CorD Magazine, October 2021 issue no. 204

UN RESIDENT COORDINATOR IN SERBIA

H.E. ANNIKA BEN DAVID

AMBASSADOR OF DENMARK TO SERBIA

AMBASSADOR DESIGNATE OF SWEDEN TO SERBIA

Pollution Doesn’t Have A nationality

www.cordmagazine.com

Let’s Turn Green Together

H.E. SUSANNE SHINE

Great Room For Progress

OCTOBER 2021/ ISSUE NO. 204

FRANÇOISE JACOB

interviews opinions news comments events COMMENT

Legacy and Disquiet FOCUS

Economic Might And Election Results

Exclusive

MIODRAG ZEC

783002 771451 9

We Live In A Dangerously Imbalanced World

ISSN1451-7833

ECONOMIST

CONTENTS

08 WE LIVE IN A DANGEROUSLY IMBALANCED WORLD MIODRAG ZEC economist

20 EVERYTHING STILL REVOLVES AROUND FREEDOM Focus

24 URGING AN END TO BORDER TENSIONS Geopolitics

44 21 FACTS ABOUT JEANMICHEL BASQUIAT Art

48 50 YEARS OF THE JAZZ FLAME IN BELGRADE VOJISLAV PANTIĆ Artistic Director of the Belgrade Jazz Festival

12 LET’S TURN GREEN TOGETHER

FRANÇOISE JACOB UN RESIDENT COORDINATOR IN SERBIA

26 GLOBAL COFFEE PRICES WILL JUMP FURTHER Feature

28 BUSINESS DIALOGUE

50 EVERY PERIOD HAS ITS OWN AESTHETICS AND ITS OWN MORALS

SLOBODAN TIŠMA artist, musician, poet, writer, member of the rock avant-garde

40 5 BUSINESS LESSONS SERENA WILLIAMS Enterpreneur

16 GLOBAL DIARY 18 BIDEN’S COLLABORATIVE CONTAINMENT STRATEGY Feature

43 EDITORIAL CHALLENGES AND BLESSINGS

DUBRAVKA DRAGOVIĆ ŠEHOVIĆ EDITOR AT LAGUNA

56 CHILL OUT 58 TRENCH COATS THAT YOU WILL WEAR FOREVER

@CORD_MAGAZINE

Fashion

@CORDMAGAZINE

62 FACES & PLACES

CORD MAGAZINE

CORDMAGAZINE

EDITOR IN CHIEF: Neda Lukić n.lukic@aim.rs ART DIRECTOR: Branislav Ninković b.ninkovic@aim.rs CONTRIBUTORS: Rob Dugdale, Maja Vukadinović,

4

October

“CorD does not criticise or critique. We are a place where people can inspire and be inspired by others” Mirjana Jovanović, Miša Brkić, Ljubica Gojgić Radmila Stanković, Steve MacKenzie, Zorica Todorović Mirković, Sonja Ćirić, Miloš Belčević PHOTOS: Zoran Petrović COPY EDITOR: Mark Pullen TRANSLATION & EDITING MRP EDITORIAL

SALES MANAGERS: Biljana Dević, b.devic@aim.rs Vesna Vukajlović, v.vukajlovic@aim.rs Mihailo Čučković m.cuckovic@aim.rs OFFICE MANAGER: Svetlana Petrović s.petrovic@aim.rs

FINANCE: Dragana Skrobonja finance@aim.rs EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Maja Vidaković m.vidakovic@aim.rs PUBLISHER: Ivan Novčić i.novcic@aim.rs DIRECTOR: Ana Novčić

a.novcic@aim.rs a.novcic@cordmagazine.com PRINTING: Rotografika d.o.o.

Segedinski put 72, Subotica CorD is published by: alliance international media Prote Mateje 52, 11111 Belgrade 17, PAK 126909, Serbia Phone: +(381 11) 2450 508 Fax: +(381 11) 2450 122

E-mail: office@aim.rs office@cordmagazine.com www.cordmagazine.com www.aim.rs ISSN no: 1451-7833 All rights reserved alliance international media 2021

The views expressed in this publication are those of the presenter; they do not necessary reflect the view of publications published by alliance international media

Comment

Legacy and Disquiet

BY ZORAN PANOVIĆ

B

y calling on the presidents of Turkey, Serbia and Croatia – Messrs Erdoğan, Vučić and Milanović – Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik (seemingly narrow-minded, but actually very shrewd) reaffirmed his pragmatic loyalty to Vučić and gave significance (in a political sense) to Milanović, while his act of respect for Erdoğan showed a certain disdain for the Bosniak elite.

Thus Dodik, after showing open contempt towards Valentin Inzko, also highlighted his stance towards the new High Representative, Christian Schmidt (and towards that institution). Using the old method, Vučić moderately eased Dodik’s attitude, proving his Dayton constructiveness, and every other form of constructiveness, when it comes to relations with the great powers. In contrast to his proportional attitude towards democratic institutions in Serbia.

Dodik would have been even fairer had he left out Vučić and Milanović, and – apart from Erdoğan – asked Putin and Angela Merkel’s eventual successor to take care of Bosnia.

Amongst other things, Alija Izetbegović has already entrusted that job to Erdoğan. Given that ex-YU nationalisms are of a vassal character, it is always more expedient to negotiate with sponsors and patrons, as opposed to servile or haughty local feudal lords.

6

October

The departing German Chancellor, through the initiative of the Berlin Process, seemed to want to return everything to a zero-balance state; to how the Region would have been had the Socialist Yugoslavia disintegrated by agreement, without war, and had it maintained and improved economic, infrastructural and cultural ties. But the Berlin Process is power-

Vučić, Rama and Zaev are the Tito, Nehru and Nasser of the Open Balkans (an extension of the Berlin Process), but there can be no Scandinavianisation of the Region (joining with others) without the overcoming of narratives and synchronising of identities less against the narrative of disintegration.

The region is incapable of building its own mechanism for pacifying conflict, and Merkel has, with historical absurdity, found herself in the position of Marshal Tito – she became an arbitrary centre of power. Vučić, Rama and Zaev are the Tito, Nehru and Nasser of the Open Balkans (an extension of the Berlin Process), but there can be no Scandinavianisation of the Region (joining with others) without the overcoming of narratives and synchronising of identities. And that is also not possible without a sensitive normalisation of relations towards the Yugoslav experience and the emphasising of its emancipatory reach, not just those that have been historically compromised. With her own “Marshall Plan”, Merkel encouraged the neo-Titoist component of Vučić’s policy.

Though, of course in a neoliberal key and not a socialist one. And, bizarrely, with Vučić it is like it was with Tito - if you don’t like it in the country, go to Germany and work!

On the occasion of the chancellor’s retirement, the region is almost sewing disquiet like that old one - what will happen to Yugoslavia after Tito?

Vučić gladly refers to Tito when it comes to building infrastructure, or renewing festering foreign policy capital (the Non-Aligned Movement), so to him Chancellor Merkel (and Schroeder as a consultant) is what Willy Brandt and Helmut Schmidt were to Tito. Only these two chancellors saw authority in Tito, while Vučić is a cadet to Merkel. And that is certainly better than Milošević’s hot-headed arrogance. Although he boasts about sovereignty, Vučić stressed to the Russians that there will be no new 1948(!), alluding to Tito’s break with Stalin. Vučić also side-lines all his stories of sovereignty when faced with the emptiness of the Region after the Chancellor’s departure, so he asks himself without the slightest feebleness – who should we call tomorrow, who will calm us down tomorrow, reminding us of cases like the Serbo-Croatian customs war, when Merkel demonstrated her arbitrary position. Vučić would gladly reformulate the old slogan: And after Tito - Tito!

Among the many inconsistencies of the Serbian Progressive Party, one consistency stands out: on the evening of the 2012 election victory, Tomislav Nikolić said that Germany is Serbia’s greatest friend, and Vučić confirmed the same in his farewell to Merkel from Belgrade a few days ago.

And today that still isn’t easy to explain to Boris Tadić, who awaited and visibly angered Merkel in Belgrade in August 2011 with the Kosovo Guard. And that was also Tadic’s symbolic end.

Interview Exclusive

Foto Vladislav Mitić

W

e must start this conversation from the issue of the relationship between globalisation and fragmentation, from the destroying of the freedoms and principles that form the basis of international relations and the winners and losers of that process, because without that we can’t understand what’s actually happening to us - says economist Miodrag Zec at the start of this interview for CorD Magazine.

“When one observes the period of the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century, it is evident that the world is exposed to terribly large changes, both in a production sense and an integrative sense, but also in terms of politics and values. The collapse of the East, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the unification of Europe and the geostrategic shuffling of cards leading to the establishing of a new global order. What was until recently a bipolar world transformed into the domination of a single superpower, and that is the United States. The driving idea of that entire period is globalisation, with the aim of separating places of consumption and places of production.

The West relocated production to the East in the hope that it would thus ensure its eternal domination. That is the main idea of globalisation. And relations between countries began changing at the same time. The European Union became a new political entity; the East was totally on the defensive, with the Berlin Wall broken and Russia falling apart. Simultaneously, the transition to the new century saw the emergence of an entire array of technological changes, digitalisation and the rise of the software industry,” explains our interlocutor.

MIODRAG ZEC ECONOMIST

How did these changes reflect on us?

Now, in the 2020s, we are bearing witness to a great test of the sustainability of such changes.

They can only be tested when there is some kind of political, economic or social upheaval. Just as

We Live In A Dangerously

Imbalanced World From apparently simple questions, like the interest rate citizens should borrow at during this juncture when inflationary movements are uncertain, to the way the world is confronting the current crisis and changing, we discussed the major topics of this century with economist Miodrag Zec 8

October

CHANGES

With the migrant crisis, the financial crisis and the pandemic crisis, we have rocked an entire series of pillars of society that were considered eternal givens and entered a process of general fragmentation

we can only test a building when a tremor occurs.

We can talk about them being good, being this and that, and write reports, but we’ll see for ourselves which are good and which aren’t when a tremor hits.The three major upheavals that have occurred – the financial crisis that ran from 2008 to 2011, the migrant crisis and the pandemic – showed us that the globalised economic order of world political values did not provide satisfactory answers. We can explain why this happened, we can seek apologies, but I don’t think the system reacted in the way it was expected to, i.e., it reacted in such a way as to invalidate the entire series of its support pillars.

Let’s begin with this latest pandemic. The system based on the free movement of goods, people and capital has been broken. The conviction that the system is based on empathy and solidarity has been crushed. Meaning that the entire array of the fundamental values of a united Europe and world order have been destroyed. I think this is an incontrovertible fact.

If we take a look at the migrant crisis, it turned out that, as a superpower, the United States – unlike Rome, which expanded to urbanise the world and civilise it by organising production, irrigation and new varieties – has ruined everything it’s occupied, from Afghanistan to Syria, Iraq etc. This is simply one model of civilisation that has proven to be invalid. At the same time, if we compare the global power of ancient times, i.e., Rome, we see that Rome provided a new algorithm as it expanded. And when that was exhausted, Rome began to wither and eventually collapse, with the barbarians taking over. I think America, and with that I mean Pax Americana, is at the end of that model, because there’s simply nothing left... Now, in that globalisation that formed the basis for the distribution of political and economic power, and which had its roots in America, it turned out that those who were seemingly destined to play a losing role – namely the Chinese and peripheral peoples – are now the main winners of globalisation. Meaning that America, led by the particular interest of generating profits for individual companies, relinquished knowledge to those countries. They have conquered knowledge and now possess knowhow. And that’s why today’s China is a superpower and why it has the fastest growth.The complete opposite of what they thought would happen ended up happening. That they

AMBIGUITY

Borrowing through green bonds in order to solve environmental issues is good in principle, but it’s questionable whether we’re simultaneously witnessing numerous examples of taking risks with environmental disasters

DEVELOPMENT

Successful societies are those that provide everyone with the option of maximising their natural abilities and securing what they earn, but that isn’t the case here

will be eternally dependent on development, and now China dictates that development. So, instead of losing, China proves victorious and America becomes the loser. It has lost its production power and found itself unable to produce anything when the pandemic came. It can’t even produce masks.

The whole of Europe is also shaking. And what kind of new world is that leading us towards?

The problem of the workforce in Serbia is demography, emigrations and relations on the European labour market.

The system is such that we, as countries on the periphery of the EU, are like self-service shops where the excise goods that Europe needs are taken

When global and social processes are configured, it is very difficult to foresee all the effects of what will be and how it will be. With the migrant crisis, with the financial crisis, with the pandemic crisis, we have rocked an entire series of pillars of society that were considered eternal givens. And now we are entering a reconfiguration programme.

Instead of globalisation, fragmentation is on the scene. Instead of liberalism, we see protectionism.

The flow of goods is being cut off, the principle of the freedom of movement of goods is being imperilled. As a consequence, this will have ramifications for capital flows, then for the domain of labour.

And, thus, now there is a huge question-mark over the driving idea of the European Union – a Europe without borders. It was enough for there to be one pandemic, one seemingly minor factor, for the border of Europe to be re-established, to show that Europe is not a unified whole. For everyone to vaccinate their own population, for everyone to snatch vaccines from everyone else, for everyone to set some conditions for everyone else. One major political idea has not stood the test of time.

Moreover, Europe is losing its position in both the international economic system and the international political system, as it is participating less and less in the creation of world GDP and is being included in political issues less and less. Europe doesn’t have a single fast-growing company; it has no Alibaba, Amazon, Facebook or Google. What will become of Europe is a major question. The impotence of Europe’s growth has become obvious. Yet still, when we look at GDP growth around world and in Europe, it seems that things are quickly returning to better times.

Unlike in 2008, when fiscal stabilisation was the holy grail for all countries, this crisis has been approached in a completely different

October

9

Interview Exclusive

way, with significant infusions of money into the economy and directly to citizens. How far can such a policy be pursued generally?

The system has collapsed and now everyone is turning to the state and saying that the state will provide. That is being spoken about all over the world, but especially in Serbia. So, what can the state give that it hasn’t previously taken? The answer to this question is, in essence, a question: “what is money” and what purpose does money serve? Money is a medium of exchange that serves to ensure that we don’t trade with the help of bartering, but money is completely meaningless if there are no goods. We now have a situation where many think that the issue can be solved by issuing money from nothing. This disrupts the entire model of issuing money.

This pandemic has disrupted the basic principle of the European Central Bank. The ECB was conceived in such a way that it cannot lend to budgets, cannot buy government bonds and cannot cover deficits. And now we are heading in the totally opposite direction. The United States, in particular, is wallowing in debt, federal government bonds are being bought, the federal government is sharing that out, and when a growing amount of money encounters goods, inflation will normally occur. Despite the mass printing of money, we haven’t seen inflation for a long time. If a Serbian citizen asked you today whether to take out a loan with a fixed or variable

10

October

GDP growth in our country comes through construction, through roads, through buildings. It does not come through the export industry.

Hence, when the system grinds to a halt, you will have houses but nobody to buy them interest rate, what would you advise?

Inflation is everywhere, from the U.S. and elsewhere, but also in Europe, of four to five per cent. These rates are not dramatically high, i.e., they are proportional to the mass of money in circulation, and there can be various reasons for that. One is the fear of the future, so people hold back from buying, saving their spare money for rainy days and thus reducing inflationary pressure.

At the same time, inflation exists in strategic goods, in gas, oil and real estate. The excessive issuance of money also hits another basic principle – the so-called property portfolio of the population.

When this is disrupted, the middle class becomes the victim. The middle class has monetary savings and is not engaged in business. You can’t expect

me, as a university professor, to have a bakery, or some general to have a raft venue on the River Sava, to have a business. Quite simply, if you are in the middle class, you should have cash, you should have savings or shares in state-owned global companies. Here you can’t have shares in Telekom, rather our public policymakers direct you towards entrepreneurship. Everything boils down to petty business or mediating in state affairs. So, you organise an agency that gets a job, then you cancel the enterprise. That monetary policy has a whole range of consequences, independent of the consequences of this inflation. It defies logic.

On the other hand, if money is issued out of nothing, wealth cannot be acquired. Wealth can be acquired by producing something. In short, it disrupts the basic metabolism of society, its balance. The discount rate of the central bank is a basic thing that must be in balance. That is the primary interest rate, which is followed by the interest rate of commercial banks and then the profit rate. These three amounts define whether the system is normal. The interest rate on savings now stands at zero or is negative, profit rates are on the rise, while the discount rate is at zero. This means that you’re sending me the wrong signals, instead of curing diseases. When you have money in your bank account, your income is zero. When you borrow from a bank, the approved overdraft is 29%, while the unapproved overdraft is 39%.

These are pathological differences. So, what will happen to citizens? If they try to borrow at a fixed interest rate – they can’t. There is interest that is variable, and that which is still variable is LIBOR. And LIBOR now stands at zero, while it could be 4% or more etc. As such, I would advise them to borrow at a fixed interest rate now, because that will never be available again, but it is unlikely that anyone will offer them that option today. Part of the money from borrowing in Serbia is spent on the building of infrastructure, and it will soon also be spent on energy efficiency projects. How well-directed is this borrowing, considering that it is officially interpreted as propelling our GDP forward with great force?

