS OWN FACILITY IN SIMANOVCI Aliplast Serbia, a part of international Aliplast Group, with factories in Poland, Belgium, France and England, has been operating in Simanovci for two years and now the company plans to start looking for an adequate space for the construction of their own facility, as they are currently renting. The main activity of Aliplast is the trade of aluminum profiles used in construction, as well as the additional services of painting the profiles. “The plan is to cover the entire territory of the former Yugoslavia and some other countries in the Balkans in the future. As for the location in Simanovci, due to the highest possible level of cooperation so far, Aliplast decided to build their own hall and increase production of aluminum profiles,” said Bojan Jovicic, the director of Aliplast Serbia.

Placements postings

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appointments@aim.rs

H.E. ESTANISLAO ANGEL ZAWELS, NEW AMBASSADOR OF ARGENTINA TO SERBIA

Estanislao Angel Zawels was born in Buenos Aires in 1954 and earned his degree (BA. Economics) at the University of Poitiers, France, in 1973, before going on to earn his BSc. Economics degree at the University of Buenos Aires’ Faculty of Economic Sciences in 1984. He joined the Argentine Foreign Service in 1985, serving in the Argentine Mission to the United Nations and the Argentine Mission to the United Kingdom. He has served at the Argentine MFA since 2009 as Director for Economic Negotiations with the EU, Director for Asia and Oceania and Director General for International Organisations. A professor of the course ‘Introduction to International Relations’ at the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina’s Faculty of Political Sciences, he is also a professor of the University of Buenos Aires’ Faculty of Law and a professor of International Relations at the Catholic University of Salta. A Consulting member of CARI (Argentine Council for International Relations), he has published numerous articles and books. Alongside his native Spanish, Ambassador Zawels speaks English and French, while his hobbies include sailing and fly fishing.

TOBIAS FLESSENKEMPER, NEW HEAD OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE OFFICE IN BELGRADE

Tobias Flessenkemper was appointed by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe as Head of the Belgrade Office as of 1st October 2018. His previous postings include the European External Action Service (EEAS) in Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Council of the European Union in Brussels, Skopje and Sarajevo and the OSCE. In 2012-13 he was visiting fellow at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), while in 2013 he became managing director of the Berlin-based agency elbarlament.org - cultures of democracy. A regular contributor to research and higher education programmes, with a focus on European cooperation, he was Secretary General of the European Youth Forum from 1998-2001. He holds a Master’s Degree in Political Science from the University of Cologne and is a European Master in International Humanitarian Assistance (E.MA) from the Ruhr-University Bochum.

LEONI

START OF CONSTRUCTION WORKS OF THE NEW LEONI PLANT IN KRALJEVO Leoni, a global provider of energy and data management solutions in the automotive sector and other industries, started the construction works of its fourth plant in Serbia, in the city of Kraljevo. The new plant will not only be the largest Leoni plant in Serbia, but it will also employ the biggest number of people at full capacity (end of 2023) among all Leoni plants in Serbia, namely up to 5.000.

There will be produced harnesses for one of the world’s premium carmakers, Mercedes Benz. Leoni will invest 60 million EUR in building and equipping the new production facility. By the end of the year, the first 6.500sqm will be finished and around 150 people we will employed. By the end of January next year, the test production will start. The entire building will have more than 60,000sqm, out of which 45,000sqm represent the production area, and will be completely finished in the first quarter of 2020. The Leoni plant will be the first new plant built in almost 30 years in the region of Kraljevo and is expected to significantly contribute the decreasing the unemployment rate in the area.

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DR DRAGAN KOSTIĆ, DIRECTOR, FREE ZONE PIROT

Best In Europe And Third In The World We have developed an effective system which, apart from providing a free zone regime with customs and tax breaks, eases our users’ operations through a unified set of services

City of Pirot was ranked 100th in Serbia in terms of salary levels ten years ago, while today it is ranked 14th.

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he result is that there are 60 trade and 23 production companies operating in the free zone regime today, employing about 6,500 workers, explains Dr Dragan Kostić, director of Free Zone Pirot.

Free Zone Pirot was this year declared the best such free zone in Europe and the third best in the world by the renowned fDi Magazine and The Financial Times. What ensured you were among the very best in the world for the sixth consecutive year?

This result was created through continuous progress, from the zone’s establishment in 1996 to the present days, using the latest knowhow and operational methods.

We have developed an effective system which, apart from providing a free zone regime with customs and tax breaks, eases our users’ operations through a unified set of services. The result is that there are 60 trade and 23 production companies operating in the free zone regime today, employing about 6,500 workers. Users of the zone generated total turnover of nearly a billion euros in 2017, more than half of which was realised through export. Investments in the previous period exceeded 500 million euros, and our biggest user, Tigar Tyres, which is a member of the Michelin Group, is Serbia’s third largest exporter. The

What additional incentives do you offer large users?

Our services are conceived with a view to the most modern free zones in the world. We enable our users to focus on their core business, while we take care of their needs in the areas of customs

Users of the zone generated total turnover of nearly a billion euros in 2017, more than half of which was realised through export. Investments in the previous period exceeded 500 million euros, and our biggest user, Tigar Tyres, which is a member of the Michelin Group, is Serbia’s third largest exporter

documentation, freight forwarding, organising international transport, providing warehouse space, cargo handling from railways and haulage vehicles, thereby providing them with a comprehensive service and easing their operations, which impacts on accelerating the development of companies operating within our regime and increasing interest among companies in doing business in the Zone.

The favourable position of Pirot, in close proximity to Bulgaria and Romania and situated along Corridor 10, forms just part of the benefits. What have you invested in and what processes have you developed in order to become the best in Europe?

The proximity of Bulgaria, Romania and Corridor 10 certainly represents an advantage, but there are also good logistical connections between Free Zone Pirot and the ports of Burgas and Thessaloniki, first and foremost, as well as other intermodal hubs in the Balkans. We monitor trends and rely on technological innovations, but we consider our people the key to the successes we achieve in the business world. We consider continuous investment in the development of employees and team building as the most successful investment in the quality of services and operations as a whole. In cooperation with users, we’ve developed modern software applications that ease the monitoring of goods imports and exports, thereby minimising users’ engagements with regard to logistics services. In that way we enable companies to realise all the benefits in one place and focus on the development of their own businesses.

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DARREN GIBSON, CEO, LUŠTICA BAY

Vibrant, Inclusive & Sustainable Year-Round Resort Town Luštica Bay is a unique project, not only in the context of Montenegro, but throughout the entire Mediterranean.

We are the only greenfield project in Montenegro

completion of the project, notes Luštica Bay CEO Darren Gibson.

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t is the combination of various project attributes that create conditions for something that is quite unique in the region. Encompassing seven million square metres along the Luštica Peninsula of the Adriatic coastline, our size and scale alone sets us apart from others; being one of the largest – if not the largest – projects of its type in Southeast Europe. We are also the only greenfield project in Montenegro. This means that we are developing in a completely undeveloped and initially inaccessible area of land that lacks all the required infrastructure, which we have included in our plans with the intention of developing the project according to the highest contemporary architectural and ecological standards.

As opposed to ‘one-off’ resorts or hotel destinations, Luštica Bay is being created with the clear intention of becoming a sustainable, fully-integrated, state-of-theart town that will operate year-round and not only deliver an outstanding tourism offer, but also provide a permanent home for around 3,000 to 4,000 people upon

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What kind of contents will Luštica Bay offer through this superior tourist offer and what categories of guests are you targeting?

Our Master Plan envisages the construction of seven hotels of four- or fivestar category, two marinas with berthing and support facilities for up to 226 vessels, an 18-hole championship golf course, a combination of real estate typologies consisting of apartments, family houses and villas, as well as a town centre – “Centrale” – equipped with all the facilities necessary to support permanent

Centrale will be constructed on an area of 240,000 square metres alongside the existing village of Radovići and will serve as a link between the villages of Luštica Bay and bordering villages, as well as with Tivat and Kotor

residents. Despite this impressive list of features, bricks and mortar will cover only around ten per cent of the leased land, with the balance being allocated to nature and the like. In terms of the residential and guest experience, our diverse topography allows us to deliver a collection of stunning sea, bay and golf view properties, set amongst the lush greenery of the surrounding landscape.

Our ideal Luštica Bay resident is an aspiring community member, not merely a property buyer. We want people who share our vision of creating a vibrant, inclusive and sustainable year-round resort town, attracting regional and international renown for its value proposition, high quality natural and built environments, diverse offers and experiences, a relaxed lifestyle and a strong sense of community. We see our clients as people who appreciate comfort, quality and privacy.

With this August’s opening of hotel The Chedi and part of the marina, the construction of this complex has just begun. At what tempo will its development continue?

Our immediate future plans focus primarily on the commencement of construction in Centrale, which will form

the core of the town of Luštica Bay. We believe that, through seven phases over the next ten years, Centrale will become an attractive place, ensuring the privacy that is so often lacking along with the privileges of cosmopolitan life. Centrale will be constructed on an area of 240,000 square metres alongside the existing village of Radovići and will serve as a link between the villages of Luštica Bay and bordering villages, as well as with Tivat and Kotor. The apartments in the Centrale are already selling, with very competitive pricing on both the domestic and regional markets.

We will also be ‘rounding off’ the first phase of the Marina Village, with finishing works expected on the second stage of the main marina and the completion of real estate projects.

Separately, we are working closely with the relevant authorities to create the conditions necessary to recommence works on our golf course. We will also be looking to commence the development process for the second hotel of 300 keys in the Marina Village in the coming period.

This project is worth €1.1 billion and is the only greenfield investment in Montenegro to promise outstanding economic potential. How much will this project impact on the advancement of Montenegro’s tourism potential?

Overall, the impact of Luštica Bay and investment projects like it goes far beyond satisfying the profitability aspirations of investors. For example, one of the inevitable and desirable by-products of such projects is the global destination promotion that takes place; marketing the country’s attributes and potential to an international audience. The substantial and diversified offer of Luštica Bay, its quality and service standards, also adds significantly to Montenegro’s ability to attract and accommodate tourists with higher spending capacities for longer periods, and to drive repeat business. We firmly believe that the complete package we bring to the industry in Montenegro, including our needs and expectations for

quality and standards, will see a continuous improvement in the quality, standards and overall offer of the tourism sector in the years to come. Of course, our success as a foreign investor in Montenegro will also instil confidence in other investors and drive interest in further investment in the industry in Montenegro.

Have your expectations been met in terms of the number of potential buyers of houses and apartments in this new city?

Yes. We have sold around 250 properties in the project to date and this number continues to grow each week, with new

We have been particularly effective in selling the vision of Luštica Bay across a wide range of markets and are proud of the fact that our buyer pool comprises 38 different nationalities

sales and reservations. We have been particularly effective in selling the vision of Luštica Bay across a wide range of markets and are proud of the fact that our buyer pool comprises individuals and families from 38 different nationalities.

How would you assess the competitiveness of the Montenegrin tourism market, especially during the off-season period?

Seasonality remains an issue. Montenegro needs to continue to develop ways to grow its offer to cater for and encourage increasing visits during the winter months. The development of win-

ter tourism in the north, including its ski slopes and hotel capacities, is a key part of this, as is the diversification of the offer in the tourism areas of the coast that are already developed. This diversification could be achieved, for example, through the establishment of MICE facilities and indoor facilities. Further development of other year-round outdoor leisure activities is another important element. The establishment of our golf course, and others like it, is an example.