When you finance something out of debt, a question arises as to how some have a surplus to lend and some do not. From whom do we borrow? From those who are able to create money by themselves, in dollars and euros. They have the right to lend the world’s money, while we do not.

If you borrow money and make something, as we are doing, we will be confronted by the following question: can something that we’ve made repay the loans we took? That is the basic question. The current government has, through the machinery of propaganda, created a cult of GDP growth.

However, this is a more complex matter than it

seems. Firstly, it is difficult to manage. Growth isn’t the only problem here; the structure of GDP is also a problem. The problem is what is growing?

For example, if you want to strengthen yourself as a person, you eat more, invest more. Will you end up gaining a bigger belly or muscles? According to the same analogy, GDP grows when you build a house, but what will happen if you can’t rent out that house? You would be better off not building it. GDP growth in our country comes through construction, through roads, through buildings.

It does not come through the export industry.

Hence, when the system grinds to a halt, you will have houses but nobody to buy them. Serbia and parts of Russia have the worst ratio between price per square metre and rent. If you are building apartments, you must have a balance between the price per square metre and rental rates, so you can repay the debt in seven or ten years. And that’s not the case here.

The people are fleeing from cash, avoiding money, fearing that money will lose its value completely. They’re being told as much by the media, by politicians, while the people go from one extreme to another, and to one bad portfolio.

What will happen? How much were apartments worth in Detroit when General Motors fell? $100, $200? The economy is much more complex. It is a trivial science, but in essence is much more complex - like metabolism, like the way all life is complex. By treating cholesterol, you reduce it to zero – those are interest rates – and then you die.

That’s because you also have to have cholesterol.

If we don’t have any blood sugar, we die. If we have too much blood sugar, we also die. The issue is maintaining an equilibrium, and the system is much more complex than it seems to policymakers, to politicians who like easily promised speed. Do they know what’s best? If no one uses the roads, and the loans arrive, the big question is whether it makes sense to build them, whether we have the capacity. What’s the good in us having roads if we have nothing to transport on them? What are we going to drive at 300 kph and whose goods? Maybe Chinese goods to Thessaloniki and Budapest. And we have enough goods for a small van. We don’t have enough for trains. The question is whether we needed to be building high-speed railways for that?

The environment, on the other hand, is terribly important. That’s not in dispute. But you take money for an environmental issue, which is good, while at the same time conducting an entire series of devastations that herald an environmental catastrophe. It’s important for the state to have a system that identifies a problem without error and solves it. Environmental issues are solved by passing a simple law on environmental protection.

And that is for every city in Serbia and Europe to have to take its drinking water from a source downstream.

period where the government is using levers (economic) to buy votes?

We have to return to the basic principles of organising society that we have now side-lined. And those relate to whether the society respects individual freedoms: is it liberal; does it support individualism or collectivism; an open or closed economy, solidarity?

What purpose does the state serve? It is terribly important for society to pose the question of its foundations The majority of economists praised the major packages of measures aimed at helping the economy and citizens during the previous period, even at the cost of them being non-selective. Do you see a logical continuation of these measures in the latest promises of new benefits, or are we simply in a classic pre-election

Our state, which boasts of having given to everyone, should instead correct something that no one has so far corrected. No country in Europe has stolen pensions from one section of pensioners.

And this doesn’t just represent a violation of rights, but rather a message to the middle class that they have no place here. It is normal that people will not pay into their pension fund now, because the whole system is based on the assumption that we will hijack something from our common coffers. According to official statistics, earnings are increasingly improving in Serbia. Is it true that Serbia has ceased to be a country of cheap labour? What has happened to our labour market?

Serbia has ceased to be a country of cheap labour for some workers who’ve relocated abroad. There has been no increase in the salaries of doctors, educators and employees in standard occupations in Serbia.The salaries of welders increased, because they all went to Germany. And here at home we have yet to confront the problem of more people leaving the system than entering it, and that problem will become insoluble.

At the same time, we must ask ourselves whether this society encourages creativity and innovation, a regular system of acquisition or not? Does it offer options and does it offer stability? Successful societies provide everyone with the option of maximising their natural abilities and securing what they earn, but that isn’t the case here.

October

11

Interview

FRANÇOISE JACOB / UN RESIDENT COORDINATOR IN SERBIA

Let’s Turn

Green Together Serbia, with eight million educated and connected people, is the perfect size to trailblaze such a transformation. It is no longer a question of whether the country will pursue a green agenda, but how and how fast it will do so. The UN will support the country in implementing its ambitions for carbon reduction and environmental restauration

12

October

TRANSFORMATION

The green agenda requires new skills, new ways of living and new ideas, many of which have not yet been born. This is a powerful and exciting agenda that can bring the best out of citizens

I

t was stated widely in 2020 that the COVID-19 pandemic could lead to decades of hard-won progress being rolled back. One year on, UN Resident Coordinator in Serbia Françoise Jacob offers a more nuanced view: “We learnt a lot in the past 20 months, including that there are limits to predictions! A pandemic like COVID-19, which extends far beyond the health challenge, keeps revealing new challenges, with far reaching consequences that we cannot properly assess and address until we face them, or even afterwards!”

The crisis laid bare glaring inequalities and vulnerabilities around the world. Just on the health dimension, access to, and the availability of, adequate healthcare and vaccination varied greatly between wealthy countries, countries with a reliable healthcare network like Serbia, and countries that had neither cash power nor proper health services. And within countries, or between countries of a similar economic level, the success and impact of the response fluctuated significantly, due to levels of preparedness, political connections, social behaviours, the reactions of leaders, institutions and communities, says Jacob.

Economic impacts have also differed between countries that were able to inject enormous subsidies for workers and the private sector and those that were not, notes our interlocutor. “The long-term impact of such subsidies on national economies is yet to be fully assessed. In Serbia, the economy dipped by a mere 1.5% in 2020, and has almost fully rebounded. A more granular look shows that marginalised communities suffered more, in terms of access to their jobs, to health, continuity of education and at-risk groups, such as people in care institutions, people with disabilities and others, have faced more economic, physical and emotional difficulties.”

On the positive side, the crisis brought renewed interest in upscaling efforts to address

INNOVATION

SUSTAINABILITY

structural inequalities, underlines Jacob. “In Serbia, this has translated into fast-tracking the revision and adoption of several laws and strategies related to social protection and reshaping social dialogue between the state and citizens through the ministry of human rights and civil society. We also witnessed an extraordinary expansion of innovative solutions to deal with the new world created by the pandemic, as well as multiple demonstrations of solidarity. Within the space one year, as humankind, we managed to produce and

experiences have accumulated or merged with other sources of public anxiety, such as immigration and climate change, warns the UN Resident Coordinator in Serbia. “States and civil society need to address these new spins urgently. As the UN, we promote integrity in public information from all sides – including through and by the media – and we aim to be a source of reliable data and will continue to convene and provide bridging platforms between constituencies and parties.”

With the support of the UN, Serbia will focus on food safety, sustainable food production and inclusive value chains triggered by the acceleration of innovation, both in terms of knowledge and access

If I had to pick one lesson from the pandemic period, it would be our ability to address unexpected situations quickly and coherently, and communicating effectively proved almost as important as the solutions selected.

Managing uncertainties, with calmness and empathy, has become a critical life skill! distribute seven vaccines and have to date administered 5/6 billion doses. The accelerated progress in multiple areas once again demonstrates humans’ extreme capacity to adapt to aggravating circumstances and rebound.”

These successes have, however, been shrouded by suffering and violence, multiple contestations, a form of war on science and the explosion of misinformation on all types of media. The COVID-19 collateral

SDGs should become an informal toolbox for children at school to explore the many dimensions of life and discover the world around them in a holistic way

Climate Change, Security and Multilateralism are tightly intertwined. How does this translate in Serbia?

For a while, Western countries might have had a false sense of security that climate change was ultimately going to remain a developing world problem. We now fully understand that the threat is both global and local. We are at a point where climate change means systemic change, and whether the course of our future is either more resilient or more chaotic will depend on what we plan today. Action on climate will impact our livelihoods and become the main engine of green growth for the 21st century.

Serbia, with eight million educated and connected people, has the perfect size to trailblaze such a transformation. It is no longer a question of whether the country will pursue a green agenda, but how and how fast it will do so. There will be difficult trade-offs, which we will need to address with realistic scenarios, optimised resources, comprehensive plans, consultations and communication. These last three points are important to ensure that Serbian society supports and shapes the change. The green agenda requires new skills, new ways of living and new ideas, many of which have not yet been born. This is actually a powerful and exciting agenda that can bring the best out of citizens and the youth, provided we manage it meaningfully, with ambition, and as a vehicle

October

13

Interview

FRANÇOISE JACOB / UN RESIDENT COORDINATOR IN SERBIA

for progress, inclusiveness and wealth creation.

Young people have told us in multiple forums that they want to make climate action part of their identity as shapers and bearers of the future, focus on solutions and impacts, and depoliticise the agenda. A powerful message to consider!

The UN will support the country in implementing its ambitions for carbon reduction and environmental restauration. We want to match the rhetoric with action on how we can design, build, produce, educate and legislate into a new future. The Green Agenda is also about ensuring that the most vulnerable groups benefit from the positive impacts of changes.

While we start developing new technologies and financing schemes, we can carve out options for the poorer neighbourhoods, those who may lose jobs in energy transition, those with no skills. This is another important duty for both state and non-state actors.

I believe that we need more of this “working and deliver together” – the local version of multilateralism - with greater cohesion, collaboration, commitment and transparency, whether we’re talking about implementation of international treaties, coordination of investment schemes in the country with effective governance and transparent procurement, cooperation around money-laundering and illicit financial flows, or regional trade initiatives. And over the past few years we’ve seen how citizens will pick up on international commitments when states withdraw or fail! The combined impacts of pollution and extreme weather events are happening at an increasing pace. How successful is Serbia in managing risks and disasters?

The Sendai Framework, as the global blueprint adopted at the UN World Conference in Japan in 2015, is an attempt by the international community to respond to climate and other challenges confronting the modern world, with a more responsible attitude towards natural resources and the social environment, and a much more sophisticated approach to prevention, risk identification and mitigation.

Serbia was an early adopter and by 2018 had developed its Law on Disaster Risk Reduction and Emergency Management, with support from the UN. The legislative framework is solid,

14

October

I believe that we need more of “working and deliver together” – the local version of multilateralism - with greater cohesion, collaboration, commitment and transparency operationalised through a national disaster management plan and set of institutions. The country has amply demonstrated its capacity to manage all types of disasters, such as the migration crisis in 2015 and beyond and, of course, the recent COVID-19 pandemic.

When it comes to disasters related to natural events, more remains to be done at a

municipal level – through planning budgeting tools and enhanced capacities. Most importantly, the multiple legislative and regulatory frameworks – including those of an environmental nature – need to be understood, applied, monitored and effectively enforced. This is probably where the biggest gaps remain, and where we need dedicated efforts to strengthen and expand the capacities and independence of monitoring bodies, along with litigation capacities. This is critical at a time when Serbia benefits from increased private and public investments in large infrastructure schemes, real estate developments, transport and more.

What we build now will impact citizens for the next 50 years. The current environmental “uprising” very much relates to the aforementioned. When illegal dumpsites are opened beside the backwaters of the Danube or coal investments are expanded, we are laying the foundations for more disasters and ignoring the spirit and commitments of the laws.

To close this chapter, I would also like to point out the need for the country to retain its skilled workforce, as a key enabler of risk mitigation. We saw during the initial phase of COVID-19 how critical shortages of medical workers could influence the response. Such shortages can happen in other sectors that are essential to maintain a strong education system, key economic areas, and prevention or response to multiple disasters. While market forces will continue to prevail and make other countries attractive for Serbia’s skilled labour, this is an issue where we need to work together better, so that national incentives can balance multiple pull factors from neighbouring countries. The UN Food Systems Summit 2021 will launch new actions to transform the way the world produces and consumes food. What are the key actions relevant for Serbia?

The summit will be convened by the UN Secretary General at the end of September 2021.

It will present key opportunities to set up a new direction for food systems that respect planetary boundaries, focus on healthy diets and provide sustainable livelihoods for farmers.

The summit is people-centred, which brings a different dimension to the usual discussions around agriculture and food distribution, which

are often very technical in content. Inclusivity, sustainability, multi-stakeholder partnership and ownership were at the core of national debates in Serbia. We also understand that, in their current design, food systems have large and often damaging impacts on biodiversity loss, pollution and climate change. At the same time, food systems bear the brunt of climate change, affecting crop yield, rainfall patterns etc. We need to link the food system agenda with the enormous efforts that the country has exerted to push a deep transformation of the national economic system to one that delivers for the people, the planet and prosperity.

Serbia, through the Ministry of Agriculture and with UN support, has actively prepared its contributions to the summit and will issue a National Pathway for Sustainable Food Systems. Serbian agriculture is a vibrant sector that represents 14% of the country’s employment and 7.5% of GDP. It has shown incredible resilience to the COVID crisis. Yet, rural areas are lagging behind with a level of poverty that’s twice as high as urban areas, a low level of protection for its workers and widespread exclusion from opportunities.

Priorities for action in Serbia will focus on food safety, sustainable food production and inclusive value chains, the reduction of food loss and food waste, as well as the promotion of decent and diversified livelihoods. We will see an acceleration of innovation, both in terms of knowledge and access. The whole area of infrastructure for rural development needs to be revisited: for example, financing new and adapted irrigation schemes, with increased water use efficiency, will be critical adaptation measures to climate change. On the soft side, by involving citizens and consumers more directly, we want to promote healthier and sustainable lifestyles. Food systems will be an essential part of the Green Transformation! The UN75 research has shown that 60% of the citizens of Serbia are not aware of the SDGs. How can they be promoted?

The SDGs are a fantastic framework to centre the development agenda around people.

While it takes time for each country and each citizen to fully appreciate their transformative power, I was pleased to engage in recent

When illegal dumpsites are opened beside the backwaters of the Danube or coal investments are expanded, we are laying the foundations for more disasters and ignoring the spirit and commitments of the laws. The current environmental “uprising” very much relates to this social discussions led by the Minister of Human Rights, where members of parliament, mayors, state representatives and civil society are fluently debating various SDGs. The SDGs are powerful indicators when we own them, beyond using them as statistics, when we understand what they mean to our daily lives. The SDGs should become an informal toolbox for children at school to explore the many dimensions of life and discover the world around them in a holistic

way. In the context of the immense green transformation that is ahead of us, we can trigger and facilitate more dialogue within and between communities, institutions, citizens: the SDGs provide a flexible platform for debate and action, where everyone can see themselves as an agent of change, beyond any polarised political agenda.

As a conclusion: we have a shared and urgent responsibility – between people, civil society, the private sector and state institutions – to work better together, to broker honest deals that benefit all. We must co-create this new social contract together and cultivate a culture of dialogue and openness, a culture of compromise rather than divisive rhetoric, a culture of empathy rather than apathy. We need to shift to a positive, informed narrative that harnesses the energy of all generations and focuses on opportunities, rather than continuously using threats to generate fear and resistance to change. We need to understand and constantly appreciate the fine line between individual rights and collective rights, understand and agree on the necessity and power of individual responsibility towards the preservation and augmentation of common goods for the benefit of all, including future generations. That is at the core of Agenda 2030!

October

15

GLOBAL DIARY

“Voters have spoken very clearly. They strengthened three parties-the Social Democrats, the Greens and the Free Democrats-so this is the visible mandate the citizens of this country have given: these three parties should lead the next government” – OLAF SCHOLZ, CURRENT CANDIDATE FOR CHANCELLOR OF GERMANY

CELEBRATIONS ERUPT IN NORWAY AS COVID RESTRICTIONS END The Norwegian government announced that most of the remaining coronavirus restrictions would be scrapped and that life in the nation of 5.3 million would return to normal. The announcement by outgoing Prime Minister Erna Solberg to drop coronavirus restrictions took many Norwegians by surprise and led to celebrations in the capital, Oslo, and elsewhere in the country.

“It has been 561 days since we introduced the toughest measures in Norway in peacetime,” Solberg said at a news conference. “Now the time has come to return to a normal daily life.”

ISRAELI PM DENOUNCES IRAN, IGNORES PALESTINIANS IN UN SPEECH Israel’s new prime minister Naftali Bennett appealed to the international community to stand together against Iran, accusing Tehran of marching toward the development of a nuclear weapon and threatening to act alone

if the world does not take action.

In his maiden speech to the United Nations General Assembly, Israeli’s PM made no mention of Israel’s decades-long conflict with the Palestinians and instead sought to portray Iran as a menace to global security. “Iran’s nuclear program has hit a watershed moment, and so has our tolerance,” he said. “Words do not stop centrifuges from spinning.”