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Democracy

“We need to say it out loud because you can’t reform a nation in secrecy: The era of liberal democracy is over. Rather than try to fix a liberal democracy that has run aground, we will build a 21st-century Christian democracy.”– VIKTOR ORBAN, HUNGARIAN PRIME MINISTER

REGIONAL NEWS ALBANIA

ALBCHROME PLANS ТО EXPANSIONД BURREL PLANT

HUNGARY

BUDAPEST BECOME THE CAPITAL OF DENTAL TOURISM Every year thousands of dental tourism patients fly to Hungary from English-speaking countries, such as Canada, the UK, Ireland or the USA. They visit Budapest, capital of Hungary, and get their teeth fixed while doing so. Recently, a new trend has been developing, as tourists from France, Switzerland, Germany in addition to Austria are now visiting Hungary since local dental treatment fees are very high in these countries. Quality dental & medical care associated with important financial savings are the main reasons for dental tourist waves. Foreign patients can save up to 70% on dental care in Budapest in comparison to Western European prices, with the same quality, if not higher.

Albanian investment group Balfin’s local subsidiary AlbChrome plans to invest €8.6 million in a project for expanding the production capacity of its ferrochrome plant in the northern town of Burrel.

The company is seriously considering the possibility of putting into operation a third furnace at the plant which will significantly increase the production volume and create at least 100 new jobs, the company said in a statement.

AlbChrome took over the Burrel ferrochrome plant in 2012. The company also operates a ferrochrome plant in Elbasan, a metal ore enrichment plant in Klos and Bulqiza chrome mine.

The Balfin Group owned by Samir Mane is active in real estate, retail, tourism, agriculture, energy, mineral industry, investments, and services through subsidiaries in Albania, Austria, Macedonia, Dubai, Kosovo, Greece, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italy, and the United States.

Source: /seenews.com

CROATIA

INCLUDE WINS DELOITTE’S RISING STARS Coatian smart bench manufactures Include has been named the fastest growing company of Central Europe in Rising Stars category by the Deloitte Technology Fast 50 Program.

Include, who is behind the hugely successful Steora smart benches which continue to be placed all over the globe, are the first Croatian company to win in this category after growing a massive 1950% in the last three years of business operations.

Founded by young innovator Ivan Mrvoš (22) in Solin near Split on the Croatian coast, Include have quickly become one of Europe’s leading producers of smart street furniture with over 800 benches in 36 markets around the world and are involved in many major ‘Smart City’ projects and have made their presence known in 250 cities and municipalities across five continents.

Currently, the benches, which manufactured in Solin at their 2,000m2 facility, can be found in all corners of the world, including Croatia, Australia, Germany, Slovakia, Belgium, Denmark, Czech Republic, Hungary, USA, UK, Portugal, Qatar, and Dubai.

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10 REASONS

YOU NEED A DIGITAL MARKETING STRATEGY IN 2019 Digital marketing strategy is a common challenge since many businesses know how vital digital and mobile channels are today for acquiring and retaining customers.

Here are 10 reasons why you need a digital channel strategy 1. You’re directionless 2. You won’t know your online audience or market share 3. Existing and start-up competitors will gain market share 4. You don’t have a powerful online value proposition 5. You don’t know your online customers well enough 6. You’re not integrated (“disintegrated”) 7. Digital doesn’t have enough people/budget given its importance 8. You’re wasting money and time through duplication 9. You’re not agile enough to catch up or stay ahead 10. You’re not optimizing

Interest

“There is and there can be no alternative to Macedonia’s membership of Nato and EU. Let’s not play games with our unity and our Macedonia… let’s put the national interest, the interest of the citizens and strategic interests of the state above politics and above party interests.”– ZORAN ZAEV, PRIME MINISTER OF MACEDONIA BULGARIA

BANSKO – EUROPEA’S CHEAPEST SKIING RESOURCES Bansko in Bulgaria is ranked as the cheapest European ski resort for this winter in new research issued laast month.

A marginal year-on-year fall in resort prices mean that the Bulgarian ski spot and Bardonecchia in Italy are now better value than last year’s bargain resort of Kranjska Gora in Slovenia.

Although prices have fallen by only one per cent year-on-year, Bansko’s total cost of six days essential items at £405.20 is 10% less than in Kranjska Gora because prices there have risen by 13% to £452.

The 12th annual Post Office Travel Money ski resort report, produced in conjunction with Crystal Ski Holidays, reveals that prices have fallen marginally in both Bansko and Bardonecchia for a week’s ski holiday essentials including equipment hire, lift pass, ski tuition, lunch on the slopes and a range of drinks.

ROMANIA

DACIA RANKED LARGEST COMPANY BY REVENUE IN SEE Automobile Dacia tops again this year’s ranking of the largest companies in South East Europe by revenue, for the fourth year in a row. OMV Petrom, Romgaz and the Serbian chemical company Hip-Petrohemija overtaken Hidroelectrica, who went down to the fourth position.

A total of 51 Romanian companies are included in this year’s edition of the largest 100 non-financial companies in the southeast of the continent, produced

by SeeNews. Slovenia has 13 companies, Serbia 12 companies, Croatia 11 companies, Bulgaria 10 companies, Bosnia and Herzegovina 2 companies and Macedonia one company.

With revenues of €5.02 billion, up by almost 12 percent compared to 2016, Dacia maintained the first place in the ranking.

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

EXPORT HIGHER BY 8.8% In the period January-September 2018 export amounted to 8.8 billion BAM (€4.5 bln), which is 8,8% higher than in the same period of 2017, and import amounted to 14 billion 287 million BAM, which is 6,9% higher than in the same period of last year. The coverage of import by export was 61,7% and foreign trade in goods deficit amounted to 5 billion 478 million BAM. Export to CEFTA countries amounted to 1 billion 412 million BAM, which is 8% higher than in the same period of 2017, while import amounted to 1 billion 720 million BAM, which is 1,6% higher than in the same period of last year. The coverage of import by export was 82,1%.

According to statistics by BiH Agency for Statistics, export to EU countries amounted to 6 billion 476 million BAM, which is 11,3% higher than in the same period of 2017, while import amounted to 8 billion 578 million BAM, which is 5,4% higher than in the same period of last year. The coverage of import by export was 75,5%.

CENTREVILLE HOTEL

MONTENEGRO

QANNAS INVESTMENTS SELLS MONTENEGRIN HOTEL OPERATOR Cayman Islands-based closed-ended investment company Qannas Investments has sold its stake in Montenegrin special purpose vehicle Capital Hotel d.o.o., the owner of the CentreVille luxury hotel in Podgorica.

The stake was sold to Capital Investment for a total consideration of €9.5 million received up front in cash, Qannas Investments said in a filing with the London Stock Exchange last week.

The total return generated by Qannas Investments since its original investment in Capital Hotel in 2016 amounts to €1.4 million, or 7.4% per annum, the investment company said.

Capital Investment is a shareholder of Abu Dhabi Financial Group.

Source: SeeNeews

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STOJAN RANGELOV, B.SC. ENGINEER, CO-OWNER OF COMPANY PUTEVI IVANJICA (ROADS OF IVANJICA)

Safe Roads Made To EU Standards For a full 56 years already, company Putevi d.o.o. Ivanjica has been building, reconstructing and maintaining roads on the territory of Ivanjica and surrounding municipalities. It is Serbia’s only manufacturer of safety and sound barriers under license from DELTABLOC International GmbH – the world’s leading producer of traffic safety systems, which operates in over 55 countries worldwide, from almost all European countries, to Africa, Australia and Latin America

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t Putevi Ivanjica they are particularly proud of their safety and noise barriers, as these special fences have been tested and certified according to European standards. EU countries have introduced standards up to the H4b level, while Serbia is still awaited by final standardisation through the adoption of the Guidelines on Road Safety and Noise Protection Systems in accordance with European Standards (CEN).

DELTABLOC barriers also passed safety tests in Serbia on the Zrenjanin Road. Moreover, Putevi Ivanjica is Serbia’s only manufacturer of integrated barriers , which represent a combination of noise and safety barriers, and is the the sole patent owner, under license , for that type of barrier anywhere throughout Europe.

One of Putevi Ivanjica’s co-owners, construction engineer Stojan Rangelov, has been in charge of this company since 1992. Speaking about operations to date, he says: “We have adjusted ourselves to the market and launched new jobs. We maintain roads covering a length of around 220 kilometres, from Ivanjica, as the hub, towards Arilje, Guča, Sjenica, Kokin Brod, Raška etc. We own our own quarry and deal with the exploitation of stone and the production of gravel and aggregates of different granules, as well as various types of asphalt. We also produce concrete, amounts of which we have increased multiple times in the past several years.

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“Under license from DELTABLOC we produce prefabricated concrete elements – we’ve constructed security barriers at several locations, in particular for different contractors along Corridor 10. We also produce sound or noise barriers. The first combined safetynoise barrier system established in Serbia, around a roundabout in Kruševac, was constructed and installed by Putevi Ivanjica. We invest continuously in new equipment and machinery, in order to be able to respond to new challenges.

What makes Putevi Ivanjica specific?

That would be working at high altitudes and rough mountainous areas. The IvanjicaSjenica road route traverses a ridge at 1,400 metres above sea level, on Javor Mountain, while we also maintain the roads od Mount Golija as well as many others that are at altitudes exceeding 1,000 m/a.s.l. Maintaining such roads requires special mechanisation,

Under license from DELTABLOC we produce prefabricated concrete elements – we’ve constructed security barriers at several locations, in particular for different contractors along Corridor 10. We also produce sound or noise barriers – all attested to adhere to the latest European standards

great expertise and experience – from quarrying, via construction and electrical engineers, to technologists and architects.

Which major works have marked the previous period for your company?

That would certainly be completion of the reconstruction of the most difficult section of the Topola-Rudnik state road, while the most important works in 2018 were the projects for the Ministry of the Economy in cooperation with the municipalities of Arilje (construction of a 3.4-kilometre-long road in Bogojevići) and Ivanjica (Construction of a street in the Topali

industrial zone), as well as the conducting of works in the aforementioned municipalities on the construction and reconstruction of local roads. We’ve also carried out significant work on the maintenance and reconstruction of state roads, particularly on on the IB30 Ivanjica-Studenica Road. We also built – in record time and almost impossible weather conditions – a 3km-plus road on Mount Javor that has finally connected the municipalities of Ivanjica and Nova Varoš.

VLADIMIR NOVAKOVIĆ, GENERAL MANAGER APATIN BREWERY

Three-Century-Long Tradition With a tradition dating back three centuries, Apatin Brewery is the oldest working brewery in the region. Since being established as the Imperial Brewery, it has gone on to become one of the leaders of the Serbian market. Assessing the beer market in Serbia and the region for this issue of CorD is Apatin Brewery’s managing director, Vladimir Novaković

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patin Brewery is the oldest active brewery in this region. Its journey from the “Imperial Brewery“ to becoming the third largest beer producer in the world, as a member of Molsoon Coors Group, lasted over two and a half centuries and required a lot of work, knowledge and brewing experience.

Today, being a part of the Group they are still a genuine treasure trove of the most famous beer brands from all the world’s meridians and markets. At the same time, they continue to cultivate, in the best possible way, their three-century-long tradition of brewing in Serbia. Following a negative trend, the brewing industry in Serbia has recorded a mild recovery over the past two years. Compared to 2008, the trend of beer consumption per capita is falling, but the market is certainly richer. Consumers are increasingly demanding, and on shelves they now certainly have a large selection of different beer brands, both foreign and domestic, to suit every taste.

To what extent does the appearance of mini breweries impact on competition on the beer market and do you expect significant market shifts?

The appearance of craft breweries has

been expanding in recent years. They are an important segment of the beer market.

On the other hand, it is essential that we all struggle together for the growth of the beer industry as a whole. Competition is good in every sense of the word. The more of us there are – the more we progress, learning together and providing more diversified products to our consumers. Craft beers symbolise a certain lifestyle, which is extremely important to some consumers, because they find themselves in that.

Today, as a member of the Molson Coors Group, we are still a genuine treasure trove of the most famous beer brands from all the world’s meridians and markets, while we simultaneously continue to cultivate our three-century-long tradition of brewing in Serbia

How would you assess cooperation between Apatin Brewery and the local selfgovernment, especially when it comes to the European and world standards that you apply in your CSR activities and in other innovative sectors?

We cooperate intensively with the local

self-government, with the aim of advancing the community in which we operate. Alongside donations of computers to sporting associations and secondary schools in Apatin and Sombor, we are also organising – under the scope of our “When I drink I don’t drive” campaign – the educating of young drivers and the raising of awareness with regard to responsible driving. In cooperation with municipalities and with the support of the Traffic Police Directorate of the Serbian Interior Ministry, we organise safe driving training courses for school-leavers from Sombor, Apatin, Odžak and Kula, which has already become a tradition. These are just some examples of the ways we contribute to the community in which we operate.

Through the relationship that we nurture with our partners to raise awareness among citizens about the importance of preserving the environment, a series of successful solutions have seen the light of the day.

Through sustainable development projects and activities within the scope of Sekopak, of which we are the founders, we are working on the full implementation of primary waste selection and clearing the river of packaging waste. This year, thanks again to our activities, Vrnjačka Banja became the first town in Serbia to gain a complete system for the primary selection of packaging waste, while the River Raška received the first netted dam, which has already prevented some five tonnes of packaging waste ending up in the river.

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WORLD NEWS

Politics “When politics is no longer a mission but a profession, politicians become more self-serving than public servants.” – EMMANUEL MACRON, PRESIDENT OF FRANCE JAPAN

JAPAN PLANS TO ATTRACT 500,000 FOREIGN WORKERS

CZECH REPUBLIC

CZECH FACTORY DRIVES HYUNDAI’S EUROPE EXPANSION Carmaker’s Czech plant considers manufacturing green cars in line with growing market demand. On a 2 square-kilometer Hyundai Motor’s plot has full auto manufacturing capabilities, and is partly operated by robots. Considering the massive size of the plant, there are not many workers around. Instead robot arms move endlessly to weld steel components.

Built in 2008, it is one of the youngest plants in Hyundai’s global network, and holds a relatively high automation rate. As of August, the plant manufactured 2.75 million units in total since its establishment in 2008. By April, it is expected to surpass the 3 million mark. Behind the high production rate is highly skilled local workers. It hires 3,200 local workers and works with 19 contractors nearby.

The plant, into which the South Korean carmaker poured around €1.12 billion 10 years ago, the biggest foreign investment by that time, has grown as a key driver of the company’s Europe expansion.

WORLD

FINANCIAL CRIME COSTS GLOBAL ECONOMY US$2.4 TRILLION ANNUALLY Financial crime costs the global economy US$2.4 trillion annually. But banks and financial institutions have been hesitant to share data with regulators for fear of breaching privacy laws, or handing in evidence that could be used to sue them, said David Craig, chief executive of data and trading platform on the sidelines of the Refinitiv Pan Asian Regulatory Summit. A report released by Refinitiv in May found organisations in 19 countries had spent 3.1 per cent of their turnover, or US$1.28 trillion, to fight financial crime, which includes bribery, corruption, money laundering, fraud, theft, cybercrime and human trafficking.

But Craig said the amount was “not invested effectively”. The report also found that 49 per cent of businesses in Asia-Pacific had been victims of financial crime over the past 12 months.

About 20 initiatives across the world, are currently combating such crime, but their effort has been “very limited”, said Craig.

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Japan has traditionally been cautious about accepting unskilled workers from abroad and currently limits residential status to highly skilled professionals However, mid last month Japan unveiled a plan to attract more foreign blue-collar workers, as the world’s third-largest economy battles a crippling labour shortage caused by an ageing and shrinking population. The plan reportedly aims to fill gaping shortages in sectors such as agriculture, nursing, construction, hotels and shipbuilding. Under the draft legislation, foreign nationals with skills in fields identified as facing shortages would be awarded a visa allowing them to work for up to five years. Foreign workers in those fields who hold stronger qualifications and pass a Japanese language test will also be allowed to bring family members and can obtain permanent residency status.

RUSSIA&BELARUS

DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES - CRUCIAL TO ECONOMIC SECURITY Switching the economy of Belarus and Russia to digital rails is not just a fashionable trend, it is a matter of economic security. The statement was made by Chairman of the Economy, Budget, and Finance Commission of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of Belarus Vladimir Pantyukhov. According to the senator, the output capacity of equipment has increased considerably lately, quantity has a quality of its own, the phenomenon of digital economy has been born as a result. It is now possible to develop new digital products, processes, and business models. Startups of the past are now major Internet companies and online platforms (Facebook, Airbnb, Amazon, and other ones). Investments in such companies exceed the investments poured in top long-established industrial companies.

TURKEY

EASING FOREIGN INVESTORS’ CITIZENSHIP PROCESS Turkey will open service offices to ease citizenship or long-term residence permit procedures for foreign investors, the Turkish Interior Ministry announced last month. In September, the country has reduced required limits for foreigners to acquire Turkish citizenship in order to encourage investment. “Service offices will be opened in Istanbul and Ankara to follow an finalize citizenship or long-term residency permit processes for foreign visitors who met the conditions in a single location,” the ministry said in a written statement. Foreigners, who want to be a citizen of Turkey, need to make a $500,000 investment, buy real estate worth $250,000 or generate jobs for at least 50 people.

LEGAT 1903

Discover The New Best Place For Business Dining OUR RECOMMENDATION:

If you still haven’t heard about the new classy venue and five-star restaurant “Legat 1903”, then you should heard there and conduct a reconnaissance visit ahead of time, to gauge the noise levels and decide which table best suits your needs. At “Legat 1903” you will find everything you need for a successful business meeting over a meal.

LOCATION

made to the highest standards of quality will not leave you feeling indifferent.

First of all, “Legat 1903”, aka “the new hidden treasure of Belgrade”, is situated just a few minutes from the city centre, on the corner of Jasenička and Vojislava Ilića streets, making it easy to reach and convenient for parking, as it also has it’s own car park area.

CUISINE

AMBIENCE

The restaurant’s luxury and elegance, but also the intimacy of its ambience, are well-suited for the relaxed atmosphere required to really talk business without any disturbances. With that in mind, tables are arranged in such a way that no one is able to eavesdrop on your conversation. And if you want complete secrecy for your meeting,

With ever more business meetings and interviews taking place over lunch or even early dinner these days, it makes sense to take a moment or two to consider how to choose the best place for business dining.

Experience tells us that it’s never “just lunch”, and you should therefore make the effort to choose the very best restaurant for your meeting

“Legat 1903” has a VIP salon with a separate entrance, toilet and kitchen access.

Conducting any meeting at “Legat 1903” will be a pleasurable experience for your guest and a real surprise for all hedonists and aesthetes. The combination of modern and sophisticated design and unique details

When deciding on a restaurant’s cuisine, it’s always best to opt for one that offers international cuisine. At “Legat 1903”, the restaurant staff will gladly provide recommendations according to your personal preferences. Here you can try delicious, top-quality food, while the unique wine list will only add to the beauty of the overall experience. And only then will you understand why “Legat 1903” is considered the new “hidden treasure of Belgrade”, able to stand shoulder-to shoulder with the finest restaurants of other European capitals.

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Enterpreuner YUSAKU MAEZAWA

Yusaku Maezawa is a Japanese billionaire.

According to Forbes, his net worth is approximately $2.9 billion as of September 2018.

Most of his net worth comes from founding Japan’s largest online fashion mall, Zozotown. He’s #18 on Forbe’s list of Japan’s 50 Richest in 2018, and he’s #822 out of all billionaires in 2018

Japan’s Corporate

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Yusaku Maezawa (42) is a Japanese billionaire entrepreneur and art collector. He founded Start Today in 1998 and launched the online fashion retail website Zozotown, now Japan’s largest, in 2004. Most recently, Maezawa introduced a custom-fit apparel brand ZOZO and at-home measurement system He went to school at Waseda Jitsugyo High in 1991, where he started up a band with his classmates called Switch Style. The band released their first EP in 1993. After graduating from high school, he decided not to go to college; instead, he moved to the US with a girlfriend, where he started collecting CDs and records. When he returned to Japan in 1995, his album collection became the basis for his first company, which sold imported albums and CDs through the mail.

In 1998, Maezawa used the basis of the mail-order album business to launch the company Start Today. The same year, his band signed with the label BMG Japan. By 2000, Start Today had moved to an online platform, had begun selling clothing, and had become a public company. In 2001, Maezawa declared a hiatus on his music career. Start Today opened the retail clothing website Zozotown in 2004, and six years later, Start Today became a publicly traded company, listed on the “Mothers” Index of the Tokyo Stock Exchange. By 2012, Start Today was listed in the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

Prior to launching his company, Maezawa was a drummer for a hardcore punk band signed with a major label. He had another passion, however: collecting imported punk and hardcore records and CDs, a hobby that turned into a mail order catalog business that was incorporated into Start Today in 1998.

The firm went online in 2000 and began offering niche fashion apparel in addition to music before opening the shopping website Zozotown in 2004.

Today the site features about 6,800 brands

with over 650,000 items, and the company, which began with just four staff members, now employs nearly 1,000. With a market capitalization of about ¥1.03 trillion and annual sales topping ¥98 billion in the fiscal year ended March 31, Maezawa, who owns about 38 percent of Start Today’s shares, is Japan’s 18th-richest man, according to Forbes.

Much like Horie once was, Maezawa is his generation’s corporate enfant terrible — an anomaly in the nation’s conservative business climate that prefers low-key executives who shun the spotlight.

He is active on social media, where he shares glimpses of his lavish lifestyle, and the

Prior to launching his company, Maezawa was a drummer for a hardcore punk band signed with a major label. He had another passion, however: collecting imported punk and hardcore records and CD’s

father of three children from past relationships is a regular on entertainment news, most recently for dating popular actress Ayame Goriki. He also owns a private jet and is known as an avid wine collector, owning thousands of bottles.

Unlike many startups, which often opt to headquarter their companies in Tokyo, Start Today’s main office has remained in Chiba Prefecture, where Maezawa was born and raised. Maezawa bought the naming rights to the home of the Chiba Lotte Marines baseball team in 2016, renaming the ball park Zozo Marine Stadium.

He made headlines in July by declaring his desire to own a baseball team, a move that would put him alongside other teamowning tech giants such as Masayoshi Son’s SoftBank Group Corp. and Hiroshi Mikitani’s Rakuten Inc. But perhaps Maezawa is best known for his love of art. Last year he broke the auction record for a U.S. artist by splurging $110.5 million on a painting by Jean-Michel Basquiat at Sotheby’s. That followed a $57.3 million purchase of another Basquiat piece at Christie’s in 2016. He plans to open a museum in Chiba where he can showcase his vast collection of art, furniture and antiques. Maezawa is also a visionary of sorts, preaching world peace and universal basic income. In an essay he shared

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Enterpreuner

last month, he laid out his dream of seeing a world devoid of money, a radical change he believes will alter people’s attitudes toward work and relationships for the better.