TWO WOMEN, POLITICAL OPPOSITES, VYING IN RACE FOR JAPAN PM The inclusion of two women among the four candidates vying to become the next prime minister seems like a big step forward for Japan’s notoriously sexist politics. But their fate is in the hands of a conservative, mostly male governing party — and the leading female candidate has been criticized by observers for her rightwing gender policies. Sanae Takaichi and Seiko Noda are the first women in 13 years seeking the leadership of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party in an election Wednesday. The winner is certain to become the next prime minister because of a parliamentary majority held by the LDP and its coalition partner. While both are LDP members, they are political opposites in many ways. The ultraconservative Takaichi advocates a kind of paternalistic nationalism and a stronger military, while the liberal-leaning, pacifist Noda supports women’s advancement and sexual diversity.

16

October

“In some election campaigns you get the impression that it’s perhaps about this or that topic, but that in the end it perhaps doesn’t really matter who governs Germany” – ANGELA MERKEL, SECOND-LONGEST SERVING CHANCELLOR IN GERMAN HISTORY

Photo: Reuters

GERMAN ELECTIONS: CENTRELEFT CLAIM VICTORY OVER MERKEL’S PARTY The center-left Social Democrats have won the biggest share of the vote in Germany’s national election, beating outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel’s centerright Union bloc in a closely fought race. Election officials said that a count of all 299 constituencies showed the Social Democrats won 25.9% of the vote, ahead of 24.1% for the Union bloc. The environmentalist Greens came third with 14.8% followed by the pro-business Free Democrats with 11.5%.

The two parties have already signaled that they are willing to discuss forging a three-way alliance with either of their two bigger rivals to form a government.

The far-right Alternative for Germany came fourth in vote with 10.3%, while the Left party took 4.9%.

STRONG EARTHQUAKE HITS GREEK ISLAND OF CRETE A strong, prolonged earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of at least 5.8 struck the Greek island of Crete, killing one person and injuring 20, while damaging homes and churches and causing

rock slides near the country’s fourth-largest city. The quake sent people fleeing into the streets in the city of Heraklion, and schools were evacuated.

“The earthquake was strong and was long in duration,” Heraklion mayor Vassilis Lambrinos told private Antenna television.

Hospital officials said 20 people had been treated for injuries, ten of them receiving first aid.

UN CHIEF WARNS CHINA AND U.S. TO AVOID COLD WAR

Source: AP

Warning of a potential new Cold War, the head of the United Nations implored China and the United States to repair their “completely dysfunctional” relationship before problems between the two large and deeply influential countries spill over even further into the rest of the planet. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres spoke to The Associated Press this weekend ahead of this week’s annual United Nations gathering of world leaders — a convening blemished by COVID, climate concerns and contentiousness across the planet. Guterres said the world’s two major economic powers should be cooperating on climate and negotiating more robustly on trade and technology even given persisting political fissures about human rights, economics, online security and sovereignty in the South China Sea.

October

17

Feature

Biden’s Collaborative Containment Strategy While some in China have interpreted US President Joe Biden’s recent overture to Chinese President Xi Jinping as a sign of American weakness, nothing could be further from the truth. In the intervening weeks, the administration has shown that it is serious about reimagining and rebuilding US foreign policy in the Indo-Pacific region

F

ollowing the news that U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping talked by phone on 9th September, there has been much speculation about what the two discussed. Biden has denied a report that Xi turned down a proposed summit, and China’s government spokesman has said only that both sides “agreed to maintain regular contact through various means.”

Still, it is clear that the Biden administration is seeking a relationship that manages, if not resolves, areas of divergence, while enabling coordination or even cooperation in areas of common interest. But the Chinese appear determined to link any such cooperation to U.S. concessions. According to Chinese sources, Xi used the call to repeat the blunt conditionality that U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry encountered during his recent visit to China: America cannot expect cooperation from China unless it “respects China’s core interests.”

“Core interests” is code for an expanding array of absolutist Chinese claims over Taiwan and the South China Sea, and includes its repression of Uyghurs in Xinjiang, Buddhists in Tibet, and dissidents in Hong Kong. China is also insisting that the United States unilaterally withdraw trade sanctions, roll back export restrictions, and stand down on enforcement actions against alleged Chinese state-sponsored cybertheft and other illicit strategies to obtain US intellectual property and personal information.

The Chinese are making no secret of their disappointment with the Biden administration. Following the 2020 presidential election, Chinese leaders had high hopes that Biden would reverse Donald Trump’s policies and provide China with

18

October

more space and time to advance its economic and foreign-policy agenda. Those hopes were dashed by a combination of tough US rhetoric, testy meetings, firm pushback on key issues, and Biden’s decision to leave tariffs in place while a review of U.S. China policy grinds on. The souring of Chinese sentiment is as prominent as the country’s smug conviction that its star is rising as the West’s declines.

Nonetheless, Biden was right to initiate a call and to try to nudge Xi toward an in-person meeting. Relations have deteriorated to the point that the world’s two leading powers have essentially no dependable direct channels of official communication. Moreover, because Xi’s consolidation of political power seems to have reduced even senior Chinese officials to the status of cheerleaders, talking to anyone other than Xi is unlikely to produce results.

While Xi may or may not have rejected a summit, several factors make such an event unlikely any time before next fall. That is when the Communist Party of China will hold its 20th Congress, and when the US will hold its midterm elections. The CPC Congress will be a make-or-break moment for Xi, who is determined to leave the meeting with another term and Mao-like status. And Xi has a deep interest in the outcome of the US congressional election, which will either boost or undermine Biden’s position. But the two most powerful deterrents are a pair of Chinese phobias: the risk to the leader’s health from COVID-19; and the risk of embarrassment from a high-stakes summit that could go badly.

Some in China are claiming that Biden’s overture to Xi has exposed America’s weakness, on the theory that the U.S. needs China more than vice versa.

This jingoistic line fits with a broader pattern of China using everything from market access to COVID-19 vaccines to gain leverage over other countries.

But it is a mistake to see the U.S. as the anemic supplicant. The Biden administration was merely opening an important channel of communication, not offering any of the substantial unilateral concessions that China’s “wolf warriors” (foreign-policy hawks) seem to expect. Since Biden’s call with Xi, his administration has resumed its assertive diplomacy with partners in both Europe and the Indo-Pacific.

For example, a week after the call, Biden announced AUKUS, a new trilateral security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom and the U.S. French pique aside, Biden went well beyond mere talk of deeper strategic alignment by announcing the decision to share US nuclear-submarine technology with Australia.

Moreover, Biden hosted the first in-person meeting of the leaders of the so-called Quad (the U.S., India, Japan, and Australia) on 29th September, the U.S. will host the first meeting of the cabinet-level Trade and Technology Council, launched at the U.S.-EU Summit in June. These meetings not only make good on Biden’s pledge to work with allies and partners in creative new ways; they also advance the twin goals of enhancing collective security and delivering concrete benefits to others.

The Quad summit will probably be even more fruitful than the virtual one in March, when the group launched a major COVID-19 vaccine distribution effort in Southeast Asia (though this was later hampered by the

severe outbreak in India). The four countries have been developing concrete strategies for collaboration in multiple domains, building on their combined prowess in science, technology, education, transportation, and a host of other sectors important to the region.

The Chinese, no surprise, have denounced the Quad meeting and declared it “doomed to fail.” But the Quad has already come a long way from the clumsy, crude anti-China rhetoric of the Trump years. Its potency now stems from a new organizing principle focused on the collaborative provision of regional and global goods. The Biden team seems to be reimagining the arrangement as a vehicle for winning over other countries by helping them in ways China will not or cannot.

This is a smart strategy for dealing with Asian countries that are seeking to navigate between China and the West without getting caught in the crossfire. The new approach to the Quad, combined with Biden’s outreach to Xi, represents a powerful rebuttal to China’s bid to cast itself as the aggrieved victim of an unjustly hostile America.

Chasing China would not have yielded a summit – certainly not one that made meaningful progress. But forging an international network of constructive collaboration on issues of real interest to countries in the IndoPacific region is valuable in its own right. Biden is both reminding the region that China is not the only game in town and setting the stage for more balanced and overdue bilateral engagement.

By Daniel Russel, Project Syndicate

October

19

Focus

ECONOMIC MIGHT AND ELECTION RESULTS

Everything Still Revolves

Around Freedom Although money buys lots of things and the ruling party uses it to silence the media and bind the fate of citizens to a single political option, it may not be enough to silence voices of discontentment. Some analysts believe that even a small sip of freedom for institutions and the media could strip bare this “paper tiger”. Others warn that some resort to force in the case that money cannot secure the buying of votes

I

s the concentration of economic might in the hands of the ruling party a greater obstacle to the opposition than the lack of democratic dialogue and media freedom? We discussed this with economists and political analysts. They turned to several related questions in their answers: how does such a concentration of economic power, which directs citizens and their wellbeing towards only one party and one political figure, impact on the party-citizen relationship?

20

October

Will Belgrade’s voters be promised more than everyone else in Serbia because the government in Belgrade is (perhaps) shakier? Does the potential turnout of the opposition in the elections “expand the range” of the ruling party’s campaign when it comes to promised economic “gifts” for citizens? How much does this make the elections “more expensive” over the long run for citizens who will ultimately have to finance those promises? Here are the thoughts of our interlocutors.

CVIJETIN MILIVOJEVIĆ POLITICAL SCIENTIST

FREEDOM IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN MONEY ALONGSIDE THE CONCENTRATION OF ECONOMIC LEVERS OF POWER IN THE HANDS OF THE SERBIAN PROGRESSIVE PARTY, THE PROPAGANDA OCCUPATION AMONG THE MOST INFLUENTIAL MEDIA OUTLETS IS EQUALLY IMPORTANT, AS IS THE UNCONSTITUTIONAL USURPING OF CONSTITUTIONAL AND LEGAL POWERS BY VUČIĆ AND HIS PARTY. JUST A FEW MONTHS OF A FREE JUDICIARY, COURTS AND PROSECUTION WOULD STRIP BARE THIS “ECONOMIC PAPER TIGER” COMPLETELY

S

erbia was, unfortunately, a continuous “one-party state” from 1945 and the violent repealing of political pluralism until the reintroduction of the multi-party system in 1990. However, even after that, every ruling party attempted to concentrate all economic levers in its own hands during the period of its mandate in power. When it comes to the economic sphere, the maxim “The State - that’s me/us” has related to every government in Serbia from 1945 until 2021. This fact is important but not decisive in Serbia having not had normal, democratic, fair and equal conditions for all participants in election races since the 2017 transition of Aleksandar Vučić to the – constitutionally ceremonial but, in his political derivation, autocratically dominant – position of President of the Republic. Alongside the concentration of economic levers of power in the hands of the Serbian Progressive Party, the propaganda occupation among the most influential WHY DO THEY LIE AND PROMISE BELGRADERS SO media outlets is equally important, as is the unconstitutional usurpMUCH? BECAUSE SNS HAS ABSOLUTE POWER IN ing of constitutional and legal powers by Vučić and his party.

It is tragicomic that the Serbian Progressive Party has, as a BELGRADE WITH THE SUPPORT OF LESS THAN A percentage of the population, more members than the Communist QUARTER OF THE TOTAL NUMBER OF CITIZENS! Party of China, and viewed numerically, in real numbers, more than Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats in Germany, a country that has a population 11 times higher than Serbia’s. Moreover, the SNS has no ideology, it is a “catch all” party of people who join it with the aim of realising their small personal interests. They join the party to gain employment for themselves or their family members, to achieve some of their own small economic interests, because they’ve recognised that without the “green light” of that party is it tough to be able do business, work or earn anything.

Belgrade voters will be promised more than everyone else in Serbia. We are already seeing that, even though the elections are not even on the horizon yet. SNS is already conducting its functionary campaign in Belgrade, despite Serbian election laws only permitting the conducting of party propaganda campaigns from the moment elections are announced until the day those elections are held. And we are already seeing Belgraders being “offered”, in exchange for voting for SNS, the construction of a metro rail system, sewers for the settlements on the left bank of the Danube, the developing of several other Belgrade Waterfront-style complexes, the construction of another national stadium, maximum social benefits for pensioners and all vulnerable sections of the population, higher salaries and pensions, the construction of various gondola lifts and even ski centres on the territory of the city of Belgrade. Why do they lie and promise Belgraders so much? Because less than half of all voters participated in the previous elections in Belgrade, and only around 40 per cent of those who turned out voted for SNS, which means that SNS has absolute power in Belgrade with the support of less than a quarter of the total number of citizens!

It is tough to say whether SNS could promise citizens even more than it has already. I think that just a few months of a free judiciary, courts and prosecution would strip bare this “economic paper tiger” completely and destroy the “Potemkin village” of Belgrade.

When it comes to the country’s indebtedness, here one person is asked about everything, here – instead of the Government, as it is written in the Constitution – that is the President of the Republic (who, according to the Constitution, has only eight protocol duties!), and only he really knows the true level of indebtedness of Serbia over the almost decade-long period of his rule.

So, one election more or less doesn’t mean much a lot in terms of that additional indebtedness.

October

21

Focus

ECONOMIC MIGHT AND ELECTION RESULTS

Photo: Zoran Loncarevic

DANICA POPOVIĆ

PROFESSOR OF THE BELGRADE FACULTY OF ECONOMICS

WE WILL PAY, OF COURSE MEDIA FREEDOM IS THE FIRST AND MOST VISIBLE CONFIRMATION OF WHETHER OR NOT DEMOCRACY IS FUNCTIONING. MONEY IS, OF COURSE, BEHIND THAT, AND IT IS CLEAR THAT THEREIN LIES AN EXPLANATION FOR THE SILENCE, CONCEALING OF TRUTHS AND LIES OF THE STATE MEDIA. AND I ACTUALLY SEE NO ROOM FOR DIALOGUE IN THAT

D

oes the concentrating of economic levers in the hands of SNS represent a greater obstacle to the participation of opposition parties in the elections than the lack of dialogue and media freedom? Instead of answering your question, I will offer the BBC newsroom’s response to Margaret Thatcher’s angry statement made during the Falklands War that the BBC was threatening the reputation of her government. The answer that arrived from the BBC was as follows – Respected Madam, the BBC’s reputation is greater than the reputation of any British government, ever! And here is the answer to your question: media freedom is the first and most visible confirmation of whether or not democracy is functioning. The money is, of course, behind that, and it is clear that therein lies an explanation for the silence, concealing of truths and lies of the state media. And I actually see no room for dialogue in that.

If you care about anything in social life, that will only be solved for you by Vučić’s party and his partners - Dačić, Palma, and whoever else is with them… Let’s look at the latest news THE KEY SOURCE OF MONEY FOR THE OPPOSIfrom yesterday about how and where the children or close TION SHOULD COME FROM THE EU, BUT THIS relatives of members of the Crisis Staff are employed, and it will soon become clear to us where the benefits are and how CHANNEL IS DRYING UP BECAUSE THE SNS Serbia functions. And it will then be clear to us that no one will LEADER IS DOING EVERYTHING TO SERVE EVERY ever depart from the Crisis Staff because, for God’s sake, it WISH OF THE EU: HE’S JUST CONFIRMED TO ANdoesn’t pay to do so! And so on and so forth…

When it comes to Belgrade’s voters and the promises given GELA MERKEL THAT HE WILL MAKE SERBIA INTO to them, it should be stated here that we’re talking about A NEW RIO TINTO cosmetic repairs - wherever the fight is seen the most, that’s where the ointment is placed, in the form of money, privileges and positions in the media, university colleges or wherever else needed. Wouldn’t you do the same if you were in their place?

When it comes to the control of resources, the opposition is not without money, but much more is always required for a serious campaign. Unfortunately, the key source of money should come from the EU, but this channel is drying up because the SNS leader is doing everything to serve every wish of the EU: he’s just confirmed to Angela Merkel that he will make Serbia into a new Rio Tinto, deliver Kosovo when the time comes etc. So, let’s think about it: who, then, would want the government in Serbia to change? Those who would like that have long since been pacified, so the situation in Serbia is almost ideal for the EU and SNS. If we wonder about the parties in power using money for pre-election purposes, we must not get carried away with the idea that we are in any unique in that sense. Even in functional democracies, the authorities attempt to bribe citizens prior to elections. They also often succeed, and then the citizens pay for that. And we will pay for that, of course.

22

October

VLADIMIR GLIGOROV

ECONOMIST AND POLITICAL SCIENTIST

A HAND IN THE BUDGET REPLACES FORCE THE ADVANTAGE THAT THOSE IN POWER HAVE – PRIMARILY THE BUDGET AND PROPAGANDA – SHOULD PREVAIL OVER POLITICAL FAILURES AND HITHERTO UNPRECEDENTED CORRUPTION. THAT IS A REPLACEMENT FOR HARSHER METHODS OF STEALING ELECTIONS BY FORCE AND TRICKERY. IT IS BETTER IF A VOTE CAN BE BOUGHT THAN IF IT HAS TO BE EXTORTED OR FABRICATED

N

egotiations are being held on electoral conditions to ensure that the government doesn’t have the advantages that it has precisely because it holds power. An obvious example is public media channels like television. The government usually has multiple ways that it can use state television as a means of its own propaganda. The same can be said of public companies. And the whole public sector. That’s because careers and income and other opportunities depend on the will of those in power. Ahead of next April’s general elections, these sources of support have already been secured by the authorities, although salary increases and promises of new investments can be expected in order to secure votes in the elections.