Maezawa is the founder of the Tokyobased Contemporary Art Foundation, which he started in 2012 with a goal of “supporting young artists as a pillar of the next generation of contemporary art.” The Contemporary Art Foundation currently hosts collection shows twice a year. In May 2016 Maezawa attracted significant media attention with a record purchase price at auction of $57.3 million for an untitled work by Jean-Michel Basquiat and broke a record again in May 2017 with a $110.5 million auction for a piece by the same artist.

At the same 2016 auction, Maezawa bought pieces by Bruce Nauman, Alexander Calder, Richard Prince, and Jeff Koons, spending a total of $98 million over two days. Maezawa plans to open a contemporary art museum in Chiba, which will house his collection In an interview with The Japan Times in March, Maezawa said he intends to make his company one of the world’s leading apparel retailers. To that end, Start Today has been opening overseas offices and promoting the Zozosuit, a skin-tight garment that can capture 15,000 precise body measurements.

Linked via Bluetooth to a special app, the data from the suit’s sensors allows shoppers to find the best fit from the thousands of brands offered on the Zozotown website, as well as

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In September 2018, it was announced that Maezawa would be the first commercial passenger to attempt a flyby around the Moon. He will fly onboard the SpaceX BFR rocket, which is currently in development

purchase made-to-order clothing from Zozo, the company’s private brand. Start Today will be renamed Zozo Inc. from October. “I think there’s a chance for us to become the No. 1 apparel company in the world,” he said in the interview.

One question that many people following SpaceX’s big lunar mission announcement are wondering is just what is the net worth of the first private citizen passenger, Yusaku Maezawa.

Elon Musk said during the press conference that Maezawa put down a “significant deposit” for a chance to go on the trip, and this will help pay for the development of the BFR. Here is what we know about Yusaku Maezawa’s net worth.

In September 2018, it was announced that Maezawa would be the first commercial passenger to attempt a flyby around the Moon.

He will fly onboard the SpaceX BFR rocket, which is currently in development. The flight is slated to take place no earlier than 2023 with a duration of nearly six days. He will take six to eight artists with him as a part of an art project he has created called #dearMoon

PROFILE

The Promoter Placido Domingo, Sting, Jose Carreras, Nick Cave, Nigel Kennedy, Tom Jones, BB King, Chick Korea, Paco de Lucia, Ray Charles, James Brown, Julio Iglesias, Leonard Cohen, Alicia Keys, Bryan Ferry, Joe Cocker… these are just some of the hundreds of foreign and local artists that I’ve had the pleasure and privilege of promoting in Belgrade during past decades working as the head of the Sava Centre concert agency and director of the Belgrade Arena

ĐORĐE MILUTINOVIĆ, ŠTARK ARENA ADVISOR

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also organised and implemented around another 1,000 concerts as director of youth culture and arts society “IVO Lola Ribar”’, for choirs, folklore and the theatre “Teatar Levo”, and I’ve also performed in around a 1,000 concerts as a member of the Ivo Lola Ribar choir during the 20 years that I sang in what was then one of Yugoslavia’s best choirs.

Culture took me “under its wing” with my arrival at the Ivo lola Ribar choir in 1970, during my transition from high school to university.

I later became a translator for the Belgrade Youth Centre at the cult NewportBelgrade Jazz Festivals and the FEST programmes that were held at the Youth Centre, as well as a large number of concerts.

I worked for concert agency “Jugokoncert” as a tour artist, travelling across Yugoslavia with several folklore ensembles (from the Philippines, India, Colombia).

These experiences all provided an excellent foundation for my further work, which could be called promotional work and which

required familiarity with the market, timely and high-quality preparations, respect for contractual provisions, minimising unplanned risk factors, respect for artists and the audience – concert attendees and lots of seemingly small but important details that are part of successful negotiations and subsequent good event organisation and implementation.

Good professional relations are something I’ve nurtured. Even today, when some booking agents around the world are contacted by someone who offers to promote their artist in Belgrade they say “I have a

Even today, when some booking agents around the world are contacted by someone who offers to promote their artist in Belgrade they say “I have a reliable promoter who I work with there” reliable promoter who I work with there”.

The overall business picture, of course, is not so idyllic, because dealing with concert promotions is a very complex and risky business that’s dependent on many factors, such as artists’ fees, organisational costs, changing audience tastes, ticket price etc.

Artists’ fees, especially in the last decade,

have skyrocketed and, as things stand, they don’t seem to be returning to the ground.

It perhaps sounds like an often-used phrase, but in my experience culture really is a bridge for connecting people and creating familiarity and understanding among people, life, customs, religion, ways of thinking.

Supporting this claim are my many personal experiences from the biggest tours with my choir: China in 1972, as the first artistic group to tour after the Cultural Revolution; 1988 with CAMI (Columbia Artists Management), three-month tour around the U.S., including 57 concerts, 27,000 km by bus, 32 states; as well as several tours of the USSR and Russia, and literally the whole of Europe.

These are priceless experiences and memories, and confirmation that it was culture which opened some doors that weren’t merely closed – we didn’t even know they existed.

Culture is a sensitive area; there’s never a shortage of ideas, possibilities and wants, but always a shortage of resources to realise all those wants.

I naturally have some unrealised wishes and regret the inability to stage some concerts. The biggest is certainly the Rolling Stones concert that was confirmed for me on 8th September 1998 at the Belgrade Hippodrome. However, the political situation worsened during that period and unfortunately that concert didn’t happen.

Each of the aforementioned 2,000 concerts have their own place in the beautiful and, to me, dear mosaic that I had the professional good fortune to be able to create and of which I am very proud.

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Art/Exhibitions Spain – Contemporary Art

JUAN GRIS: STILL LIFE WITH A GUITAR

Modern-Day Conquest Of The

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It does not come as a surprise to anyone that Spain has an extraordinary art heritage, with masters such as Diego Velazquez and Francisco Goya hailing from the country.

But Spain doesn’t have to be too attached to its past when it comes to art, as it also has many contemporary achievements: its new centres, galleries and museums for contemporary art are praised as being some of the best in the world. Here we explore three of these fantastic art venues, in Madrid, Valencia and Barcelona

JUAN MUNOZ: DOUBLE BIND AROUND

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pain is the birthplace of some of the most influential artists of all times. From exponents of the Spanish Golden Age such as Diego de Velázquez to Francisco Goya, who is widely acknowledged as the last of the Old Masters, and all the way to Pablo Picasso, the father of the cubist movement, or even the surrealist master Salvador Dalí, Spain has been at the forefront of artistic expression for centuries. It is no wonder that thanks to its marvellous cultural heritage, as well as its insatiable innovative spirit, Spain has been able to conquer the world of contemporary art. The Instituto Valenciano de Arte Moderno, the Museu Picasso and the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía are often cited as belonging to ten of the best museums in the whole world.

The Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía (MNCARS) certainly deserves this title as it is, without a doubt, the gem of Spain’s modern art museums.Together with the Museo del Prado and the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, it is part of the so-called ‘golden triangle’ of Madrid’s art museums.

MNCARS first opened in 1990, although the building that hosts it had to undergo several transformations before it became home to one of the most prominent art museums in the world.

The building was originally founded by King Phillip II in the 16th century and, two centuries later, it was turned into a hospital by Charles III. The renovation work to bring it to its actual state only started in 1988 by royal decree. The museum still retains more than 60% of the old building’s surface which, together with the newly

annexed building designed by French architect Jean Nouvel, brought the exhibition space to an astounding 84,000 square metres. The renovation of this historical building was integral to the urban regeneration of the neighbourhood and has allowed the museum to become a meeting point for art enthusiasts from all over the world.

MNCARS hosts an impressive collection of works of art and each floor is dedicated to some of the most influential artistic movements from the 19th century through to contemporary art, including Cubism, Surrealism and Pop Art. Visiting the permanent collection of the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía offers the unique chance to admire masterpieces by Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí, Luis Buñuel, Juan Gris and Joan Miró. The most iconic art work exhibited in the museum is undoubtedly Pablo Picasso’s

JULIO GONZALEZ: WONDER WHAT IF

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ALEJANDRO GUIJARRO: BENEATH THE SURFACE

When the Instituto Valenciano de Arte Moderno opened in 1989, it was the first center for modern art ever created in Spain Guernica; this masterpiece is a memento of the terrible bombing of the city of Guernica and attracts tourists from all over the world with its haunting beauty.

Perched on Spain’s eastern coast, only a two-hour journey from Spain’s capital and four hours from Barcelona, is another cultural gem: Valencia. The birthplace of paella and home to astounding architecture, from Gothic churches to stunning, modernist buildings, Valencia is a must-visit historical gem. It is also where another cutting-edge contemporary art institution can be found. When the Instituto Valenciano de Arte Moderno opened in 1989, it was the first centre for modern art ever created in Spain. Nowadays it is one of the most important institutions for modern art in the world.

The museum is divided between two buildings, the Centre Julio González, inaugurated in 1989, and the Sala de la Muralla opened in 1991.

The eight galleries of the Centre Julio González host the permanent collection and temporary exhibitions, while the Sala de la Muralla houses parts of the medieval walls of the city of Valencia.

The institute’s main objective is the preservation, promotion and development of modern and contemporary arts. The permanent exhibitions hosted by the Centre Julio González revolve around four main pillars of focus: pop art, photography, new media and abstraction.The history of photography,

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SALVADOR DALI: GEOPOLITICUS CHILD WATCHING THE BIRTH OF THE NEW MAN

JOAN MIRO: CONSTELLATIONS 1959

Unlike some of his contemporary fellow artists, Pablo Picasso achieved international recognition and fame in his lifetime. He was incredibly productive and it is estimated that he created nearly 50,000 works

JAUME PLENSA: MIRROR

MIQUEL BARCELÓ: VEGAP

from the invention of the medium to the latest technological advancements, is explored with particular attention to detail. But detail is not all that matters here; the museum hosts an impressive collection of over 10,000 works.

The one natural destination after Valencia, located a bit to the north, is Spain’s most trendy and happening city, Barcelona, which is home to an incredibly array of contemporary art galleries and museums. Of all these, the small but beautiful Museu Picasso is, arguably, the most acclaimed of them all. Although mostly known for his achievements in the field of visual arts, Pablo Picasso also worked as a stage designer, poet and playwright, becoming the epitome of the Renaissance man.The artist spent his youth in Barcelona and moved to Paris at the age of 24; it was while living in Paris, in the bohemian neighbourhoods of Montmartre and Montparnasse, that he started experimenting with different styles of painting.

Although multiple museums dedicated to

Pablo Picasso are scattered around the country, the Museu Picasso in Barcelona hosts the most comprehensive collection of works by Spain’s revered son. The museum explores each phase of Picasso’s artistic development, from the early stages all the way to his signature cubist style, and its highlights include an exhaustive collection of works from his Blue Period, examples of his Pink and African periods, as well as a series of reinterpretations of Diego Velázquez’s famous Las Meninas. Unlike some of his contemporary fellow artists, Pablo Picasso achieved international recognition and fame in his lifetime. He was incredibly productive and it is estimated that he created nearly 50,000 works, spanning from painting to sculpture, drawing, ceramics and sketchbooks. The Barcelona museum dedicated to his work constantly develops new programs and activities aimed at spreading knowledge and fostering interest in one of the most important artists of all times.

MANOLO VALTEZ: THE BUTTERFLY

PABLO PICASSO: BUSTE DE FEMME (DORA MAAR)

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FACES & PLACES 2/10/2018

Embassy Of India Mark 150th Anniversary Of Mahatma Gandhi’s Birth

Newly appointed ambassador of India to Serbia H.E. Subrata Bhattacharjee hosted a marking of the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi at the Embassy premises.

Ambassador welcomed Indian nationals living in Serbia as well as friends of the embassy, at the marking of the Gandhi anniversary.

5/10/2018

German Unity Day Celebrated

AMBASSADOR SUBRATA BHATTACHARJEE

Ambassador of Germany to Serbia H.E. Thomas Schieb hosted a celebratory reception marking the Day of German Unity.

“I am convinced that the future of Serbia and the countries of the Western Balkans lies in the European Union and that they will enrich the EU. There’s still a lot of work on this road. I am pleased that the Government of the Republic of Serbia wholeheartedly accepted the challenges.” said ambassador at the reception attended by Prime Minister Ana Brnabić, Serbian Parliament Speaker Maja Gojković, Minister Zoran Đorđević and many members of the diplomatic community.

4/10/2018

The Economist’s 7th EU-Southeast Europe Summit In Belgrade

Serbia is focused on EU integration, not Euro-Atlantic integration as it is not seeking membership of NATO. That said, it does cooperate with NATO via the Partnership for Peace, the Serbian PM noted. Serbia wants to join the EU; Prime Minister Brnabić said, firstly because EU is considered a peace project: aside from the conflict in the Balkans in the 1990s, the EU has achieved more than seven decades of peace. Additionally, the EU’s shared values are the ones which Serbia espouses, and membership would improve Serbia’s access to EU funds and investments, which are particularly needed for infrastructure and environmental protection, according to the prime minister.

AMBASSADOR MONDOLONI, NIKOLA BOŽIĆ, MARIJA FILIPOVIĆ-OŽEGOVIĆ AND ALEKSANDRA DRLJEVIĆ

11/10/2018

Presentation Of The Ordre Des Palmes Académiques

PRIME MINISTER ANA BRNABIĆ

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The Ordre des Palmes Académiques for the academics and cultural and educational figures of Serbia, who contribute to the strengthening of the relations between Serbia and France, were awarded to the professor of French Aleksandra Drljević, director of the Tempus Foundation Marija Filipović-Ožegović and program director of Petnica Nikola Božić.

Ambassador of France to Serbia H.E. Frédéric Mondoloni presented the honours and said that such occasions are the most beautiful part of the diplomatic work. He recalled that these honours have been awarded for 200 years to individuals who through their professional and personal engagements contribute to strengthening the influence of France in the world.

SEE MORE: WWW.CORDMAGAZINE.COM

12/10/2018

National Day Of Spain

Spanish Ambassador to Belgrade H.E. Miguel Fuertes Suárez hosted a reception marking the national day of this country and stressed that relations between Spain and Serbia are excellent.

“To continue to cultivate this wonderful relationship, it is necessary that the Embassy of Spain has good relations with Serbian officials, and I am pleased to say that we do,” AMBASSADOR MIGUEL FUERTES SUÁREZ WITH A SPOUSE the ambassador said addressing the guests at the Metropol hotel.

He said that the entire Cabinet of Prime Minister Ana Brnabić has shown respect and friendship towards the Embassy of Spain, and especially praised the cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Serbia.

Ambassador also expressed his respect for the current Serbian Ambassador to Madrid, H.E. Danko Prokić, who he said contributed significantly to the rapprochement of relations between the two countries.

Ministers Zoran Đorđević and Goran Trivan attended the reception, representatives of the diplomatic and religious communities, as well as numerous figures from political, cultural and public life.

13/10/2018

Ambassador Of Lebanon Hosts Event In Honour Of Patriarch Of Antioch

Ambassador of Lebanon to Serbia H.E. Nada Al Akl hosted a dinner in honour of the Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, who is visiting Serbia and the Serbian Orthodox Church.

Patriarch Irinej and other senior representatives of the Serbian Orthodox Church, as well as government officials of the Republic of Serbia and diplomatic corps, attended the event held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel.

AMBASSADOR NADA AL AKL AND PATRIARCH OF ANTIOCH

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FACES & PLACES 18/10/2018

National Day Of Austria Marked

Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabić, along with Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen, attended the reception on the occasion of the National Day of the Republic of Austria, held in the Belgrade City Assembly.

Ambassador of Austria H.E. Nikolaus Lutterotti welcomed guests and said that two countries are connected by a genuine friendship.

Ana Brnabić congratulated President Van der Belen on the National Day of Austria and stressed that his visit was another confirmation of the friendly relations between the two countries.

President Van der Bellen said that his visit to Serbia is another confirmation of the importance of the friendship and excellent bilateral relations between Austria and Serbia, adding that Austria supports Serbia in the EU integration process.

“Austria’s support in the process of European integration is crucial for Serbia,” Prime Minister Brnabić said in addressing guests, stressing that Serbia remains persistent in reforms aimed at a better standard of living for all citizens.

The Prime Minister recalled that Austria is one of the largest foreign trade partners of Serbia and one of the largest foreign investors, whose companies have invested more than three billion euros and employ about 20,000 workers, which is why it is crucial that the strengthening of economic cooperation continues.

ANA BRNABIĆ, ALEXANDER VAN DER BELLEN AND NIKOLAUS LUTTEROTTI

19/10/2018

National Day Of Hungary

Ambassador of Hungary H.E. Attila Pintér hosted a reception marking the national day of this country.

October 23rd marks the day of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary Péter Szijjártó addressed the guests via a pre-recorded video. “The Hungarian nation is nation of freedom fighters. This was proved in 1959. We are grateful to all the heroes of 1959 because they are the reason that today we can enjoy our freedom. We will never forget this.”

Ambassador addressed the guests welcoming senior government officials, members of the diplomatic, business and cultural communities for joining the marking of this year’s National day.

AMBASSADOR ATTILA PINTÉR

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My life

Miljen Kreka Kljaković, Production Designer

IMAGINING ON A GIVEN TOPIC Miljen Kreka Kljaković (68) is our highest-rated and best-known film production designer. He graduated from the Belgrade University Academy of Fine Arts and alongside his name it is stated, among other things, that he is a member of the Serbian Film Academy, the American Art Directors Guild and Maison des Artistes France, while his acknowledgements include the Golden Seal Award 2015/Yugoslav Film Library, Annual Award for the Best TV art design (1980), the French film academy awards-Caesar 1992 (for the film Delicatessen), the European Film Academy award-Felix 1991 (also for Delicatessen), Yugoslavian Academy Awards 1996 (for the film Underground), a nomination for an Emmy Award -USA 1995-1996 (for the TV film Rasputin), a nomination for the Excellence in Production Design Award – U.S. Art Directors Guild 2004 (for the TV film Helen Of Troy) production design, (for the film St. George Shoots The Dragon) 2010 – from FIPRESCI, The International Federation of Film Critics, and many others 169

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My life

Miljen Kreka Kljaković, Production Designer

W

hilst working with all of our significant directors of the Prague School, the door to European and world fame was opened to Kljaković with his production design for the 1991 cult film Delicatessen ( Jean-Pierre Jeunet) (1991), which brought him the European Oscar - “Felix” and the Caesar Award, France’s national recognition in the field of film, which is only rarely awarded to foreigners. Then followed a series impressive production designs for films and TV serials: Underground, Rasputin (nomination for an Emmy), The Brave, Dune, Helen of Troy, The Order, The Pillar of the Earth, An Ordinary Man, Muhammad etc., almost fifty production designs of top European and world productions.

Kljaković is currently entering into another major project with Oscar-winner Barry Levinson, director of the hit film Rain Man. “In life it’s not possible to predict and plan everything,” says Kljaković. “Fine art was my great love and has remained so, and I will return to it someday. Film may have only temporarily seduced me and taken me to some other side, and that’s why I have for years felt a huge emptiness and a great need to return to painting, my first love.” When great careers unfold there is most often a turning point – a case of being in the right place at the right time. For Kljaković that breakthrough was Goran Marković’s film Special Education.

Moving images are magical and great enchantment, capable of drawing, enticing and dragging one into their world, the world of fantasy and imagination, and few people are capable of resisting it. I entered the film world quite by accident, like when you experience your first love. Goran Marković’s film Special Education was my firstborn. My great professional and life adventure began with this film, because I chose the profession that I would pursue. As you say, I was probably lucky to be in the right place at the right time.

Production design is about imagining on a given topic, devising and creating a space in which a film story will unfold,” explains Kljaković.

“That characteristic is the privilege of a small number of people, a characteristic with which one achieves and provides a strong contribution to the visual quality of a film. It is created and

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VILCO FILAC, KREKA AND JOHNNY DEPP('THE BRAVE')

Films with historical themes, Muhammad, set in the sixth and seventh centuries, Pillars of the Earth, based in the 12th century, The Secret Passage, showing the Venice of the 15th century, and the film Nomad, set in 18th century Kazakhstan, were all the kind of serious and delicate projects that every set designer desires implemented through the materialisation of the imaginative ideas of its author, and this process isn’t at all easy or simple. The path to reaching this goal primarily requires a good and intelligent idea, but its solution also requires a lot of work, persistence and sacrifice.

The classic job of set designing won’t lose significance due to advancement of new technologies, as there will still be a need to design the film space, even if it is only virtual.

“I’m one of those old school authors who creates their aesthetics with their own head and their own hands. That type of energy is something that can never and is unable to happen between man and machine. I think that’s exactly how true art emerges. Don’t forget that the best and most expensive shoes and Louis Vuitton bags are still made by hand.” Asked whether he divides projects into large and small, Kljaković says that he primarily likes demanding, large and serious film décor.

“If you are bona fide in your approach to the work you do, then only great challenges can bring you satisfaction and make you happy. A great challenge is usually also great inspiration in dealing with our artistic work. Believe it or not, small films are more exhausting than some other more serious and demanding film projects.

“The most important thing is to be competent and to know how to select a good film script that can interest you and inspire you creatively.

There are mitigating circumstances if you know the director of a film project from a previous engagement and have collaborated with them before; if it is a director whose working style and method you know well. In such a situation there is no wasting time adapting and testing mutual creative moments.”

By Miroslava Nešić - Bikić

DONALD SUTHERLAND AND KREKA Whilst collaborating with greats of the film world, Kljaković also witnessed the revealing of some hidden secrets, like the fact that Marlon Brando doesn’t learn a role by heart, but rather performs with the help of an earpiece.

the rewards that they usually carry with me. My greatest reward, as always, is well-designed and implemented film décor, which carries powerful and strong emotions within it, and which will be transferred to viewers from the cinema screen.”

“Yes, it happened in the film The Brave, which was directed by Johnny Depp. I was quite surprised when I discovered that a legend like Marlon Brando acts with the help of an earpiece, through which his assistant reads the script and he receives the sound through a miniature speaker located at the bottom of his ear canal. As a result, he was focused and concentrated only on acting, and not on the script that he had to learn. That’s an interesting, rather strange and unusual system of acting.”

Working on a film is like living in a film.

The measure of things, when it comes to any kind of commitment, simply doesn’t exist or is very difficult to measure...

With which kinds of emotions do you enter into projects today; what are the challenges that you’ll never be able to resist?

“As has been the case to date, I’m also interested in serious film projects that carry within them great challenges, which gives the set designer enough space and breadth for artistic action and upgrades.

I primarily like to deal with historical themes in which we have to reconstruct places and times that no longer exist and are far behind us. Such projects renew one’s knowledge of history and general culture, and I must say that they teach a lot that’s new. When I work on such films I never think of

“Film is difficult, like mining work, filled with stress, arduous work and a lot of sacrifice. That’s there’s only a small number of people who deal exclusively with this profession and only this profession throughout their lives. But film is strange magic, which gives you a lot of things on one side and takes just as much away on the other. If you agree to this type of balance, you will remain in this business until the very end. I deal with big-budget films that have all the conditions required for good implementation. That’s the most important thing when it comes to my job.