The people who are in power have an advantage over the opposition in the fact that, while the opposition can make promises, the authorities can rely on their control of the national budget.

PROBLEMS ARE INCREASINGLY BEING SOLVED BY And can share out the money, as they also do. That is neither spe- PROMISES RATHER THAN SUCCESSES, SO IT CANcific to Serbia nor to the current government. The difference lies NOT BE EXCLUDED THAT IT WILL BE NECESSARY in the fact that the ruling parties are now preparing for elections TO RELY ON HARSHER METHODS – OF FORCE in which the electorate should vote for or against one person, for or against the leader, and thus for or against electoral autocracy.

AND THEFT – TO SECURE THE DESIRED OUTCOME The basic message is that everything – salaries, pensions, jobs, roads, utilities, hospitals and schools, security in every sense – depends on one man and his connections around the world, both political and business.

The advantage that those in power have – primarily the budget and propaganda – should prevail over political failures and hitherto unprecedented corruption. That is a replacement for harsher methods of stealing elections by force and trickery. It is better if a vote can be bought than if it has to be extorted or fabricated. This is also because it isn’t a matter of merely winning these elections, but rather of securing the enduring omnipotence of one man and his party.

In a certain sense, the price is increasing primarily because the state of public healthcare is deteriorating significantly, with the prospect of things looking even worse during the time of the elections. And then also because there is an increasing number of scandals of all kinds, which are mainly related to the business interests of those in power. Under such circumstances, there is ordinarily a purge of the party, which is actually being announced.

And finally, help is coming in the form of escalating conflicts and the risk of insecurity at the borders and around the neighbourhood. Mobilization around the leader would certainly be useful, both for the election turnout and for the readiness to accept the election results however they’re achieved.

As far as can be seen, money will be handed out, salaries and pensions will increase, patriotism will be sought and the opposition will be accused of treason. It is calculated that this should be enough to ensure the desired outcome. However, given that public health risks are not abating and problems are increasingly being solved by promises rather than successes, it cannot be excluded that it will be necessary to rely on harsher methods – of force and theft – to secure the desired outcome.

October

23

Geopolitics

Urging An End To Border Tensions

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen used her latest tour of the Balkans to call for an easing of tensions between Kosovo and Serbia, with Belgrade and Pristina having been engaged in a bitter border dispute over vehicle license plates

I

t was late on 29th September that reports emerged from the Kosovo side claiming that a draft agreement had been reached to bring to an end the clash, but no immediate confirmation of such an agreement has been forthcoming from Serbia.

“I must say I am very concerned about the current crisis,” said von der Leyen, speaking at a press conference with Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti in Pristina.

24

October

“It is important to de-escalate and return to the negotiating table to find a sustainable solution. The only way to do that is the EUfacilitated dialogue. That is the only platform to resolve the current crisis,” said the Commission president, whose visit was originally intended to promote EU enlargement along the bloc’s southeast border.

“We have come a long way. We have made a lot of progress. We never lose sight

of the goal that is the whole of the Western Balkans and Kosovo being part of the European Union,” she added.

Serbia and Kosovo have been attempting to negotiate away their differences through an EU-led dialogue since 2011. Those talks aim to resolve technical issues that have existed between the two since Kosovo declared independence in 2008, which Serbia does not recognise, while also advancing them along the path to EU integration.

The EU has also been assisting with the region’s economic development, including a COVID-19 recovery pledge of €3.3 billion, according to von der Leyen.

However, it was an agreement signed in Brussels in 2016 that led to the latest escalation in tension.

Kurti’s government sent heavily armed special police to its northern border on 20th September, the date marking the expiry of the validity of U.N. license plates, which were issued along with regular Kosovo plates.

The U.N. plates began being issued in the period following the 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, when Kosovo became a de facto U.N. protectorate. After Kosovo declared its independence from Serbia and began issuing its own license plates, the U.N. plates continued to be issued in parallel — until last year.

Given that Serbia recognises the U.N. mandate in Kosovo and not Pristina’s independence, the U.N. plates were preferred among most of those travelling regularly to Serbia — including both Serbs and Albanians. Last year, however, in line with a clause in the 2016 agreement that foresaw the plates expiring in 2021, Kosovo stopped issuing U.N. plates.

Kosovo’s northern region is where the majority of its ethnic Serb minority resides.

As a result of the dispute, hundreds of Kosovo Serbs have been camped along the border, blocking roads leading to the Jarinje and Brnjak border crossings.

“There is a crisis on the border between Kosovo and Serbia, because Serbia does not want to accept that, beyond Jarinje and Brnjak, there is another country,” said Kurti at the same press conference.

According to political analyst Agon Maliqi, the Commission president’s Balkan tour of late September — which included stops in Albania, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina — has not had the calming effect she might have been hoping for.

“The reactions to Von der Leyen’s visit range from indifferent to cynical,” he said, adding that there was “a widely-held belief that the dialogue is unsustainable and that Kosovo can no longer accept the nature of this slow, technical dialogue that leads to nowhere.”

In reaction to the measures imposed by Kosovo, Serbian Defence Minister Nebojša Stefanović visited an army barracks close to the border, together with Russian Ambassador Alexander Botsan-Harchenko.

According to political analyst Agon Maliqi, the Commission president’s Balkan tour — which included stops in Albania, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina — has not had the calming effect she might have been hoping for

DIALOGUE IN DOUBT In Serbia, the Kosovo government’s decision to suddenly require temporary plates is seen as a provocation.

“Kurti’s approach is clear — he acts from the position of Kosovo being an independent and sovereign state and believes that he has the right to act the way he does,” said Igor Bandović, director of Belgrade Centre for Security Policy.

“Vučić is having a hard time with that approach. The fact that Kurti proposed a peace agreement between the two in the last round of the dialogue put Vučić in a very defensive position,” he added.

Heads of the technical teams from Kosovo and Serbia met in Brussels on 29th September, in an attempt to work out an agreement and de-escalate the situation.

The head of the technical team from Kosovo, Deputy Prime Minister Besnik Bislimi,

told Kosovo public broadcaster RTK that a draft agreement had been reached during the meeting.

He claimed that the agreement would see NATO peacekeepers already stationed in Kosovo take over from the special police on 3rd October, with both sides lifting their requirement for temporary license plates for six months, until a final agreement can be reached.

Bandović said the crisis has stretched the willingness for dialogue, from both the respective governments and the public, close to breaking point.

“The Brussels dialogue is at its weakest point since the start and the credibility of the chief negotiator and the EU institutions backing the dialogue is at stake. It really is up to the EU to do something or to encourage the dialogue, otherwise it will just stop,” he warned.

By Una Hajdari, Politico

SERBIA AND KOSOVO REACH AGREEMENT Serbia and Kosovo have reached an agreement to ease the situation on their border, Under the agreement, special police units deployed at the Jarinje and Brnjak border crossings will be removed on October 2 to be replaced by NATO peacekeepers (KFOR).

These will remain there for two weeks “to maintain a safe and secure environment and freedom of movement”.

From October 4, the sticker regime agreed between the two countries will be applied on a “temporary” basis until a permanent solution is agreed upon. It plans for drivers to cover their licence plates with stickers when entering the other country.

A working group, chaired by the EU, and attended by representatives from the bloc as well as Serbia and Kosovo, will convene on October 21 and will have six months to negotiate a permanent solution.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen “warmly” welcomed the agreement on Twitter.

“This is a very positive development,” she said. “It’s good for the whole region. The dialogue now needs to continue.”

Military planes were seen flying along the border on 26th and 27th September, while four armoured vehicles were sent close to the Jarinje crossing.

“For a long time now, the EU and NATO integration of the region has been held hostage by Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić’s tendency for dramatic reactions,” said Maliqi.

October

25

Feature

DUE TO THE CLIMATE CHANGE

Global Coffee Prices Will Jump Further Global coffee prices forecast to hit $4.44 a kilogram due to Brazilian cold snap following a string of droughts and pandemic supply chain issues

S

cientists have long warned climate change is coming for our morning coffee and a recent spike in global bean prices could be the first sign it’s actually happening.

Global coffee prices are forecast to jump to $4.44 a kilogram this year, according to IBISWorld, after a July cold snap in a major arabica coffee-producing region of Brazil wiped out a third of the crop.

Tom Baker, the founder of Sydney-based Mr Black Roasters and Distillers, noticed the spike when the first shipment this year arrived with a heavy price tag.

“The feeling was almost despair. We were expecting it because everything’s gone up.

All our costs on every line item,” Baker said.

“Glass, coffee, paper costs, label costs. It’s all gone up – and not just a small couple of percentages.”

Each year his business imports between 150 and 200 tonnes of coffee beans, which are then roasted and distilled into a range of coffee liqueurs.

Due to supply chain disruptions caused by the Covid pandemic, the cost of a single shipping container has jumped from $3,300 to $10,000.

Suzy Oo, a senior industry analyst with IBISWorld predicts prices will fall over the coming months and doesn’t expect an increase in the cost of a flat white – owing to fierce competition between cafe owners.

But the other factor to consider is climate change, Oo said.

“There’s also, of course, the extreme weather conditions in Brazil, which is the world’s biggest supplier of coffee beans.”

26

October

Climate change is a known long-term risk to crops like coffee, chocolate and wine grapes that require specific conditions to thrive Farmers in coffee-producing regions of Brazil have been grappling with a string of droughts in recent years and while frosts are common in July and August, the suddenness and severity of the most recent event caught producers by surprise.

Freezing temperatures struck in late July after an unprecedented Antarctic front resulted in snow falling in the hills and frost spreading across coffee trees in the Cerrado Mineiro region of Minas Gerais state.

The increasing volatility and frequency of extreme weather events in Brazil are attributed to climate change.

The worry now is that rising temperatures will lower both humidity and rainfall, leading to more prolonged periods of drought. By some calculations, Brazil has not had a typical rainy season since 2010.

Prof Lesley Hughes, a spokesperson with the Climate Council and a distinguished professor of biology at Macquarie University, said farmers around the world were reporting similar experiences with fires, flood and drought.

Climate change is a known long-term risk to crops like coffee, chocolate and wine grapes that require specific conditions to thrive.

As a tropical crop, coffee trees struggle in low temperatures and begin to die in subzero temperatures as ice particles “burn” their leaves. Because the plants take several years to establish, any significant loss can threaten to knock out producers.

The coffee merchant and Brazilian expat Andre Selga said the uncertainty created by unusual weather patterns had made the industry “really tense”.

“Frost in that area is normal but not at that intensity and not at that altitude. I’ve heard of farmers that lost everything. All the plants.

They’re waiting now to see if some of them can recover. They’ve lost their whole livelihood.”

“It’s bigger than the cost of freight, it’s structural,” Selga said. “Climate change, a few years back, was something to be discussed by higher management and politics. But it seems now it’s come down to our level and ordinary people are having to deal with those things.”

By Royce Kurmelovs

Leaders’

MEETING POINT

DR UNA SIKIMIĆ, Alta banka a.d. CEO

PREDRAG SKOKOVIĆ, Director of Quality House

AFI EUROPE SERBIA

MINJA JOVANOVIĆ, Corporate Security Business Partner, MPC Properties

MLADEN ĆIRIĆ, Tonković Winery Sales Director

Prepared And Committed

Knowledge In The Service Of Testing

AFI Europe Serbia Is Launching New Business Park

They Entered The Pandemic Prepared

Kadarka Wines Conquering The World

PAGE /28

PAGE /32

PAGE /35

PAGE /36

PAGE /37

DR UNA SIKIMIĆ, ALTA BANKA A.D. CEO

Prepared And Committed The fact that Alta banka – as one of the country’s few domestic banks – does not belong to the group of large banks, is something that it uses as its greatest advantage. Its staff know each client well, structures transactions to suit their specific needs and make decisions efficiently

demanding clients with the best user experience. Almost all age categories of clients are now opting for digital services, which is a direct consequence of the “new reality” prompted by the pandemic.

For us, the implementation of digital solutions means full readiness and commitment to adapting the process and organisation of our work, in order for us to provide clients with a competitive service and adapt to their needs. This requires an infinitely agile approach.

I

n a climate of low interest rates and profitability that’s not so high, it is essential for banks to strengthen their activities when it comes to increasing the efficiency of processes and fortifying the resilience of their organisation through the active management of risk, while simultaneously adapting to clients’ individual needs.

Digitalisation is one of the words that has marked the period of the pandemic over the past year and a half. What has digitalisation brought to your bank?

Increasing the participation of digital channels in operations reduces crowds and queues, while at the same time eliminating operational activities in branches to a large extent, which changes the role of bank staff from administrative

28

October

Our bank’s mission is to provide our clients with the kind of quality of products and services that we would like to receive ourselves to advisory. Clients received additional benefits, such as, for example, the ability to pay bills from their home via IPS QR technology, in just a few seconds, without the need to visit a branch.

The number of users of digital services at Alta banka has increased by more than 60 per cent since the beginning of 2020, which shows us that we are on the right track to providing our “digitally” ever-more

How are the current market needs? What do citizens and businesses expect from banks?

The Republic of Serbia has, thanks to a comprehensive strategy and measures taken, managed to increase economic activity while maintaining the stability of the monetary system. According to the statistics of the National Bank of Serbia, total bank placements increased by 11% last year, while the share of nonperforming loans in total loans fell below the level it was at prior to the pandemic, reaching a level of 3.5% in July this year.

These stats indicate a stable and strong banking sector that responded excellently to the crisis, as well as maintaining a high level of capitalisation, measured by the indicator of a capital adequacy ratio that’s significantly above the minimum prescribed by the regulator, along with additional strengthening of the deposit base.

For the economy’s further growth and recovery, alongside the stabilising of the health situation, the support of the banking sector will also be required. Clients expect improved communication with their banks, combinations of digital and traditional channels, and banks must be

ready to fulfil this need promptly in order to remain competitive on the market.

When it comes to citizens, they expect security, speed, transparency and simplicity in the use of products and services from banks, i.e., a good user experience.

Our clients and their positive experience of doing business with us are our best advertisements, and we grow and develop together with them.

You recently announced the introduction of completely new e-banking platforms.

Can we hint at what your clients can expect?

Alta’s new e-banking and m-banking applications, which have been available to our clients since September, bring numerous improvements for users of both Android and iOS platforms. We will offer all the standard functionalities that are provided by the largest banks on the market, but with a personalised design and advanced user experience that I would highlight in particular. The Alta banka team is proud of the successful implementation of innovative applications that provide users with new functionalities and a pleasant, user-friendly interface, along with a higher level of security.

Following the implementation of the aforementioned solutions, in the subsequent phases of the digitalisation project we expect the development of additional functionalities, such as biometric authentication, PMF tools and digital card products linked to m-banking.

How would you assess the consolidating of the banking sector? Will the process continue?

The consolidating of the Serbian banking market is following world trends, i.e., it is in no way specific to our country.

This process has been unfolding continuously for 20 years and has additionally accelerated on our market over the past three years. We can already highlight the dominance of foreign banks and the huge competition between them, which gives us – as one of the few remaining domestic banks – an additional motive to distinguish ourselves.

Banks around the world have recognised fintech companies as their biggest competitor in the retail sector and are turning to procuring or cooperating with them.

When it comes to clients themselves, consolidation can only bring positive developments, through the race among banks to provide better and cheaper services. This process is expected to

Alta’s new e-banking and m-banking applications bring numerous improvements for users of both Android and iOS platforms continue, and Alta banka certainly wants to find itself there, as a strong, domestic bank, close to its customers, with a tendency to expand its operations further.

When you were appointed CEO, you noted that you want to distinguish Alta as a bank that provides its clients with a good. What is actually implied by a good service?

We don’t want to be a bank that provides our clients with only a good service, but rather an exceptional one. Our bank’s mission is to provide our clients with the kind of quality of products and services that we would like to receive ourselves.

The fact that we are not among the largest banks on the market ensures that we have exceptional agility and flexibility to make responsible decisions at the headquarters of our bank. Through the introduction of the latest generation of m-banking and e-banking applications, we have launched the first phase of our digital transformation. Our development plans are extremely ambitious and we see ourselves as drivers of market innovation in the near future, in synergy with other members of the Alta Group.

In the domain of traditional banking, our desire is for clients to continue to see us as their good neighbour, to whom they can turn for all of their needs and in all stages of life.

Could you tell us more about the Alta Pay payment institution and the potential synergic effect of the Alta Group?

The fact that Alta Bank is part of the Alta Group is its exceptional strength.

Alta Group has existed for more than ten years and, thanks to the vision and strategy of the top man, Davor Macura, it has succeeded in becoming the dominant leader in Serbia in the domain of payment services. For example, Alta Pay, with over 2,300 of its own and representative locations, as well as the range of products and services it provides, is an exceptional pillar of support for Alta banka in its further plans. The Alta Payment Institution is the first institution of its kind to receive a permit to execute payment transactions in which the funds are secured by loans, the first to enable tax refunds at its locations, the first to develop its own product, “Alta Quick Cash”, and numerous other services.