“Naturally, for such films a team is carefully selected that comprises professionals with a lot of experience and lots of good and significant films behind them.

“I was fortunate to receive the top awards in Europe for one film that is today a cult work, Delicatessen: a European Oscar and the Caesar Award of the French Film Academy. In some way, that film

There were film production companies that were part of large corporations and that dealt mainly with productions without the desire to generate some profit. One of them was major French company Bouygues Construction, which financed Emir Kusturica’s film Underground, which I worked on opened a door to the world for me. However, in the same way there were some films that I’d previously worked on in Serbia that opened the door for the film Delicatessen.” The films Muhammad and The Secret Passage both took years to make. What does it feel like to create and build large film sets?

“I hope for and love big projects. And these were really fantastic challenges, films with large sets where I could show what I’m capable of and what I know as an author. The film about the Prophet Muhammad, set in the sixth and seventh centuries, Pillars of the Earth, based in the 12th century, The Secret Passage, showing the Venice of the 15th century, and the film Nomad, set in 18th century Kazakhstan, were all genuine scenographic challenges. All of these major films with historical themes are very risky and slippery for every author. Apart from the fact that everything must look good, precise and accurate in scenographic terms, you also have to comply with the deadlines and budget provided.

Those are battles that you fighting throughout the entire film project. And in that struggle are hidden countless traps that can cause you to shift and head in the wrong direction, making unforgivable mistakes and bringing your entire career into question.”

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My life

Miljen Kreka Kljaković, Production Designer

SET DESIGN FOR 'RASPUTIN' Is there a difference between Europe and America when it comes to the film business?

“American film is primarily a business. The fundamentals of everything are linked to returns on the funds invested and, according to possibilities, generating good income. American producers mostly associate themselves with projects that are safe and capable of achieving high ratings and great success. In Europe this is somewhat different. There were film production companies that were part of large corporations and that dealt mainly with productions without the desire to generate some profit. One of them was major French company Bouygues Construction, which financed Emir Kusturica’s film Underground, which I worked on. They invested in the film with a desire to help in the creation of good art and to achieve prestige in this business in some way. There is increasingly less of that today, so the film industry in Europe has also become a commodity that’s bought and sold.”

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MUHAMMAD KABBA INTERIOR

By Miroslava Nešić - Bikić

relations. If such a relationship is achieved, it continues even when the lights go off and the cameras stop filming. Then stars are no longer stars but good acquaintances and good friends.

In other words, members of the ordinary and normal world.” You have a very unusual hobby - you collect the shoes of the actors from the films you’ve worked on! Why shoes specifically?

You’ve worked on a lot of feature-length films, but also TV films. Pillars of the Earth is a TV film and series made for Ridley Scott, while the film Rasputin, for TV channel HBO, brought you an Emmy nomination. What is the difference between working on film and television?

“A television screen can swallow everything, which is why the scenography is always less demanding than it is for the big screen. A large screen is like an exhibition of paintings where everything is seen and measured. However, the fact is that TV films and TV series are being increasingly made, because the viewer has become too comfortable and is increasingly more connected to their home environment, their TV set and their computer. Ever fewer people are going to cinemas. Television will definitely prevail and destroy the real film industry.

And ever fewer viewers will seek that real experience in the darkness of the cinema hall. The tempo of life has became very fast, and habits also change with that tempo.” Do big stars behave in the same when the cameras are turned off?

“A film crew is a group of people who are engaged

I was quite surprised when I discovered that a legend like Marlon Brando acts with the help of an earpiece, through which his assistant reads the script and he receives the sound through a miniature speaker located at the bottom of his ear canal. As a result, he was focused and concentrated only on acting, and not on the script that he had to learn in the work they do and who give their all and contribute to the quality of the film image, no matter what position they hold. This is only possible if there is mutual respect, close and friendly

“I have a large collection of men’s and women’s shoes that were worn as part of the costumes for the films I’ve worked on. There are shoes that were worn by William Hurt, Faye Dunaway, Johnny Depp, Jerry Lewis, Greta Scacchi, Ben Kingsley, Alan Rickman, John Cusack, Maximilian Schell, Donald Sutherland et al.

“And it all began quite by accident in Paris, when Johnny Depp, Isabelle Adjani and I went to a discotheque one night. We stayed there until morning as the last guests and it was then that I asked Isabelle to give me her shoe and to sign it.

She agreed to that. That was a little black lacquered ballet pump, and that morning she went home barefoot like Cinderella. And thus I came up with the idea to start collecting something that could remind me of beautiful moments. These memories are not a fetish, these are “thousandmile” shoes that have passed through the various films I’ve worked on.” Is there anything that you would do differently today, in work or in life? Would you be able to live differently and perhaps wish to do so?

“Art is enthusiasm and freedom, and that’s why I’d never give it up. Thanks to that and the career I’ve had, I’ve managed to realise the dreams that I had. Perhaps I will only slow down my activity in film at this juncture, in order to be able to dedicate myself more to painting and graphics, because art is about triumphing over chaos, and that’s something that we all really need. I’ve made a lot of film sets and my career is still at its peak, but I’m increasingly thinking about painting. I miss it. I’ve never even dealt with proper painting. Everything I do is just sketches, tailored things, things according to a task. I would like to devote myself to myself a little and to start painting and creating graphics, which I studied at the Academy of Fine Arts. And in that I feel a huge sense of emptiness.”

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CHILL OUT USA

Bodysuits A new exhibit at a Houston museum allows visitors to literally step into someone else’s skin by donning realistic “Bodysuits.”

The “Bodysuits” exhibit, part of the “Body as a Work of Art” project at the John P. McGovern Museum of Health and Medical Science, was created by artist Sarah Sitkin and features realistic skin suits with details including surgical scars, stretch marks, hair and even freckles.

“It’s a tragedy that our selves must be defined by our bodies, limited by our abilities, and that our bodies will ultimately kill us,” Sitkin told Dazed.

The exhibit allows visitors to don the suits and experience being in another skin.

CHINA

639 Pianos Play For Guinness World Record

A total 639 pianists from eight countries played in unison during an event in China to break a Guinness World Record.

Organizers of the event in Wuqiang County, Hubei Province, said 40 pianos were played on a stage in unison with 599 pianos in a nearby square, making for a total 639 pianos played at the same time.

The pianists included international musicians Grigory Gruzman, Alexander Schimpf, Scott McBride Smith and Patricia Frehlich, as well as music teachers and students from China.

The event, which saw participants play “Marche Militaire in D Major” by Franz Schuber in unison, broke the Guinness World Record of 555 pianos playing at the same time, which was set in 2007 in Inchon, South Korea.

CANADA

Canadian Man Finds Million Dollar Lottery Ticket In Old Coat

Gregorio De Santis from Montreal,Canada cleaning out a closet at his sister’s insistence received a shock when he found, in the lining of a jacket, a lottery ticket purchased 10 months earlier. The sisterly advice proved most profitable: The man pocketed winnings of Can$1.75 million (€1,17mln).

De Santis’ sister had told him it was time to sift through his bulging closet and donate unused old clothing to a charity.

He plans to use his new winnings to bolster his retirement account.

GERMANY

Oktoberfest 2018

The world’s largest annual fair, Munich Oktoberfest, marks its 22nd anniversary in 2018, held at Theresienwiese from September 22nd to October 7th. It was located, as usually, at very central on the so called Thereisienwiese, a flat area of about 42 hectare in the Munich quarter Ludwigsvorstadt-Isarvorstadt.

With over 6 million people attended this year it was once again a massive celebration of everything that is Bavarian. From the incredible food and fine Munich beers, to traditional dress and music, the beer tents were once again pack out with people from all over the world.

Oktoberfest isn’t just for Germans anymore. People have flocked to Germany from all parts of the globe to participate in the world’s largest annual festival for nearly 210 years. Over 4000 things were lost and found during the Oktoberfest. The all-time classics are glasses, phones, money, jackets, pullovers and at least one set of dentures.

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DENMARK

Denmark To Label Food According To Effect On Climate New labelling on food packaging will enable consumers in Denmark to see the effect of their shopping on the environment. Food products will be marked with stickers showing their environmental impact, according to a proposal expected to be included in a new climate package to be presented by the government this week.

Business interest group the Danish Agriculture & Food Council (DAFC) welcomed the proposal, but said a number of considerations must be made. “It might be necessary to weigh up the environmental impact against the nutritional value of the product. A bottle of soda may have a low environmental impact, but it is not a product you can live on,” DAFC director Morten Høyer said via a press statement.

JAPAN

Tokyo’s New Art Museum

UK

British Artist’s Painting Self-Destructs After Being Auctioned

The world’s first all-digital art museum, the Mori Building Digital Art Museum in Odaiba, Tokyo, is part of the interdisciplinary movement by team Lab Borderless — an experimental art collective — that’s shaking up the art world. You won’t find gilded frames and velvet rope barriers here; the museum celebrates the ever-decreasing borders between technology and society in an effort to liberate art from its conventional and physical constrictions. Instagrammable exhibition spaces are designed with the ‘immersive experience’ generation in mind: guests can glide through a forest of lights that react and respond to movement, dart through rolling, Hokusai-esque waves or take time out for tea in the En Tea House, where digital flowers blossom on the surface of your brew. It borders on an Alice in Wonderland-style assault on the senses, but it’s a bold, brilliant new chapter in how we consume art.

A British street artist made his painting self-destruct after it was auctioned for €1,2 million at Sotheby’s in London.

Banksy, an anonymous street artist who made his name through a series of graffiti pieces across Britain, has installed a shredder on the back of his iconic “Girl With Balloon” painting. Moments after it was sold, the work passed through the bottom of its frame, producing a partially shredded canvas.

Banksy revealed he had secretly built the shredder into the painting years ago in case it was ever put up for auction. He quoted Pablo Picasso as saying in the post: “The urge to destroy is also a creative urge.”

In a statement Sotheby’s described the move as becoming instant art world history and said it has marked the first time in auction history that a work of art automatically shredded itself after coming under the hammer.

INDIA

India Suspends Bus Driver For Letting Monkey ‘Drive’

An Indian bus driver who let a monkey behind the wheel of his vehicle was suspended after a video of the incident went viral, sparking outrage and humor.

“Driver M Prakash has been taken off duty for allowing the monkey to sit on the steering wheel and handle it,” T.S. Latha, a spokesperson for the government’s road transport corporation in southern Karnataka state, told AFP. The incident took place last month but authorities only learnt of it after the video was shared on social media.

There were around 30 passengers on the bus at the time and none of them complained.

The bus was on its regular trip around Davangere, around 270 kilometers from regional capital Bangalore, when the incident took place.

USA

Toddler shreds more than $1,000 in cash A toddler in Utah, US was a little too helpful when he shredded more than $1,000 that his parents were saving.

Ben and Jackee Belnap were saving the cash to reimburse Ben’s parents for University of Utah season football tickets. They had $1,060 in an envelope, which disappeared over the weekend. The couple started searching the house when Jackee hollered, “I found it.” She was holding the shredder.

Their 2-year-old son, Leo, helps his mom shred junk mail or important documents that they want to get rid of. He apparently got his hands on the envelope.

Ben contacted the Treasury Department and he said he was told to ship the shredded cash for possible replacement.

Source: Associated Press

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Despite The

Wind & Rain If November sometimes gets you down with its gloomy weather and spoils your good mood, do something nice for yourself.

Dress up nice despite the wind and rain.

Freshen up your wardrobe with something that will improve your day and set you apart from the greyness of autumn weather.

And don't forget that beautiful and lovingly selected items of clothing always attract attention and compliments!