We are certain that, together with such a leader in the domain of payment services, we will further develop and operate as a modern financial institution, recognised for its innovations.

October

29

LOCAL NEWS

“When we look at the number of investment projects foreign direct investments in the last 10 years, the largest number are German companies” – MARKO ČADEŽ, PRESIDENT OF THE SERBIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY

NALED 2021 TOP MEMBERS FROM THE PRIVATE, PUBLIC AND CIVIL SECTORS ANNOUNCED Svetoslav Atanasov, General Manager of Coca Cola HBC, Zoran Semenović, Mayor of Šid, and Neven Marinović, Director of SMART Collective, took this year’s titles of NALED Top Members in the competition of over 300 companies, local governments and civil society organizations. As part of NALED’s September gathering, the audience had the opportunity to take part in additional voting, where Zoran Semenović won the most votes.

This year’s recognition is awarded for an exceptional contribution to the development of the organization and membership, strengthening the reputation and promotion of common values of NALED, by the decision of the Managing Board, and at the proposal of the Executive Office.

EXPORTS AND FOOD PRICES BOTH ON THE RISE At the opening of a dialogue on food industry systems, Serbian Minister of Agriculture Branislav Nedimovic said that Serbian food exports in the first six months of this year had been up by 13.9% relative to 2020, which was a record year. This provides Serbia with an additional assurance that there are markets to which the country can export all its agricultural product surpluses.

The government also faces the challenge of maintaining those exports “When we look at the structure of that surplus, we also have reason for apprehension,” he added, noting that the situation was good for the time being due to record-high prices of field crops such as wheat and maize. “The challenges are big because we must maintain the exports and increase them constantly, but we can easily boost the value of food exports to $6 billion perhaps as early as next year” the Minister said.

SBERBANK SERBIA CONTINUES WITH ITS SUCCESSFUL OPERATIONS IN 2021 Thanks to excellent business results and significant credit placements in the area of cooperation with private individuals and companies, Sberbank Serbia only during the first seven months of this year made a net profit of over 11.2 million euros and already in July achieved its business and financial targets projected for the entire 2021 year.

Speaking about this dynamic growth and achieved results, the president of the Executive Board of Sberbank Serbia Vladimir Boskovic pointed out that 2021 will be “certainly the most successful business year in the bank’s history.”

According to him, the value of the loan portfolio in Sberbank Serbia increased by over 46 million euros in July 2021 compared to the beginning of the year, primarily thanks to good placements in the area of cooperation with private individuals.

30

October

“On the path to the circular economy, we need innovations, but also the responsibility of both businesses and citizens, because all social actors should participate in this process” – H.E. JØRN GJELSTAD, AMBASSADOR OF NORWAY TO SERBIA

Placements postings

&

appointments@aim.rs

H.E. EMANUELE GIAUFRET, AMBASSADOR AND HEAD OF THE DELEGATION OF THE EUROPEAN UNION TO SERBIA Emanuele Giaufret has been appointed EU ambassador to Serbia as of September 2021, following a four-year term as EU ambassador to Israel. He previously served the European External Action Service as Head of the Division for Democracy and Electoral Observation and as Political Assistant to the Managing Director responsible for North Africa and the Middle East. He has also served at the EU Delegation to the United Nations in New York and again at the EU Delegation in Israel, as Head of the Political and Trade Section. His career at the European Commission began at the Directorate General for External Relations, serving as desk officer for electoral observation. Prior to joining the EU, Giaufret worked at the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights. A married father of three, he has a Ph.D. in the History of International Relations from the University of Florence and a Master’s Degree in European Affairs from the College of Europe in Bruges.

SAVA ZDRAVO HEALTH PACKAGE FROM SAVA INSURANCE Sava Insurance has created and launched improved packages of voluntary health insurance, SAVA ZDRAVO, which would meet the numerous requirements and satisfy various needs of insured persons when it comes to healthcare services. The insurance policy includes basic coverage types pertaining to outpatient treatment encompassing the following: examinations and diagnostic procedures, laboratory tests, tests and analysis necessary for reproductive system check-up, outpatient interventions, medical transport, ordered therapy in outpatient conditions, home treatment in emergency situations, radiotherapy and chemotherapy in outpatient treatment conditions, examinations and diagnostic procedures and laboratory tests (in relation to health problems occurring after the confirmed COVID-19 infection over the period of not longer than six months after the diagnosis), mental health, urgent dentistry, medical and technical aids.

NEW FISCALIZATION SYSTEM TO BRING MULTIMILLION SAVINGS TO BUSINESSPEOPLE “The new model of fiscalization, in addition to the modernisation and digitalisation of business, also means multimillion savings in money and time, because the average annual cost of maintaining and using old fiscal cash registers is around 120 euros, to which should be added the costs of archiving and storage,” said President of the Management Board of NALED Vladislav Cvetković, speaking at the presentation of the new fiscalization system at the Chamber of Commerce.

Cvetković also cited the example of a domestic retail chain that spends 150,000 euros a year on toner, paper, printing and warehouse rent alone, so the new system of fiscalization and abolition of traditional control tapes is an important step towards reducing these costs and preserving the environment.

October

31

PREDRAG SKOKOVIĆ, DIRECTOR OF QUALITY HOUSE

Knowledge In The Service Of Testing Quality House provides software testing services to all companies whose software development teams are facing problems in setting up appropriate test processes and related activities. Quality House is also recognised as a trusted partner when it comes to education in software testing

T

he mission of increasing professionalism in software testing is very important to Quality House, and we do hope that it will gain even greater momentum. I would personally like to see Quality House becoming synonymous with software testing in the SEE region and (why not?) worldwide as well - explains Quality House Director Predrag Skoković Quality House (QH) provides testing services in the region of Southeast Europe.

Who are your typical clients?

We like seeing ourselves changing along with the industry. That fuels growth and success. So, we plan not only to grow our market, but also our service portfolio QH has worked with small teams, as in start-ups, but also with big teams in the fin-tech, telecom or automotive industries.

The wide range of business domains that we support requires us to adapt quickly and apply adequate practises in order to mitigate the risks anticipated by our clients.

To achieve all this, members of the Quality House Team, comprising more than

32

October

a hundred software test consultants, have to improve their knowledge, skills and experience constantly. This is followed by the regular acquiring of certificates in software testing (e.g., ISTQB) and related IT activities.

How did the idea for Quality House Serbia emerge?

It was a combination of events, people and circumstances. The story began in 2009, with my second visit to the SEETEST conference, where I met the founder of Quality House. In all the subsequent years, we have worked together to raise awareness of the necessity of having professional engagements in software testing. With each exchanged email, light chat or deep discussion, we moved a step closer to establishing an entity that would help us spread the word about software testing. It was not a ‘Big Bang’ idea, but an evolutionary process that resulted in the founding of Quality House in Serbia.

You mentioned the SEETEST conference.

If I’m correct, this year’s event is the 10th SEETEST? Yes, we are very proud to be co-organising the 10th SEETEST conference in Belgrade. This conference is regional, which means that it is organised in a different country each year. So, we can say that we were very lucky to have this anniversary held in Serbia this year. QH has been playing a co-organiser role from the very beginning of SEETEST (Southeast European Testing Conference), in harmonic collaboration with SEETB (Southeast European Testing Board). Together, we share the mission of spreading the word about the necessity of professionalising software testing. Giving back to the community is one of my personal drivers when it comes to business, and this is reflected very well in my relationship with QH and SEETB. You have a rich portfolio of accredited testing courses?

Indeed, we have a rich portfolio of courses, accredited by ISTQB (International Software Testing Qualifications Board), with which we have Platinum partnership.

We pride ourselves on the knowhow and

expertise of our lecturers. Many companies from the SEE region and worldwide have trusted us to train their software testing specialists. This gives us the sense that QH is growing together with them.

When it comes to our courses’ portfolio, I would say that the most popular courses over the last couple of years relate to the following syllabus: ISTQB Foundation Level, ISTQB Agile Tester Extension and ISTQB AL Automation Test Engineer.

tion. Spending quality time with family, friends and relatives, partaking in sports and hobbies, are details that we take care of fully. The pandemic did not influence our way of working, since we have always practised remote work and flexibility, as important aspects of our identity. Our goal is to provide our clients with the best possible software testing support, and our location does not play a significant role in achieving this.

Could you describe the work culture and values that drive your company? Tell us something more about that…

Our core values are knowledge and commitment to high quality. We aim to create a

Are your knowledge and continuous learning purpose orientated; do they adapt to the client’s established working processes, including the technologies and tools they use?

Continuous learning is necessary to monitor and keep pace with all the trends in the IT sector. Due to major changes in IT, the shifting of technology and processes is also manifested in other business domains.

As such, in addition to the technical and technological, we must very quickly adopt our knowledge to various business areas, in order to add value to the development teams we support with our activities.

The training courses that our software test consultants attend aim not only to increase their technical knowledge and skills, but also to provide them with a set of essential soft skills. This is very important to the way we provide our services, through test consultants with a business background.

Flexibility and state-of-the-art results are what we’re strive for in every single project we undertake working culture that enables employees to live these values, through everyday tasks and training. However, we also cherish other aspects of life beyond work itself.

This is something that we continuously strive to spread throughout the organisa-

Can you tell us something about plans for the future of Quality House?

The world is accelerating at an incredible rate, especially on the IT market, driven by demand and outstanding technology that offers so many possibilities. Quality House is surfing the wave of the IT industry’s expansion. We like to see ourselves developing and adapting along with the industry. It is inspiring to think of how much IT has changed over the last 20 years, and also how those changes have reflected on our company. We would like to see more changes like these, more reasons to become even more specialised. That fuels our growth and success. So, we plan not only to grow our market, but also our service portfolio.

October

33

REGIONAL NEWS

“People living in Sarajevo, Skopje, Belgrade and many other cities in the Western Balkans breathe what is considered to be the most polluted air in the world” – MAJA BAKRAN MARCIC, DEPUTY DIRECTOR GENERAL OF THE SECTOR FOR MOBILITY AND TRANSPORT IN THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION

EBRD ADOPTS NEW COUNTRY STRATEGY FOR MONTENEGRO The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has adopted a new country strategy for Montenegro for the period 2021-2026 with three priorities: Strengthen private sector competitiveness The EBRD’s key priority in Montenegro is to help diversify the country’s economy to reduce reliance on seasonal tourism and to improve the business environment. The Bank stands ready to support companies, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with measures that promote strengthened capacity, commercialisation and improved governance. These measures include direct finance, short-term liquidity, tailored advice and policy engagement. The Bank is also leading the effort to support undeserved segments via the promotion of skills-enhancing solutions, greater financial inclusion and equal access to opportunities.

EIB AND SOFIA MUNICIPALITY SIGN €60 MILLION LOAN FOR SUSTAINABLE MOBILITY PROJECTS

CONSTRUCTION STARTS ON ELECTRICITY INTERCONNECTOR BETWEEN ALBANIA AND NORTH MACEDONIA Work has started on the construction of a new power substation in Ohrid, a key component of the first electricity interconnector between Albania and North Macedonia, which will range from Bitola in North Macedonia to Elbasan in Albania.

The project, financed by the European Union and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is part of the EU’s initiative to establish an EastWest electricity transmission corridor between Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Albania, Montenegro and Italy.

The project completes the 400kV electricity ring between Albania, North Macedonia and Greece, enhancing crossborder exchanges in electricity and contributing to the development of the regional market.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Sofia Municipality have signed a €60 million framework loan to promote sustainable urban mobility in Bulgaria’s capital. The EIB financing supports Sofia Municipality’s objective to develop an environmentally sustainable transport system that improves the everyday life of its people.

In line with the objectives of the General Development Plan of the City of Sofia and the Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan of Sofia 2019-2035, the EIB will finance projects that include the construction and rehabilitation of sections of the road and street network, parts of the tramway, and walking and cycling infrastructure. In addition, public transport projects such as buses and the installation of electric vehicle charging infrastructure can be supported.

WHY CUTTING WESTERN BALKANS’ ROAMING PRICES IS GOOD FOR CONSUMERS AND BUSINESSES The first day of July 2021 saw the end of roaming costs across Western Balkan countries. Citizens in the region can now enjoy traveling without having to either switch off their phones or worry about the costs at the end of the month.

The benefits it can bring are illustrated by what we’ve seen in the EU. In a survey conducted by Eurobarometer a year after roaming was introduced, 82% of people who traveled to another EU country felt they had benefitted from the new rules.

As noted in a joint statement by the vice-president for the digital single market and commissioner for digital economy and society: “Roam like at home is working and is becoming a habit: customers are appreciating it, consumption is up and the demand for mobile services while traveling in the EU is very high. It benefits consumers and operators alike.”

34

October

AFI EUROPE SERBIA

AFI Europe Serbia Is Launching NEW BUSINESS PARK One of the most reputable investors on the Belgrade real estate market is launching an exciting new project - AFI City Zmaj

S

et to rise from the rubble on the site of the famous former Zmaj factory on the outskirts of the city, this project will ultimately encompass the Zmaj East and Zmaj West developments.

SPIRIT OF THE PROJECTS Just as dragon (”Zmaj”) is known as a guardian of treasure, all AFI Europe Serbia projects developed to date in Belgrade represent valuable and innovative concepts that have quickly become successful and treasured additions to the offer of the city’s real estate market, and positioned its investor on the highest place in business space.

These ‘treasures’ include the Airport City Belgrade concept of City within the City, the very special and high-profile Skyline AFI Business Tower and the centrally located Business Garden. As the latest project, AFI City Zmaj will also bring a new concept that differs from those of other projects and

In terms of architecture, its buildings will be modern, but also highly sustainable and efficient, AFI CITY ZMAJ concept would respond to the demands of the targeted client group aims to fulfil a need that we have identified on the market, while at the same time adhering to the successful methodology and applied knowhow that have ensured the great success of all previous projects.

In terms of architecture, its buildings will be modern, but also highly sustainable and efficient, thus responding to the demands of the targeted client group.

A favourable location at the very entrance to the city ensures excellent access,

while the huge surface area provides the possibility to develop a number of facilities that require a large area and plenty of space for parking.

The project will, once again, be entrusted to the domestic companies with which we’ve collaborated successfully for many years, coupled, of course, with the superior knowhow of our parent group and the vast experience of our engineers and architects, who are always ready to apply their expertise.

In terms of the project’s concept, AFI City Zmaj will be highly adaptable to expected future changes regarding modern office space, as well as the needs of young, emerging, highly-efficient international and domestic companies that strive always to be “one step ahead”. We are accustomed to providing our clients with flexibility and adaptable space. Such a concept resulted in the highest rate of occupancy and exceptional client loyalty that sees our tenants stay with us for years, as is the case with those that have been based at Airport City since day one - showing that we know how to create that special “extra ingredient” that guarantees success.

Phase one will be launched before the end of 2021 and is expected to be completed within a year and a half. It will consist of two buildings with a combined surface area of 30,000 sqm. The rendered images here show general idea of the buildings’ future appearance.

We are excitedly looking forward to see how this development will enrich the entrance to the city and how this project will serve to enhance the already positive reputation of AFI Europe Serbia.

October

35

MINJA JOVANOVIĆ, CORPORATE SECURITY BUSINESS PARTNER, MPC PROPERTIES

They Entered The Pandemic Prepared MPC Properties is a company that constructs, develops and manages commercial real estate, and which has an extraordinary responsibility from the security aspect. Its corporate security sector has been set up as a separate unit, in contrast to the common market practice that sees it merely form part of an existing sector

P

lans defined clearly in advance, prepared strategies and operational continuity and stability had a significant influence on MPC entering the pandemic prepared. Alongside its central Crisis Team, every MPC facility has its own crisis management team that handles the safety of all users.

The issue of corporate security is something that your company has always viewed strategically and as part of your business culture.

Has that proven to be a lifesaver during the time of the pandemic?

The corporate security sector is very important part of our company that forms part of every process and project. Our mission is to enable the proper following of procedures and the efficiency of business processes, as well as to provide support and protection to all company departments and employees in their daily work. Crisis management is also one of the areas that we cover, the importance of which was actually confirmed by the pandemic. We succeeded in implementing all preventative and security measures under extremely short deadlines, and all in our very dynamic environment, because it was necessary to coordinate whole networks of associates, from the administering of employees and coordinating of our tenants and their supplies, to the coordinating of all services within our facilities.

Is it accurate to say that if the corporate security system is not covered, that every other system, and the very success of the company itself, is brought into question?

The first association with the corporate security sector is ordinarily the security guard people most often come into contact with, or

36

October

ally defined as a man’s domain. Alongside the standard areas of physical protection, as well as cyber and information security that we are also responsible for, we are involved in tender process as a control function. Beside this, we have clearly defined anti-corruption and fraud prevention processes within our company, with which we additionally protect the company’s business success and reputation, whilst simultaneously contributing to increasing efficiency and profits. The company recognize importance of this sector, which confirms it through diverse trainings and innovations.

We have great responsibility, primarily to employees, then to our tenants and partners, and ultimately to those who visit our facilities some strict investigator who isn’t considered a desirable participant in meetings. In our case, the corporate security sector aims to improve the efficiency of the entire system and is composed of a team of professional people who have international experience. Also testifying to the fact that we are unique and not confined to the market’s standard framework is the inclusion of women in our security sector, which is gener-

Have you preserved employees’ health and lives, as well as the company’s stability, thanks to your strict rules, clear procedures and strong connectedness between all sectors and managers?

We have great responsibility, primarily to employees, then to our tenants and partners, and ultimately to those who visit our facilities.

That level of security certainly also implies clear rules and procedures, which are regularly implemented, but also advanced. We strive to always go a step further, to monitor and apply world standards and practices, which is why we regularly implement evacuation drills at facilities. The latest example of an advancement to our operations is the equipping of facilities with defibrillators, with the aim of saving lives.

The process of certifying the WELL Health & Safety standard of our retail and office facilities is underway. It implies the existence and implementation of policies, protocols and plans encompassing 22 areas, first and foremost in the areas of safety, air quality in facilities and cleaning and sanitation, which will bring us international confirmation that our objects are world class when it comes to security.

MLADEN ĆIRIĆ, TONKOVIĆ WINERY SALES DIRECTOR

Kadarka Wines Conquering The World The Tonković Winery, based in the village of Bački Vinogradi, is commemorating the first 15 years of its successful operations.

Testifying to the claim that this is a unique wine house and an unusual, visionary endeavour – rather than a mere business undertaking – is the fact that it has planted only one grape variety on all nine hectares of its vineyards

C

onsidering that the world is seeking new varieties that are insufficiently utilised and that this quest has become a global trend, exports are rising constantly, despite the pandemic.

Our wines are sold in Switzerland, France, Croatia, Ireland, Montenegro, Japan and America - notes Tonković Winery Sales Director Mladen Ćirić with pride.

Every winery has its own unique story.

How did it happen that you ended up growing only one variety of grape; and not just any variety, but rather Kadarka, which is an old, autochthonous variety?

Serbian winemaking has been developing very rapidly in recent years, with the number of wineries growing and, with that, the number of high-quality wines.

And along with that, naturally, comes increased demand for wines made from autochthonous varieties. With a deep belief that wines made from local varieties have a future, among both foreign and domestic consumers, we decided back in 2006 to do something a little different. We planted an entire nine-hectare vineyard exclusively with only the Kadarka variety. Kadarka is an old Serbian autochthonous grape variety, which – due to its demanding nature, low yields and the style of wine itself – has almost disappeared from Serbia. With an awareness of the fact that Kadarka wines were known throughout history as noble

wines, we decided to attempt to restore the former glory of these wines.

Which different wines can be made from this one variety? Which of your Kadarka wines is experiencing the highest demand on the market? Is it also the most awarded?

We use Kadarka to make a rosé wine and two red wines, and – as of this year, for the first time – we also make a blanc de noir (white wine made from red grapes). The

Fantasy [Fantazija] is the only Serbian wine that can be found in the largest wine museum in Bordeaux, selected by Andreas Larsson, the world’s best sommelier white wine has really attracted attention since we launched it, because it is specific and many consumers didn’t even know that it was possible to make white wine from red grapes. It has been really nicely accepted so far.

Our most renowned wine is Fantasy [Fantazija], which is the basic wine made from Kadarka. It is a wine that satisfies almost all criteria. It has a lighter body, a very fruity aroma and a medium-long finish. It can even be slightly chilled and

consumed with or without food. It is a truly appreciative wine.

Apart from that, it has also achieved greatest success. Fantasy is the only Serbian wine that can be found in the largest wine museum in Bordeaux, selected by Andreas Larsson, the world’s best sommelier.

It also received an award as the world’s best Kadarka wine last year, in competition among 113 wines of the same variety, and since 2010 it has been traditionally drunk in the Vatican for the annual feast of the holiday of St. Urban.

Would Kadarka wines make an ideal corporate gift or present for diplomats, directors of foreign companies etc.?

We consider wine as being a really nice present for various occasions. The New Year and Christmas holidays are ideal occasions for such gifts. And this is a segment that’s growing. That’s because many domestic companies are increasingly cooperating with foreign firms and want to show what we, as a country, can offer when it comes to wine, especially wines made from local varieties. We have adapted to these requirements, which is why we also create personalised labels for various companies that want to send a message or express gratitude to their important customers and associates.

We are able to organise wine tastings and gatherings for all interested companies.

Contact us at office@vinarijatonkovic.com

October

37

“Inflation to me, it looks like there’s part that’s transitory and there’s part that’s not — that’s not a disaster” – JAMIE DIMON, CEO OF JPMORGAN CHASE

WORLD NEWS

UK ENERGY SUPPLIER GREEN TO CEASE TRADING AS THE LATEST CASUALTY OF ENERGY CRISIS Energy supplier Green has become the latest victim of the crisis engulfing the sector as it collapsed, blaming “unprecedented market conditions and regulatory failings”.

Green, which has more than 250,000 customers and 185 staff, confirmed that it would cease trading a day after Sky News revealed that it had lined up advisers to oversee a potential insolvency. The announcement came as the head of regulator Ofgem told MPs more suppliers could go bust in coming months after a surge in wholesale gas and electricity prices.

Meanwhile, Sky News revealed that Igloo, another small player in the sector, was close to being added to the list of casualties as it called in advisers - and has stopped taking on new customers. Green said it was “exiting the market due to the government failing to provide any support to smaller energy suppliers”.

CHINA’S XI COMMITS TO STOP BUILDING COAL PLANTS ABROAD Chinese President Xi Jinping said Beijing would stop building coalfired power plants abroad, in a public commitment to redirect the country’s huge engineering industry away from adding to a source of global pollution.

Beijing has faced pressure from the U.S., the European Union and environmental groups for having continued to finance and build coalfired power plants in many developing countries, even as it said it would cut greenhouse emissions at home.

UAE REAL ESTATE SHOWS SIGNS OF RECOVERY AS ALDAR PREDICTS SALES SURGE Abu Dhabi’s property market is showing signs of steady growth, as the oil rich capital of the United Arab Emirates recovers from the deep blows of the coronavirus pandemic. “Business in Abu Dhabi and the real estate sector is actually very buoyant,” Aldar Properties Chief Financial and Sustainability Officer Greg Fewer told CNBC’s “Capital Connection” on Wednesday. “We’ve just come off a strong second quarter where we announced growth across all our major business lines,” Fewer said. “We’re on pace to exceed 5 billion dirhams ($1.36 billion)

38

October

in sales this year, driven by new launches that we’re going to be bringing in the third and fourth quarters.” The latest comments signal a further improvement in the UAE’s economy and its often

crisis fraught real estate sector. Pandemic related job losses forced nearly 10% of the UAE’s expat population to leave, hitting property prices and increasing vacancies last year.

“Cryptos are highly speculative assets that claim their fame as currency, possibly, but they’re not” – CHRISTINE LAGARDE, PRESIDENT OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK

ROBINHOOD TO LAUNCH CRYPTOCURRENCY WALLETS Robinhood is testing “crypto wallets” with select clients next month to allow investors to send, receive and move cryptocurrencies in and out of the Robinhood app. In recent months, some users have taken to social media to complain that by using Robinhood, they had exposure to crypto prices but not actual ownership of the coins themselves.

The move comes as cryptocurrency makes up an increasingly large part of Robinhood’s revenue.

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have seen sharp volatility since bitcoin’s all-time high in April amid more concerns about regulation.

ALL-ELECTRIC AIRCRAFT FROM ROLLS-ROYCE COMPLETES MAIDEN FLIGHT IN BRITAIN The last few years have seen a number of firms develop plans and concepts related to low and zero-emission aviation. Rolls-Royce’s aircraft is the result of a program called ACCEL, or Accelerating the Electrification of Flight.

In a statement, the company said the aircraft’s trip marked “the beginning of an intense flight-testing phase” that would involve the collection of performance data on its electrical power and propulsion system. According to Rolls-Royce, the airplane — dubbed the “Spirit of Innovation” — utilized a 400 kilowatt electric powertrain “with the most power-dense battery pack ever assembled for an aircraft.” Eventually, the firm wants the aircraft’s speed to exceed 300 miles per hour.

AMSTERDAM’S COFFEESHOPS HIT BY COVID FEAR A CLAMPDOWN ON TOURISTS Dutch capital Amsterdam has long been a draw for millions of tourists from Europe and beyond but tourism has been hit by Covid-19 and travel restrictions. Tourists are attracted to the city for its canals and culture as well as its coffeeshops and sex industry. Coffeeshops are plentiful in Amsterdam and where the Dutch authorities tolerate the sale of cannabis products. There could be a clampdown on foreign tourists visiting coffeeshops.

In the second quarter of 2021, turnover in accommodation and food services was 52.6% up on the same quarter of 2020 (a period covering the first lockdown). However, it was over 35% smaller relative to the second quarter of 2019.

October

39

Enterpreneur Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images

SERENA WILLIAMS TENNIS PLAYER

5 Business Lessons

Businesswomen can Learn from Serena 40

October

I definitely have found a balance. I’ve had so many offers in the past to do different movies or different things and I always choose tournaments over it.

Serena Williams

T

The Associated Press

he world knows Serena Williams as a top tennis player who earns millions every year. But, did you know that she is a savvy investor who has funded over 30 startups? And she is just getting started.

Serena Ventures is a company that has a portfolio of investments that is already worth over $10 million. It has been just six years since the tennis player started her business venture, and she has ambitious plans of not only investing in the dreams of entrepreneurs, but also starting companies of her own.

Want to know what’s Serena’s secret to her business success? Here are some lessons you can learn from her experience.

INVEST WITH PASSION

When Serena started her venture capital business, she did the same thing any other investor in her position would do. The tennis player would simply invest in companies that she thought had a good chance to grow. But, soon she noticed something that would change her investment strategy.

Serena noticed that less than two per cent of venture capital money was going to female founders and even less was going to people of colour. The tennis player quickly realised the need that she needed to fill: 60 per cent of the companies that Serena funds belong to women or people from the minority community.

Why is investing with passion important?

The investment may be just a number for the venture capitalist, but for the entrepreneur who gets that money it is like breathing life into her dream. Imagine what it feels like to know that there is someone out there who won’t let your dream die. Now imagine you are the investor meeting people whose dreams you are nurturing.

The business owner would go all out to deliver results and the investor’s life would be filled with so much passion and energy that no amount of money can buy.

THE BEGINNING IS ALWAYS HARD

Why is investing with passion important? The investment may be just a number for the venture capitalist, but for the entrepreneur who gets that money it is like breathing life into her dream

The job of a venture capitalist, at the most basic level, is to find good companies to invest in and then write that cheque. The truth is that even a business that requires you to just invest is not easy.

When Serena decided to start an investment company, she found out that the investment world is a small niche. Breaking into the industry was not as easy as she initially thought.

Even after breaking into the industry, Serena had to go through a steep learning curve.

Once the tennis player was able to overcome the initially challenges, it became easier and things started coming to her.

Currently, Serena is in a place where she is able to reach her investment targets every year. She and her team are in a position where they have to stop themselves from investing

October

41

Enterpreneur

Photo by AELTC/Pool/Getty Image

she has been doing with all her money is she has been investing.

Living below your means and investing the surplus is the only equation that adds wealth.

If, on the other hand, you are spending more than you earn, even if it’s just a little over the budget, the practise will make you poorer every year, and over the long run you will go bankrupt no matter how rich you are.

RECOGNISE YOUR STRENGTHS

sometimes. The only exception is a business opportunity that they feel can be life changing.

Every business is hard at first. But, if you are able to overcome those initial problems, you will be on the way to build a successful company.

DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT

Consider this - if you do the exact same thing as every other company in the marketplace, why should customers choose you over the others?

You have to do something different to stand out.

When Serena started playing tennis, the normal routine for everyone else was to get involved in tournaments and junior competitions.

Serena did things differently. She just focused on her training. Everyone told her it couldn’t be done because no one had done it. The results, however, speak for themselves.

It pays to try something new. Take a chance on a new idea. While the risks are there, the payoffs can be astronomical.

Everyone has their own strengths. If you are able to recognise yours and leverage them, you can make a lot of money.

Serena’s strength is her fame. Although she was making more than enough by playing tennis and endorsing products for big brands, she knew the real money is in turning her name into a brand and promoting her own products instead of helping other companies for a small fee.

It pays to try something new. Take a chance on a new idea. While the risks are there, the payoffs can be astronomical.

IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT THE MONEY

There is more to life than making money. After reaching a threshold that lets you live a comfortable life, the thought of making more money will not be the driving force of you actions.

You have to find something greater than yourself. A Higher purpose. For Serena it is investing in companies that will bring about real change in the world.

Serena makes millions each year, but she doesn’t splurge. She describes herself as “the most boring spender.”

There is nothing wrong in investing in oneself. That is money well spent because it sets you up to earn more in the future. But, when it comes to buying things to make herself feel good, Serena is “bad” at it.

Serena admits that she is “learning” how to treat herself, like buying some jewellery. What

42

October

blog.crownandcaliber.com

DON’T SPEND TOO MUCH, INVEST FOR THE FUTURE

PROFILE

Editorial Challenges and Blessings From the instant I mastered the skill of reading, books became a kind of obsession of mine. And the topics and contents that interested me and I read about changed in accordance with my age read authors who’ve been awarded for their literary work. The logical advancement of my career development came with my arrival at Laguna, the largest and most influential publishing company in these lands. Laguna has great social responsibility because it

DUBRAVKA DRAGOVIĆ ŠEHOVIĆ, EDITOR AT LAGUNA

I

realised that I wanted to deal with literature very early on. And that led to the decision to dedicate myself to studying Serbian language and literature. My studies brought me a lot of new knowledge and helped me to advance my stance when it comes to evaluating the quality of certain works. I was very fortunate that, during my actual studies, I did casual work and collaborated with wonderful editors of newspapers, magazines, radio and television, as well as publishing houses, which I learned from easily and in a way prepared myself to do this great work independently.

I’ve been navigating editorial waters successfully for more than 15 years and am very satisfied with what I’ve achieved in the publishing houses where I’ve worked, while there have been challenges aplenty. It has been a pleasure to work with wonderful translators and foreign writers whose works have been crowned with major international awards. But I’m still particularly proud of the domestic authors who took their first literary steps with my editorial assistance and who are today highly renowned, highly

Publishing is one of the most important segments when it comes to developing and nurturing the culture and identity of a nation… Editors have the great responsibility to separate the wheat from the chaff and to recognise which manuscripts are worth publishing has a great influence on the shaping of the literary tastes of the entire nation. That’s also why, among other things, it has brought together the highest quality writers, but also the highest quality personnel who work there. Thanks precisely to the excellent atmosphere, dedication, professionalism and collegiality that reign at Laguna, my work is even more beautiful and inspiring.

It is wonderful when you do a job that you love, which fulfils you absolutely and ensures that you also look forward to coming to work immensely. That is priceless.

As the editor of domestic editions, I come across a multitude of offered manuscripts every day. I have the freedom to choose, and

I always select the ones that I consider the best quality, and I try to help the writers polish their works and convert them into real literary gems. I also have the privilege of working with our best and most recognised writers, but also helping those at the very beginning of their writing careers by providing advice, comments and suggestions. That work with authors is an irreplaceable experience, and the energy and trust that develop between us represent something very specific and completely authentic. It is especially dear to me that all my creativity, desire and effort to dedicate myself completely to insufficiently tailored texts are well received, and the books that I’ve worked on as an editor have thousands of readers and receive significant literary awards.

Publishing is one of the most important segments when it comes to developing and nurturing the culture and identity of a nation. That which is published reaches a broad section of the population, which is why the selection and quality of works, both by foreign and domestic authors, must be at the best possible level. There is no turning a blind eye in this business; a book is either of good quality or it isn’t, and if it isn’t then it shouldn’t be published. Editors have the great responsibility to separate the wheat from the chaff and to recognise which manuscripts are worth publishing.

Such literary works should enlighten readers, enrich their vocabulary, bring them new knowledge, ennoble their souls and fire up their empathy, but also simultaneously entertain and intrigue them, encouraging them to continue reading and build their own literary taste.

October

43

21 Facts About

Jean-Michel Basquiat 44

October

dthevoice.files.wordpress

Art

Jean-Michel’s crown has three peaks, for his three royal lineages: the poet, the musician, the great boxing champion.

FRANCESCO CLEMENTE

1. Jean-Michel Basquiat was born on 22nd December 1960, in Brooklyn, New York. His father, Gérard, was born in Port au Prince, Haiti, and his mother Matilde was a New York-native of Puerto Rican descent. In this multicultural home, the artist grew up speaking Spanish, French and English.

2. Basquiat became a junior member of the Brooklyn Museum, his favorite museum, at the age of six. In the spring of 2018, the museum hosted One Basquiat an exhibition devoted solely to the artist’s record-breaking Untitled (1982) which was purchased at Sotheby’s by Japanese collector Yusaku Maezawa for $110.5 million dollars — the most ever paid for an American artist at auction.