MAX MARA Teddy scarf €485

KARL LAGERFELD & KAIA Wool-blend tuxedo jacket €420

DRIES VAN NOTEN

High-waist metallic-plissé skirt €735

LOEWE

ELLEME

Suede piping gloves €295

Raisin leather shoulder bag €505

SAM EDELMAN

Kinzey embroidered-lace ankle boots €170

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BOSS

Checked slim-fit wool jacket €510

OBEY

Dayton cotton-blend bucket hat €45.50

ANDERSONS

Multi-woven leather-trim elasticated belt €97

SANDRO Apollo wool-blend coat

Sandro’s single-breasted coat is woven from a textured wool blend including virgin wool and cashmere €560

MULBERRY

Belgrave vegetable tanned leather briefcase €790

THOM BROWNE Stripe-trimmed knitted-cotton cardigan €770

BELSTAFF

Ladbroke leather chelsea boots €485

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Culture

Art + Science: Makers

calendar

13 Nov-7 Dec

Peter Murphy

9 - Hangar in Port of Belgrade - 21.00

Profitable Position The legendary musician Peter Murphy will hold a Belgrade concert on November 9 (21:00) in the area of Hangar (Žorža Klemansoa 39, Port of Belgrade), instead of the initially planned hall of the “Americans” of the Youth Center of Belgrade.

Murphy is coming to Belgrade as part of the 40 Years of Bauhaus Ruby Celebration Feat David J.

Brit Floyd

13 – Hala Sportova – 20.00 The world’s greatest Pink Floyd tribute show, returns to the stage in 2019 with its most ambitious and best production yet, a very special 40th Anniversary retrospective of Pink Floyd’s iconic rock opera, ‘The Wall’. Released in November 1979, a semi-autobiographical concept album from the mind of Pink Floyd founding member Roger Waters, The Wall remains one of the biggest selling albums of all time, and an important moment in Rock music history. As well as performing a host of musical highlights from The Wall, Brit Floyd will perform classic gems from The Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here, Animals and The Division Bell plus lots more. The Brit Floyd Show has truly become a phenomenon, widely regarded as the world’s greatest live tribute to Pink Floyd. Faithfully recreating the scale and pomp of the final 1994 Division Bell tour, complete with a stunning million dollar light show, large circle screen and arch plus moving lights, lasers, inflatables and theatrics. A Brit Floyd show is as close as fans will get to experience the magnificence of a Pink Floyd Show live.

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20 – Yugoslav Drama Theatre – 20.00 In a society in which corruption becomes a social norm, and how to curry favour with the higher-ranked is more important than education, it is a matter of survival to find a profitable position.

The comedy Profitable Position takes place in a milieu of powerful civil servants and suddenly wealthy Moscow merchants. Of them Ostrovsky says – they are no longer uneducated as their fathers before them, on the contrary, they are well mannered, well groomed, they go to Paris to art shows, they drink champagne, read French newspapers and follow European fashion, but none of this as a result of true sophistication, but rather a means of mimicry. Under the attractive appearance, there lurks the same egoism, cruelty and vanity as in their ancestors. They are energetic, resourceful, capable of making money, which is, in fact, another name for predatoriness.

The Center for the Promotion of Science (CPN) organises a manifestation titled Art + Science: Makers, which will be a set of exhibitions, lectures, workshops and presentations, with the aim of presenting projects that combine science and art through the use of modern technologies.

The exhibition will show the works of local creators whose practice is characterised by experimentation and use of various technological resources. CPN Makers Speys will provide support for further development and networking of artists and scientists in working on joint interdisciplinary projects. Part of the works will be presented at the Gallery Servantes Institute, which hosts the Art + Science: Makers conference.

The specificity of the manifestation is the indication of the importance of spatial and technological conditions in which interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary projects develop. Our goal is to present the Makers concept as a common denominator of science and art, as a space that catalyses innovation and enables the realisation of ideas, with a particular focus on providing STEAM education programs.

The event takes place in November in several locations in Belgrade: Institute Servantes, Museum of Applied Arts, Faculty of Dramatic Arts, Bitef Theater and Scientific Club Belgrade.

Exhibition “Aux Antipodes”

Museum of African Art - throughout the month A year after his first visit to Belgrade, French artist Massinissa Selmani returns to attend the opening of his exhibition at the Museum of African Art in Belgrade.

The works of Massinissa Selmani originate from socio-political events, through clippings from the press that have been collecting for years. Through confrontation and interweaving without any logical sense, Masinis Selmani creates an enigmatic and ambiguous scene that highlights the ironic and tragic character of the absurd situations shown in his drawings.

Massinissa Selmani lives and works in France. Among other things, his works were exhibited at the biennials in Lyon, Dakar and Venice.

More recently, the winner is the Collector Prize and Sam Art Projects.

French daily Le Monde has included Massinis Selmani on the list of five best African artists in 2015.

RECOMMENDS

Balkanopolis

24 – Sava Center – 20.00

After a spectacular last year’s concert at the Sava Center, Slobodan Trkulja & Balkanopolis are returning to this prestigious hall with a performance to round off a celebratory tour of the 20th anniversary of the band. A charismatic multi-instrumentalist and singer of the world’s calibre with Balkanopolis over the past year has conquered Asia, holding ten concerts in China (Guangzhou, Changzhou, Chengdu and other cities), as well as concerts in Tehran, Kotor, Paris and Dubai and festivals in Malaysia and Taiwan.

This time they prepared a special surprise for fans in Serbia and a unique set list for November 24, 2018.

The Woman From Sarajevo

25 – Yugoslav Drama Theatre – 20.00 Following the division in the original novel by Andrić into two parts, one taking place in Sarajevo and the other one in Belgrade, the production of The Woman from Sarajevodirected by Gorčin Stojanović is also divided into two parts. Both take place during the tumultuous decades toward the end of the nineteenth and early twentieth century as well as the years that followed in the wake of World War I and the dissolution of two mighty empires. This is the backdrop for the life story of Rajka Radaković, one of Andrić’s most famous heroines.

Her story is that of a woman who is constantly trying to understand the changes happening in the world around her and who dedicates all her efforts to stay true to the promise made to her father. Her fierce obsession to earn and save as much money as possible turns her entire life into a solitary, loveless existence. English subtitles.

Volim Osamdesete

26 – Sava Center – 20.00 The concert “Volim Osamdesete” (I Love the Eighties) is a kind of music timeline through the 1980s, featuring the biggest names of the pop and rock scene as well as the new wave from ex-Yu space. Many believe there is no more creative decade since the 1980s. The concert will include: Slađana Milošević, Bebi Dol, Marina Perazić, Žana group, Aerodrom, Srđan Gojković Gile from Electric Orgasm, Davorin Bogović from the Prljavo Kazalište, Kiki Lesendrić, Viktorija, Tanja Jovičević, Boris Režak, as well as many others. a legendary author and head of the famous “Hits of the Month” Dubravka Duca Marković.

12th Science Festival 29 Nov-2 Dec

For the twelfth time, December in Belgrade will be in the brightest colours of the science thanks to the Science Festival, the biggest event in the region that promotes science and education! From 29th of November till 2nd of December, at three halls of the Belgrade Fair, in more than 6000 square meters, visitors will be able to get in touch with some of the most exciting scientific experiments, adventures and challenges! This year’s Science Festival is held under the slogan „The Land of the Future”, because it best describes our aspiration to present challenges in maintaining our Planet “heath” through scientific exhibitions, contributing lecturers, interactive presentations and workshops. Introducing scientific stages, experimenting not only with science, but also with scientists and the ways in which science could be brought closer to the audience, Serbian Science Festival has opened the door of the most prominent city institutions and spaces proving that science can be found outside the laboratories, in places such as city parks, restaurants, squares and streets. 12th Science Festival will present 67 different exhibitions and 62 institutions which will participate in this year’s program. From the very beginning, the essential part of this mission was to bring science closer to a non-scientific audience and to provoke interest in scientific work, and furthermore in understanding its impacts in everyday life.

Whatever your interests are, you’ll find your scoop of the joy at this year’s Science Festival! Festival is supported by the Embassy of the United States of America in Belgrade, the French Institute, the Austrian Cultural Forum and the Center for the Promotion of Science. Programme: festivalnauke.org

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BEE TIME: LESSONS FROM THE HIVE Mark L. Winston 2300rsd

Being among bees is a full-body experience, Mark Winston writes.

Bee Time presents his reflections on three decades spent studying these remarkable creatures, and on the lessons they can teach about how humans might better interact with one another and the natural world, from the boardroom to urban design to agricultural ecosystems.

THE ECONOMICS OF INEQUALITY

Thomas Piketty 3950rsd

Succinct, accessible, and authoritative, Thomas Piketty’s The Economics of Inequality is the ideal place to start for those who want to understand the fundamental issues at the heart of one the most pressing concerns in contemporary economics and politics. This work now appears in English for the first time.

LATIN: STORY OF A WORLD LANGUAGE

Kenneth Kronenberg, Jurgen Leonhard 2301rsd

The mother tongue of the Roman Empire and the lingua franca of the West for centuries afterward, Latin survives today primarily in classrooms and texts. Yet this “dead language” is unique in the influence it has exerted across centuries and continents. Jurgen Leonhardt offers the story of the first “world language,” from antiquity to the present.”

ALBERT EINSTEIN’S BRIGHT IDEAS Frederic Morlot 1813rsd

At its most basic, philosophy is about learning how to think about the world around us. It should come as no surprise, then, that children make excellent philosophers! Naturally inquisitive, pint-size scholars need little prompting before being willing to consider life’s “big questions,” however strange or impractical. Plato & Co. introduces children and curious grown-ups to the lives and work of famous philosophers, from Socrates to Descartes, Einstein, Marx, and Wittgenstein.

Each book in the series features an engaging and often funny story that presents basic tenets of philosophical thought alongside vibrant color illustrations. In Albert Einstein’s Flashes of Inspiration, the young Albert Einstein has a very important job: he must deliver electricity to the big Oktoberfest celebration in Munich. As he hurries from one merry-go-round to another, nothing seems to be going as planned. With his sister, Maja, Heinrich the dog, and Niels Bohr, a qualified dwarf-thrower, can he win a battle against the laws of the universe? The key just may lie in the 169 can fly faster65 question of whether a dumpling than light?

AFTER WORK 03 SERBIA’S ECONOMY BASED OCT ON INNOVATION, KNOWLEDGE,

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Prime Minister Ana Brnabić told the winners of the public call for funding innovative projects that they are an important part of Serbia’s economy based on innovation, knowledge and entrepreneurship.

Brnabić attended a ceremony at the Yugoslav Film Archives Museum where, together with representatives of the European Union and the World Bank, she delivered certificates of funding and realisation of 22 innovative projects financed with €3 million from the Innovation Fund.

She said that the state will create a legal framework so that we could promote a different economic growth paradigm.

MINISTER BRANKO RUŽIĆ

PRIME MINISTER ANA BRNABIĆ

05 3RD AHK OKTOBERFEST OCT HELD IN BELGRADE The German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce (AHK Serbia) organised the 3rd AHK Oktoberfest in Belgrade. During the two days celebration, 4 and 5 October 2018, the event was attended by about 1,300 people, who enjoyed the Erdinger Beer, the diverse Bavarian cuisine and the music of Dejan Petrović and his Big Band, as well as competitions in mugging and drinking beer.

The first day of the AHK Oktoberfest was opened by the President of the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce Dr Ronald Seeliger and the manager of the Economic Department at the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, Katrin Čiganovski.

The second day of the AHK Oktoberfest was opened by the ambassador of Germany H.E. Thomas Schieb and Udo Eichlinger, vice president of the AHK Serbia.