3. At eight-years-old, Basquiat was hit by a car while playing in the street and suffered a broken arm and severe internal injuries. While he was recuperating, his mother brought him a copy of the foundational medical textbook Gray’s Anatomy. The volume’s detailed anatomical drawings were eye opening to the young artist.

Years later Basquiat named his industrial art noise band Gray (which counted actor Vincent Gallo as a member) in homage to this early influence.

4. His father threw him out of the house when he dropped out of school at the age of seventeen. The teenager scraped by – selling sweatshirts and postcards marked with his draw-

FALLEN ANGEL

ings, panhandling and crashing with friends.

His impoverished diet consisted primarily of copious amounts of cheap red wine and 15¢ bags of Cheetos.

5. It was his graffiti tag “SAMO” (shorthand for “same old shit”) that first drew public attention.

Basquiat created “SAMO” with his friend Al Diaz while the pair were in high school and the tag,which often featured the copyright symbol, cropped up on buildings throughout lower Man-

hattan and Brooklyn between 1977 and 1980. “It was supposed to be a logo, like Pepsi.” Basquiat later told writer Anthony Haden-Guest. The end of the collaboration was announced in 1980 through a slue of tags declaring,“SAMO is dead.”

7. The crown, Basquiat’s signature artistic motif, both acknowledged and challenged the history of Western art. By adorning black male figures, including athletes, musicians and writers, with the crown, Basquiat raised these

October

45

Art

historically disenfranchised artists to royal even saintly stature. “Jean-Michel’s crown has three peaks, for his three royal lineages: the poet, the musician, the great boxing champion,” said his friend artist Francesco Clemente.

8. Basquiat became a regular on art writer Glenn O’Brien’s public access television program TV Party — first appearing on the live show in 1979 with his head shaved down the middle.

Two years later he appeared in O’Brien’s film Downtown ’81 playing a nearly autobiographical character.

9. He produced a rap record with Rammellzee and K Robb titled Beat Bop (1983) and designed the cover for the single.

10. The limelight suited Basquiat. In 1980 he appeared in music video for Blondie’s song “Rapture.” It was lead singer Debbie Harry and her boyfriend Chris Stein who bought Basquiat’s first painting for a mere $200.

11. Basquiat gained momentum with his first exhibition —the landmark DIY Times Square Show which opened in June of 1980 in an abandoned massage parlor off Seventh Avenue.

The pioneering exhibition also featured works

by Keith Haring, Kiki Smith, Jenny Holzer and Kenny Scharf.

12. Along with Julian Schnabel, Kenny Scarf and Francesco Clemente, Basquiat was considered one of the leading figures of Neo-Expressionism, an art movement that reasserted the primacy of the human figure in contemporary art. In 1996 fellow Neo-Expressionist Schnabel directed a biopic of the artist’s tumultuous life with Jeffrey Wright starring as Basquiat and David Bowie as Warhol.

UNTITLED SKULL

46

October

13. In 1982, at the age of 21, he became the youngest artist to ever exhibit at Documenta in Kassel, Germany, when nearly 60 of his paintings were featured at the esteemed exhibition.

By author

show at the gallery’s West Coast location.

Madonna even joined them for a few months.

18. With newfound commercial success he spent lavish amounts of money on Armani suits, expensive wines and the finest hotels. “From being so critical of the art scene, Jean-Michel was all of a sudden becoming the thing he criticized,” said Keith Haring, his longtime friend. But his libertine squanderings were marked by irreverence — he was know for painting over his designer suits, lending obscene sums of money, even throwing $100 dollar bills out of his limousine window to panhandlers.

19. Both the Museum of Modern Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art rejected submissions of his work.

20. Basquiat died of an accidental drug overdose on 12th August, 1988, at his Great Jones Street studio. He was 27 years old. In the months preceding his death, the troubled artist claimed to be using a hundred bags of heroin a day. Curator and gallerist Jeffrey Deitch delivered a eulogy during his burial at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn.

21. “I’m not a real person. I’m a legend,” Basquiat once claimed. His name and unique personal style have become frequent reference points in popular culture. Fellow Brooklyn-native Jay-Z, for instance, famously paralleled himself to the artist in his 2013 song”Picasso Baby,” saying ”It ain’t hard to tell, I’m the new Jean-Michel.” sothebys.com

“I’m not a real person.

I’m a legend.”

JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT 14. He joined the Annina Nosei gallery in 1982, and had his first American one-man show in the spring of that same year. By 1984, Basquiat had left Annina Nosei for 1980s art-world powerhouse Mary Boone.

15. He met his lifelong friend and mentor Andy Warhol in 1981 at late-night hotspot Mr. Chow’s.

Swiss dealer Bruno Bischofberger later suggested the two collaborate on a series of paintings, and between 1983 and 1985 the pair made works that layered Basquiat’s virtuosic graffiti scrawl over Warhol’s bright Pop imagery.

16. Madonna and Basquiat dated in 1982, while both were on the precipice of mainstream stardom.

17. That same year, Basquiat moved to Los Angeles where he lived with the gallerist Larry Gagosian as he prepared for an upcoming solo

WARRIOR Photo Christie’s Images Ltd.

October

47

50 Culture

Years of the Jazz Flame in Belgrade

Vojislav Pantić, Artistic Director of the Belgrade Jazz Festival While visitor numbers are falling at many festivals and audiences aren’t getting any younger, in Belgrade the halls are always over 80% full and the majority of audience members are in their early thirties. With a hunger for good music that’s in short supply throughout the year, they explode with emotion at the festival

T

he aim is to devise a programme of the highest artistic value, uncompromising and bold, representing both the mainstream and the avant-garde, alongside interesting jazz fusions with some branches of popular music ~ Vojislav Pantić This year, under the slogan “Jazz Flame”, the Belgrade Jazz Festival is celebrating the 50th year since it was founded. Which moments would you single out as being the most important in the festival’s history?

First and foremost is the amazing start. Thanks to collaboration with Impresario George Wein,

48

October

under the title of the Newport Jazz Festival in Belgrade, as early as 1971 we hosted some of the greatest icons of jazz (Duke, Dizzy, Monk, Ornette, Miles), which contributed to the festival attracting great public attention immediately.The abandoning of the Newport salon concept just three years later confirmed the swift maturing of the Dom Omladine team when it came to independently engaging in festival organisation and selection, seeking authenticity on the map of European jazz. The return of the festival after a long break was implemented in a revolutionary way: the 2005 slogan ‘Tradition and Futurism’ illustrated the new team’s ambition to present the jazz of contemporary and future times, but also with great respect for the festival’s glorious past. Finally, with the 2007 declaring of the festival as an event of special interest, the City of Belgrade not only secured stable funding for the festival, but also prompted numerous of other institutions to join this high-quality project.

Or it can be stated like this... The shock caused

by Miles Davis in 1971, who performed Bitches Brew funk to an audience that was expecting bebop.

Jam sessions at the Dom Omladine Dance Hall

by Freddie Hubbard (1977, 1979), Tony Scott (1984) and Chet Baker (1985) – to the burek pie at the bakery across the street and the first morning buses. The opening of the 1980 BJF in front of several thousand people at Pionir Hall, featuring the most important fusion band of all time, Weather Report. The Modern Jazz Quartet in 1989 - the most poetic performance that Belgrade has ever witnessed. Dizzy Gillespie and the United Nations Orchestra in 1990 - the largest gathering of jazz stars in one place. The BJF’s 2005 renewal - a bubbling atmosphere in Dom Omladine’s Great Hall, which was heated at the opening by Dave Holland.

Encounters with the pioneers of the European jazz path: Duško Gojković (eight times), the Esbjörn Svensson Trio (2006), Tomasz Stańko (2009), Enrico Rava (2010, 2018), Joachim Kühn (2011), Tord Gustavsen (2016), Henri Texier (2019). All three Charles Lloyd concerts: the sublime spirit of Go Down Moses (2011), the energy of the Wild Man Dance Suite (2014) and the lyrical encore of La Llorona (2019).

What forms the festival’s artistic concept?

The aim is to devise a programme of the highest artistic value, uncompromising and bold, representing both the mainstream and the avant-garde, alongside interesting jazz fusions with some branches of popular music. Unlike the first editions, when the majority of participants came from the homeland of jazz, today there is a greater emphasis on European artists – from Scandinavia to Italy, and from Portugal to Russia, creating an encounter with the classical tradition or folklore of their home countries, or the cultural environment that surrounds them. We care about always adding to the list some hero of the genre who’s never previously participated in our festival, but also for us to courageously present new forces. We are particularly excited about our local performers coming face to face with the grandmasters of world jazz: the festival always opens with an original production by an established local artist, while in the Serbian Showcase programme we offer premiere performances of the promising projects of younger ensembles.

The Belgrade Jazz Festival is the only event of its kind from Serbia to have been invited to become a member of the Europe Jazz Network.

It is regularly attended by foreign guests, and not only as audience members, but rather also around 50 prominent journalists, promoters and managers... What is it that makes the BJF so interesting in international circles?

That was wonderfully described by renowned American critic Thomas Conrad: “Belgrade’s bookings reflect an awareness of the players now operating on the leading edge of the jazz art form, famous or not, from the United States and elsewhere. Unlike so many jazz festivals these days, Belgrade does not offer any rock or pop (…) Every act in the programme has a reason to be there.”

Another reason is the atmosphere. While visitor numbers are falling at many festivals and audiences aren’t getting any younger, in Belgrade the halls are always over 80% full and the majority of audience members are in their early thirties. With a hunger for good music that’s in short supply throughout the year, they explode with emotion at the festival.

Apart from that, the people are agreeable and communicative, always ready to share their opinions on music with foreign guests during breaks, or to chat about other topics. And it is also interesting that – “around the festival” - the food, as we know, is exceptional, and the prices are affordable, providing gastronomic enjoyment during the afternoons.

exert joint efforts in order to contribute to creating the best product. It is important to stress that foreign institutions have full respect for our artistic choices.

The Coronavirus pandemic led to that assistance falling by half this year, which we actually expected, but the partnerships that have been realised (with Germany, Portugal, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Austria and Poland) enabled us to again assemble a courageous programme, with an emphasis on younger artists.

Charles Mingus, 1972, photo Laslo Dorman

Art Blakey, 1988, photo Laslo Dorman

Maria Schneider, photo Joke Schot

The Belgrade Youth Centre, Dom Omladine Beograd, as the executive producer of the event, fosters good cooperation with numerous foreign cultural centres and embassies.To what extent does this contribute to your continuous presenting of performers from important individual jazz scenes?

Institutional assistance is essential to maintaining a high-quality programme, with low ticket prices that are appropriate for the budgets of the Serbian public. If that support was lacking, we would be forced to choose only artists who are famous enough to “pay for themselves”, and that would no longer be a festival in the form with which we’re familiar. A record 15 institutions from 13 countries supported 2019’s 35th edition. It seems to us that, in a way, we brought a large family of domestic and foreign partners together around the idea of the BJF, who

The programme of the 37th edition will include the performances of 25 bands, with over 100 musicians from 18 countries on three continents.

Which of the concerts will be “must-sees”?

All of them. I say that from the perspective of a jazz enthusiast, who to this day, at some other European destination, wakes up at the crack of dawn to watch the first morning performances and only heads to bed when the last jazz sounds fall silent after midnight. Another reason is that we constantly strive to invite new participants, so there isn’t a great chance that you’ll see some of the guest performers in our area again soon. And the most important thing is that we value every performance equally, whether that’s an affirmed name or someone “up and coming”.

If I were to add a small dose of the personal to all of this… It would, first and foremost, a recommendation to attend the unique concert to be held at Kombank Hall by Maria Schneider and Cologne’s Subway Jazz Orchestra. Specifically, it isn’t only that she’s been the world’s leading jazz composer and arranger for a quarter of a century, having won seven Grammys and dozens of other awards, but that the production is also original. Namely, we “agreed” with the artist for the programme to consist of masterpieces from her entire career in a premiere performance of one of the most promising European ensembles. The second exclusive is represented by Seifert Night: The Best of Polish Jazz.

The Seifert Foundation recently launched a project to promote Polish jazz worldwide, and Belgrade has the honour of being the world’s first city to host three prestigious Polish ensembles, with Joe Lovano as a special guest from the U.S. Lovers of avant-garde jazz are awaited by a series of encounters with the freest European artists in the dark of America, led by energetic French artists Thomas de Pourquery and Supersonic. And, finally, the DOB Great Hall will host an intimate bonus concert by the Brad Mehldau Trio, the leading contemporary jazz piano ensemble. Welcome to our 50th birthday party!

October

49

Foto Nenad Mihajlovic nova rs

My life

Slobodan Tišma, artist, musician, poet, writer, member of the rock avant-garde

EVERY PERIOD HAS

ITS OWN AESTHETICS AND ITS OWN MORALS The colourful life of Slobodan Tišma has been filled with conflicting interests, such as his adoration of rock music and endless enjoyment of classical music, primarily that of Wagner

W

itty, charming, spontaneous, creative, intellectually curious... These are the kinds of threads woven to form Novi Sad-based artist Slobodan Tišma, who at first glance leaves the impression of being a shy man, somewhat distinctive, focused on himself,

50

October

invisible to others in his sense of self. It is fascinating that Tišma, with his gentle and fragile outward appearance, is actually an artistic giant: he is a writer and poet who has been awarded multiple times – he is the recipient of many awards, including the prestigious NIN Award for his 2012 novel Bernardi’s Room... Prior to

becoming a writer, he engaged in conceptual art and was also a talented musician who was particularly active on the former Yugoslavia’s local rock ‘n’ roll scene. He will remain remembered as the frontman and spiritual leader of former popular bands Luna and La Strada. Although Luna had only one album, Nestvarne stvari

[Unreal things], the group gained the status of an indispensable element of the Yugoslav rock avant-garde. Those who attended Luna’s concerts remember his unique authorial vision and the band’s fierce performing energy. Tišma is unique in every respect. A Novi Sad native from head to toe, he describes himself as a Yugoslav. The collapse of the great Yugoslavia, with its six republics and two provinces, didn’t impact negatively on his sense of belonging to one nation; he remains a “member” of the state in which he spent most of his life. He was and, as he says, will remain – a Yugoslav. He is the subject of the documentary film Masks, while a monograph of Luna, entitled Mirrors of the Moon, was published a few years ago.

Almost everything is known about your creative work, both literary and musical. And life has unfolded between those creative endeavours. If you were to write some kind of autobiography, what would you say about yourself?

“I’m actually just finishing a book that’s a kind of autobiography, or better to say an autograph, which is called Astal tiš riba friš, so I’m Astal [Table]. Everything is on the table, like a buffet, everything is on display, so who wants what can find it. I don’t hide anything, everything about me is known; I have no secrets, whether it comes to pleasant or unpleasant facts.

That’s what I’m like, open. And the beautiful and the ugly, the good and the bad. Light and darkness. I sometimes find myself disgusting.

That’s because I have no interest, I don’t deal in politics, I’m free from the desire to possess, I’m free from the will for power. Although that’s said to be impossible, that some desire always exists, i.e., a will for power, and is inexhaustible.

There is actually a reluctant will for power that is a kind of animosity, which is something very bad, whining and accusations that lead to war and conflict. Serbia is a country that suffers from animosity, which is why life here is so bad.”

You love Novi Sad and are very attached to your city (although you just happened to have been born in Stara Pazova) and to Pap Pavla Street, today’s Pavla Papa [Pope Paul] Street, where you spent the first two decades of your life?

“I was just born in Stara Pazova, in the house of my aunt Mara, my father’s sister. Her husband, my uncle, was famous Pazova-based

tailor Dušan Surdučki. We lived in Novi Sad at that time, in Ritter’s Garden, today’s 1st May Square, just behind the Assumption Cemetery.

Betanija (the Novi Sad maternity hospital) was problematic in the sense of hygienic conditions and it was thus safer to be born in a private family house, so my father took my mother to Stara Pazova and brought us back to Novi Sad around ten days after the birth. We moved to Belgrade when I was two years old, and my sister Natalija was born there. My father got a job at the Ministry of Justice. We lived in the Kalemegdan area, in 7th July Street, in the so-called Spasić’s Endowment, in a huge apartment that we shared with the owners, the

There is actually a reluctant will for power that is a kind of animosity, which is something very bad, whining and accusations that lead to war and conflict. Serbia is a country that suffers from animosity, which is why life here is so bad Atanacković family, which had no children and comprised only an elderly couple. A very ugly custom of the then new communist authorities was to move you into someone else’s bourgeois apartment. However, the Atanackovićs benefited from my father, who had access to the so-called diplomatic warehouse, where – at that time – you could find all sorts of items that were otherwise unavailable in regular shops. My mum generously showered them with gifts in the form of food products, as well as the luxuries that were then presented by things like coffee, chocolate, liqueurs and American cigarettes.”

Given that the Atanackovićs had no offspring of their own, they probably loved little Slobodan, i.e., you, in particular… How do you recall that time?

“They would look after me if my parents

attended an officers’ ball in the evenings, which was the most common night out at that time.