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AMBASSADORS OF SWEDEN ,FINLAND DENMARK AND NORWAY AMBASSADOR SCHIEB, MARTIN KNAPP AND UDI EICHLINGER

09 SEMINAR “NORDIG - NORDIC OCT EXPERIENCES IN THE FIELD OF

DIGITALIZATION”

The Embassies of Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden together with the Nordic Business Alliance in Serbia organised the seminar “NorDig - Nordic Experiences in the Field of Digitalization”, held in the Yugoslav Cinema. The seminar was aimed at continuing public-private dialogue between Nordic companies and institutions and the Government of the Republic of Serbia, as well as presenting Nordic experiences in the field of digitisation and innovation. The discussion with representatives of state institutions and local organisations was focused on defining the conclusions on how to promote joint efforts in the area of digitisation of public administration in Serbia.

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REPRESENTATIVES OF THE INTERNATIONAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

09 OCT SPEED BUSINESS MEETING On 9th October 2018, at Hyatt Regency Hotel in Belgrade, a Speed Business Meeting between the members of four international business associations in Serbia – Slovenian Business Club, Belgian-Serbian Business Association, Canadian-Serbian Business Association and Japanese Business Alliance in Serbia, was organised.

Representatives of business associations, Nevena Danilović from Slovenian Business Club, Milica Vranjanac and Hugo van Veghel from Belgian-Serbian Business Association, Mirjana Beaton and Mina Gutić from Canadian-Serbian Business Association and Danijela Čabarkapa from Japanese Business Alliance in Serbia, have welcomed the participants, explained the rules of the event in more details and wished successful meetings.

More than forty companies, members and partners of the four business associations, had an opportunity to quickly establish business contacts, present their products and services, explain their current business needs and discuss possibilities of establishing closer cooperation during the ten minutes long meetings.

AMBASSADOR ALJOWAILY WITH THE DELEGATION FROM EGYPT

15 JOURNEY TO EGYPT: OCT CARAVAN OF FRIENDSHIP On the occasion of the visit of a delegation of businesspeople from Egypt, led by the head of the Red Sea District Ahmed Abdullah, the Caravan of Friendship was held at the Museum of African Art in Belgrade.

Delegation from Egypt, the ambassador of this country to Serbia, H.E. Amr Aljowaily and the ambassador of Serbia to Egypt H.E. Jugoslava Vukadinović as well as numerous eminent officials enjoyed a cultural program organised for this occasion.

AMBASSADOR AMR ALJOWAILY

10 OCT DONATION OF THE ORDER OF MALTA The Embassy of the Sovereign Order of Malta in the Republic of Serbia has been helping the sick, the poor, children and the elderly, as well as people with disabilities, through its Make a Wish to the Order of Malta project for many years. Together with the donors from Taiwan this time a printer for blind people was delivered to the Union of Blind Serbia. The printers for the blind are very expensive, prices are from 5 to 15 and 20 thousand euros and are indispensable in the process of education of the visually impaired, who are considered to be the most educated people with disabilities in Serbia.

The donation ceremony was held in the largest library for the blind in the Balkans, Jewish Street at Dorćol, where the Ambassador of the Order of Malta H.E. Alberto di Luca and the Ambassador of Taipei Representative office in Budapest, H.E. Ambassador, were introduced to the conditions in which the Union of Blind Serbia works, as well as their problems and needs.

In Taiwan, people with disabilities have guaranteed employment, and that is considered to be the standard in the country with the best healthcare system in the world.

Their sensibility for categories of people with disabilities worldwide has been proven through this action by the Embassy of the Order of Malta in our country.

AMBASSADOR ALBERTO DI LUCA AND AMBASSADOR OF TAIPEI REPRESENTATIVE OFFICE IN BUDAPEST

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AFTER WORK 16 FILM FESTIVAL DEDICATED OCT TO INGMAR BERGMAN OPENED The screening of the film “Saraband”, the last film directed by Ingmar Bergman, opened a festival dedicated to this Swedish director, producer and screenwriter at Yugoslav Cinematheque. On the occasion of the centenary of his birth, the Embassy of Sweden and partners participate in the largest international event organised in honour of Ingmar Bergman.

“Ingmar Bergman was undoubtedly one of the most famous Swedes. The marking of the 100th anniversary of his birth is not a necessity, but a desire and an obligation, because it gives us a chance to present the works of Bergman to new generations of film lovers,” said the Swedish Ambassador H.E. Jan Lundin at the opening ceremony.

AMBASSADOR JAN LUNDIN

ALEKSANDAR VUČIĆ, MARKO ČADEŽ, MATTI ANTTONEN, ANDREJA PAVLOVIĆ

16 THE NORDIC MODEL A GOOD EXAMPLE OCT FOR THE WESTERN BALKANS The Chamber of Commerce & Industry of Serbia in cooperation with the Chamber Investment Forum, the Nordic Business Alliance in Serbia and the embassies of Denmark, Finland and Sweden, hosted an Investment Forum in Belgrade, Serbia’s capital. The aim of the forum was dialogue on the possibilities of cooperation between the countries of the Western Balkans and Nordic regions.

Bilateral talks between the President of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić and the most important investors from the Nordic countries were held.

At the opening of the meeting, Permanent State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland, Matti Anttonen, pointed out that the Nordic countries are ready to help the Western Balkan region on its path to the EU. Within the Forum, the Round Table “Investments in the Western Balkan Region” was organised, with ministers in the Government of Serbia, representatives of the embassies, IKEA, Grundfos, Kone, Telenor, Nordic Business Alliance and businesspeople from Serbia interested in cooperation with the Nordic countries.

CorD magazine, in cooperation with the Nordic Business Alliance, issued a special edition of NORDIC Business Alliance & Western Balkans 2018 on that occasion.

ALEKSANDAR VUČIĆ, MATTI ANTTONEN, ANDREJA PAVLOVIĆ, AMBASSADORS OF NORDIC COUNTRIES IN SERBIA

SRĐAN ŠAPER (MCCANN), BRANKO MITROVIĆ (TELENOR) AND MAJA VIDAKOVIĆ (CORD)

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17 JAPAN BUSINESS OCT FORUM: JAPANESE

COMPANIES PARTNERS

The objective of the Business Forum Serbia-Japan is to introduce a Japanese business delegation with investment opportunities in Serbia, as well as provide opportunities for Serbian companies to present their potentials and enter supply chains for Japanese companies operating in Europe. “The interest of Japanese business is far greater than before,” said Mihailo Vesović, advisor to the President of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce & Industry.

The first Day of Suppliers with the support of the European Enterprise Network EEN was also marked during the Business Forum.

ALEKSANDAR VUČIĆ ALEXANDER VAN DEN BELLEN

MAJO MIĆOVIĆ

18 IN SERBIA 600 OCT COMPANIES

17 TH OCT 8 BELGRADE SECURITY FORUM

“It will be an opportunity for five Japanese companies in the machinery and nonmetal industry to find their suppliers in Serbia. These are not companies that only operate in Serbia, but companies from the region - Romania, Poland,” said Vesović.

Special Adviser at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan and Director General of the Japan Foreign Trade Organization, JETRO from Vienna, Satoshi Abe, said that there are not many Japanese companies in Serbia because “the Japanese do not know much about Serbia, as how to do business in Serbia.”

“We are trying to promote Serbia as a good business destination for investment, but it is also important that you promote what are good aspects for investing in Serbia, as well as to promote business between Serbia and Japan,” said Abe. Naoki Tsukada, General Manager of Mitsubishi in Belgrade reminded that this big global company, which operates in several industrial sectors from food to the aero industry, opened its office in Serbia in 1965.

President of the Japan Business Alliance in Serbia and Director of Corporate Affairs and Communications Japan Tobacco International for the Western Balkans, Goran Pekez, said that so far 30 Japanese companies operating in Serbia have invested more than 200 million euros.

Although the question of the Belgrade-Priština dialogue was in the focus of the last day of the 8th Belgrade Security Forum, the panel also gave out messages that the region must dale with the “burning” problems in regards to the obstacles Western Balkans countries face on the path to the EU. The list includes the strengthening of the rule of law, a more decisive fight against corruption and crime, freedom of the media…

ALEXANDER VAN DER BELLEN, ALEKSANDAR VUČIĆ, MARKO ČADEŽ

INTERESTED IN JOINING THE DUAL EDUCATION SYSTEM

Teaching at 84 secondary vocational schools in Serbia is realised through at least one of the total of 32 dual educational profiles, which means that currently 23% of schools are involved in a dual education system, whose full implementation starts from the school year 2019/2020. It was concluded at the conference “Dual education in Serbia 2018: current results and future challenges” organised by the Swiss-Serbian Chamber of Commerce.

“The Swiss-Serbian Chamber of Commerce is pleased with the previous role of the active associate of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, and the Serbian Chamber of Commerce, the Swiss Embassy and all other important actors of this extraordinary project,” explained Majo Mićović, President of the Swiss-Serbian Chamber of Commerce.

18 AUSTRIAN PRESIDENT ATTENDS OCT SMART TRAFFIC BUSINESS FORUM Trade Department of the Austrian Embassy - ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA organised a business forum called SMART TRAFFIC on the occasion of the visit of the President of the Republic of Austria. The Austrian company was accompanied by 23 Austrian companies in the field of infrastructure. Attendees were addressed by the President of the Republic of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, the President of the Austrian Republic, Alexander Van der Bellen, as well as the President of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Marko Čadež and vice president of the Chamber of Commerce of Austria Richard Schenz.

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AFTER WORK

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23 CONFERENCE “THE FUTURE OCT OF WORK - THE FUTURE IS NOW” The event gathered in Belgrade leading European and domestic experts, representatives of public administration and academic institutions, local companies that have long since sailed into the digital age, representatives of the startup community, trade unions and representatives of civil society.

Slavica Đukić Dejanović, Minister without Portfolio in the Serbian Government opened the conference. Atendees were also addressed by H.E. Jan Lundin, Ambassador of Sweden to Serbia, Steliana Nedera, Deputy Resident Representative at UNDP Serbia and Ingva Engstrom, Head of Cooperation for the Delegation of the European Union to Serbia. It was concluded that to change its structure of economy predominantly based on labour-intensive industries, besides quality education, Serbia must also offer an improved quality of life, which should primarily involve ensuring values deriving from the principle of dignified labour.

YNGVE ENGSTRÖM

25 EU INVESTMENT OCT OPPORTUNITIES IN SERBIA

MINISTER SLAVICA ĐUKIĆ DEJANOVIĆ

Lecture “EU investment opportunities in Serbia” presented by Yngve Engström, Head of Cooperation at the EU Delegation to the Republic of Serbia was held at the residence of the Croatian ambassador in Serbia H.E. Gordan Bakota on October 25th.

The event was organised by the Croatian Business Club together with the Belgian Chamber of Commerce, the Hellenic Economic Association and the Nordic Business Alliance.

23 FORUM SPAIN - SERBIA A STEP TOWARD OCT THE DEVELOPMENT OF ECONOMIC AND

BILATERAL RELATIONS The first business forum and conference between Spain and Serbia attracted much attention and gathered around 150 representatives of international financial institutions, local ministries and other public institutions, including representatives of twenty Spanish companies, as well as a large number of Serbian entrepreneurs.

The trade department of the Embassy of Spain in Belgrade and the Spanish Export and Investment Agency (ICEX) organised this business meeting, in cooperation with the Serbian Chamber of Commerce and the Development Agency of Serbia.

The sponsor of the Forum is COFIDES, a Spanish development finance company.

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AMBASSADOR GORDAN BAKOTA

AMBASSADOR MIGUEL FUERTES