The only thing that I remember from that time is a blue tricycle that I rode in the building’s entranceway. However, we only spent a short period living in Belgrade. It just so happened that my cousin, my father’s nephew, was accused of being a Cominformist as a twenty-year-old. He was sentenced to serve a year at the Goli Otok prison, neither guilty nor deserving, just because he failed to report his schoolfriend for possessing some compromising material. My father tried to prove that his nephew wasn’t guilty, and that was the end of his political career. He received a pre-Party expulsion warning and was sent back to Novi Sad as a punishment. That’s how we ended up in Pap Pavla Street, at number 1, behind the Mlinotehna shop, where we resided for 15 years, until 1966, when we moved to the Liman area, to Fruškogorska Street.”

It isn’t well known that you loved classical music?

“Already back in primary school, I had several classical music records, such as the Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D minor

by Polish composer Henryk Wieniawski, which I adored. I also enjoyed the music of Chopin, his mazurkas, nocturnes etc. At the same time, I enjoyed listening to the then popular Adriano Celentano, especially his song Ventiquattromila baci [24,000 kisses].

“I later enriched my collection with records of Wagner operas. I didn’t like going out, I preferred sitting at home and listening to my records. I was also a regular listener of the Third Programme of Radio Belgrade, where you could hear good music and they also broadcast good shows from philosophy and literature. I learned from that.”

Having long hair was part of the image young men in the 1960s and ‘70s. How did your parents and teachers react to that novelty?

“Well, differently, but we weren’t banned from having slightly longer hair. My parents were very liberal. My father never told me it was time to get a haircut. I remember that my school friend Mića Jokić and I had problems on the promenade because of our longer hair. Some Montenegrin wanted to cut our hair. When that was heard by Mića’s father, who was actually provincial minister for religious issues Marko

October

51

My life

Slobodan Tišma, artist, musician, poet, writer, member of the rock avant-garde

Jokić, he wanted to go and personally deal with that guy and we barely talked him out of it.”

You grew up during the time of socialism and communism. How much did that ideology interest you?

“It didn’t. We were the first post-war generation to be indulged, so to speak. No one pressured us to join the Party, or to attend work actions. There were two or three kids in our class in high school who were in the youth organization, thus they were communists. Although the vast majority of us were Partizan children, we were free of ideology. I was in the same class as the sons of two national heroes: Ratko, who was the son of Marko Peričin Kamenjar, and Stevan, who was the son of Đorđe Nikšić Johan.

At that time, Yugoslavia was already focused completely on the West, so cultural influences were completely acceptable, especially when it came down to individual lifestyles.”

You showed your fascination with the Beatles and rock ‘n’ roll firstly by listening to that kind of music and later by playing it. It was following their example that you founded your first band, “Tile and the four cripples”, in high school.That name caused certain associations and even problems among the citizenry?

“It did. I was called Tile at school, and it is known who else they also called that, out of mercy, at that time. Of course, the problem was the context,Tile was not allowed to have anything to do with cripples, which is a political incorrectness, and I apologise to people living with disabilities.

However, no one touched us because of that, I mean the police, but we weren’t allowed to print posters with that name or to perform in public.”

Due to the band’s “problematic” name, you performed under the name Shadows. You performed popular rock songs of the period, and you looked so attractive on stage that you even attracted the attention of famous actress Branka Veselinović?

“We performed under that name at the famous Belgrade Guitar Festival. That was in 1965 at the Belgrade Fairgrounds. It was customary to form so-called phantom bands, with someone announcing that there is a group under this and that name, when in fact that group does not exist, there are no members. We couldn’t register

52

October

for the Guitar Festival under our own name.

The list of registered bands was published in the newspaper Večernji novosti. We saw that some band called Senke [Shadows] from Petrovaradin was registered. We enquired around the city as to who that could be, but no one had anything to tell us about them. We concluded that it was a phantom band and decided to go to the Guitar Festival and register under the name Shadows.

The gathering place was in the editorial office of Borba, across the street from Trade Union Hall.

It was a Saturday when we arrived in Belgrade by train and checked in there. The organiser packed us into a van and headed for the Fairgrounds. We were mods.That’s how we dressed, in three-quarter length jackets, with obligatory long white scarves, we looked very attractive. When we appeared on stage, comedian Branka Veselinović ran in from the front row with a camera and started filming us. We saw that a man was lying under the farfisa (electric organ). He asked Mića Jokić to pay two hundred dinars to turn on the organ. It only worked for the second song. We played Green back dollar by the Kingston trio and Till I met you by the group the Searchers. The Guitar Festival was otherwise very well attended, with several thousand people in attendance at the Fairgrounds.”

Who were the members of that band?

“Alongside side myself, as the vocalist, the band included Mića Jokić as keyboardist, Zeka Koldžin as rhythm guitarist, Ruja Radujkov as solo guitarist and Tomica Tkalac on drums.”

You have remained remembered for the music of the groups La Strada and Luna, with which you organised unforgettable concerts in Novi Sad, Belgrade and elsewhere... Which members of La Strada deserve most of the credit for the music that the group performed gaining a reputation that endures to this day?

“Those are: Daniel Stari as bassist, Jasmina Mitrušić as keyboardist, Horvat Žolt as solo guitarist and Robert Radić on drums. That’s the line-up that recorded La Strada’s only album. However, also performing during the early days of La Strada were Ivan Fece Firči, Zoran Bulatović Bale, Siniša Sekulić, Boris Oslovčan, Dragan Nastastić Gane and Predrag Ostojić Preža, while performing in the final line-up were Ilija Vlaisavljević Bebec and Zoran Lekić Leki.”

Unfortunately, the members of La Strada came and went often. The group disbanded and Luna was formed.

Foto Nenad Mihajlovic nova rs

the theatre of Ljubiša Ristić, there were about ten people in attendance, and that was the end.”

“After 15 concerts and two years of activity (1981-83), Luna recorded its debut album, Unreal Things (Helidon), in 1984 and then promptly disappeared from the stage. We got together again in 2004 at the Exit Festival. It was a nice comeback after twenty years, albeit a short-lived one, just that one concert, but it was worth it. Thanks to the internet, which has come to the fore in the meantime, Luna has gained popularity.”

Having assessed that your music sounds better live, at performances, you re-formed the group La Strada? The music you performed sounded extraordinary. You considered that the other members of the band deserved more credit for that, that they were more talented than you. And then you decided to leave rock ‘n’ roll for others to handle?

“I was a weak performer, I sang badly, I faked it, but in a creative sense I was the soul of La Strada; I composed all those songs and wrote the lyrics. My poor singing was a special problem for Luna, because they performed at a very high level. With La Strada that wasn’t as important and that slight faking it even gave it some charm. La Strada stopped working because

Between Dobrica Ćosić and Bora Ćosić, we always opted for Bora. He represented the spirit of modernity, the spirit of the new, and possessed destructive irony.

We weren’t attracted to tradition; we had an ironic attitude towards both the nation and Orthodoxy; we were areligious and antinational we didn’t have a real production company, and Oliver Mandić, who was the editor at PGP, didn’t want to release our record. We also didn’t have adequate access to the media, television specifically. The editor of ‘Hit of the Month’, Dragan Ilić Ilke, hated us, and we had songs that were better than many of those that he pushed on the show. At the last concert in Subotica, in

You arranged a real delight for fans of Luna’s music when you held two concerts in 2017, one in Belgrade and the other in Novi Sad, at the promotion of the monograph Mirrors of the Moon by Predrag Buca Popović, Goran Tarlać and Saša Rakezić. The members of Luna then gathered again, which apart from yourself include: Jasmina Mitrušić Mina, Ivan Fece Firči and Zoran Bulatović Bale. How did you feel on stage after such a long time?

“Exceptional. I enjoyed it. My voice served me better than it had at Exit. There were more than a thousand people in Mixer House, we’d never performed in front of a larger audience.

The audience is very important. They carry you and you feel that feedback, the eros that flow towards you, and then things unfold in the best possible way.”

The youth forum was a revelation of freedom for you. There people listened to psychedelic music and smoked hashish... From today’s perspective, how would you explain that need to try everything and to quickly come to adore everything that represented the cultural life of Novi Sad during that time?

“We disturbed the cultural stagnation of a small provincial town, and that is always dangerous. We were primarily hated by traditionalist artists, pathetic modernists or moderate modernists, and we were unrestrained modernists, those who overdid it. It is true that we tried drugs, but none of us became addicts. The five people from culture who spat at us the most and were the main culprits in some of us ending up in prison were notorious alcoholics, thus they were sick addicts. We brought the spirit of Europe and the world to Novi Sad. Everything that was then happening in the world was also happening here in Novi Sad. However, we were slave of fashion for those drunkards.”

A book of the poetry of Arthur Rimbaud, which was given to you by a friend, holds a special place in your life. Was it under the influence of this book that you become more interested in poetry, but also in writing your own poems?

“It did. I discovered French symbolism very early on and formed myself as a poet under its

October

53

My life

Slobodan Tišma, artist, musician, poet, writer, member of the rock avant-garde

influence. I had the good fortune that my professor at the faculty was Sreten Marić, who was the greatest connoisseur of French symbolism in our country. Professor Marić was my neighbour in the Liman neighbourhood, so I often bumped into him on the street, but I also went to his house for coffee. He supported me; he thought that I was talented, unlike some other professors from the Faculty of Philosophy, who considered me an example of an untalented person. Apart from Arthur Rimbaud, I was strongly influenced by the poetry of Stéphane Mallarmé, as was everyone else at the Tribune, because he was the originator of what would later come to be known as linguistic or conceptual poetry.”

During the ‘60s, our famous poet, Pero Zubac, who was then editor of the Index newspaper, wanted to read your poems and even published one of them. You even edited a cultural column for that paper for a while. How much did that mean to you, as a young poet?

“Well, it meant a lot. I was twenty years old and I had an open pathway into the literary world.

However, I didn’t realise that in the best or most acceptable way. That’s because I wasn’t willing to compromise. I very quickly transferred from Index to the Tribune, where the real company gathered and where there was a real atmosphere of the spirit of rebellion and creative freedom.”

You were already attracted to literature in primary school, while you were completely enchanted by it by the time you reached high school. You often point out that your German language teacher, Marina Vasiljev Reich, contributed significantly to that?

“Marina Vasiljev, who later married to become Reich, was my guardian angel. In high school I was in a very difficult condition. As I’ve said before, puberty tore me apart. Marina understood that and paid me a lot of attention. But her lessons in German language and literature were pivotal. She constantly forced translation, so we very quickly became acquainted with German romanticism and expressionism.

During our lessons we would read and translate Adalbert Stifter, Gerhart Hauptmann and other writers. That literature trapped me in a web of love that hasn’t been broken to this day. What a thrill it was to read the original version of Adalbert Stifter’s Indian Summer.”

54

October

literature, mostly from antiquity, ancient Greek literature, while Professor Petrović taught literary theory and baroque literature.”

That time was important for the development of literature and social thought. A rivalry emerged between realists and modernists.

How much did that impact on you? How did you cope with that literary turmoil?

“Between Dobrica Ćosić and Bora Ćosić, we always opted for Bora. He represented the spirit of modernity, the spirit of the new, and possessed destructive irony. We weren’t attracted to tradition; we had an ironic attitude towards both the nation and Orthodoxy’ we were areligious and anti-national.”

I don’t like what I see around me, it doesn’t make me feel good, and I only see snatching and rudeness, which makes me feel sick.

But maybe I’m just an old grump, old man winter Yet, you initially enrolled in the Faculty of Law and only later transferred to the Faculty of Philosophy, to study Yugoslav literature?

“I did. My father, who was a lawyer and judge, insisted that I study law, that I continue the family tradition. I passed the first year and two exams from the second year of study, then realised that I was only interested in literature and enrolled at the Faculty of Philosophy. My father didn’t object, as he was impressed that his son would be a writer. My sister, Natalija, still continued the family tradition, completing law studies and later becoming a judge in the court where my father was once the president. I had several exceptional professors at the Faculty of Philosophy, first and foremost the aforementioned Sreten Marić and Svetozar Petrović. One could really learn something from them. Professor Marić taught world

When did you start writing and publishing prose? How did you experience your first book? Do you personally feel more like a poet or a prose writer?

“I published my first story, Uteha kose [the Comfort of Hair], in the Belgrade magazine Reč when I was fifty years old, which is very late to start something. I published my first book when I was 45, which was a collection of poems entitled Marinisms. The publisher was Miroslav Mandić’s Ruža lutanja [the Rose of Wandering], with a print run of some three hundred copies. That was something beautiful for me. My editor was the poet Nenad Jovanović, the previous author of the edition. There were no restrictions whatsoever. The design was done

by Dragan Protić, aka Škart, who produced an extraordinary work for which he even received an award. I always say that I write poetic prose, poetry writing has always been a great inspiration for me as an author, for example, the life and work of Friedrich Hölderlin.”

Your novel Bernardi’s Room won the prestigious NIN Award for Novel of the Year in early 2012. Many people were delighted with the jury’s decision, but how did you receive this acknowledgement personally?

“Well, it made me feel good even though I was aware of the relativity of the award. There are always those who are thrilled, but also those who think the opposite because they don’t like you.There were people, especially from the world of literature, who tried to question my success in the media. I spent a year in the media vortex, but

that passed. I now live as I did before the award, far from the public eye, as if I never received it.”

You are completely connected to Novi Sad through your literary opus. Why is that?

“That’s because I haven’t travelled anywhere.

I’ve always lived in that small area between Belgrade and Novi Sad. My experience is modest, restricted, not to say small town. That’s bad on one side, but it also has its advantages. I’ve always strived not to complicate my life, to live as simply as possible and to just deal with writing. I’ve never applied for any scholarships or residencies.

Apart from awards (monetary equivalent), I’ve never received a dinar from institutions or from the state; I haven’t been given an apartment or anything else. But that’s the best way, as you don’t owe anyone anything. I’m very shy, I never even asked my own father for anything, let alone some other strangers. When I received the NIN Award, the mayor and provincial first minister invited me to visit them, although they didn’t interest me, and I went just so I wouldn’t come across as being snooty. In our conversation, they promised me a small apartment that I could use as a work space, given that I write in my bedroom, with two computers next to my bed. They also promised to give money for the republishing of the novel. However, none of that ever came to be. I probably didn’t leave the impression of a serious writer on them, so they behaved in a way: it’s easy to fuck with a crazy person. Interestingly, the then mayor was shocked to discover that I’m the brother of Judge Natalija Tišma Miloševski, whom he knew well because he was a lawyer. He had no idea that she had an artist brother. The then provincial first minister lived in Papa Pavla Street. But what did he know about that street?”

What are you writing about now; what are your topics today? Readers don’t like the speculation that you will stop writing… Isn’t a writer a writer until the end of their life?

“As I said, I’m writing an autobiography.That is the most unpretentious thing, and at my age

Foto Nenad Mihajlovic nova rs

Let’s mention your works. What have you published to date?

“In order: Marinisms, Garden like that, Tame religious considerations (Blues diary), Urvidek, Quattro stagioni, Bernardi’s room, Great thoughts of little Tišma, Horror or…”

There’s a big question as to whether art even exists today. There are no more artistic directions, everything has been flattened and relativised.

Everyone has become an artist, even politicians, saying how their processes are just a kind of performance, as they jest is the only thing that makes sense. This is how most writers around the globe end their work.

I’m trying to be honest, to open myself up, of course, as much as that’s possible, given that, as everyone knows, language always adulterates, it lies, as that is its nature.”

How much and in what way does life in Novi Sad, and Serbia generally, differ from the time of your childhood, growing up, youth…?

“It differs greatly. Of course, life was easier and slower, with more enjoyment. But

every time has its own aesthetics and its own morals. I don’t like what I see around me, it doesn’t make me feel good, and I only see snatching and rudeness, which makes me feel sick. But maybe I’m just an old grump, old man winter.”

Changes have also occurred in the world of art. What is today’s artist like; how do you rate new ideas, directions, expressions, artists?

“There’s a big question as to whether art even exists today. There are no more artistic directions, everything has been flattened and relativised. Everyone has become an artist, even politicians, saying how their processes are just a kind of performance, as they jest. But maybe I’m not well enough informed; I don’t have insight into what’s going on.”

Although many people think that they know everything about you, most of them don’t even know that you are a family man, that you have a wife and a son.

“Yes, my family is my sanctuary; I’ve managed to provide them with a decent life and that is what’s most important. The group Luna has a song called I’m a Family Man, but that’s something much more poisonous and dangerous. However, that’s only art, and art is no kind of instruction manual for life.”

October

55

CHILL OUT The (Missed) Theft Of Van Gogh’s Works: Man Arrested In Dubai The man, Raffaele Imperiale, is accused of using money from drugs, real estate empires and money laundering, and was arrested on August 4, now detained in the UAE pending extradition, as claimed in a joint statement by the Italian State Police and Police organizations for financial crimes. Scheveningen before a storm (1882) and A congregation leaves the Reformed Church of Nuenen (1884-85), stolen in 2002 from the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, were found in 2016 by agents of the Guardia di Finanza, kept in Imperiale parents’ home in a ground of Castellammare di Stabia. Wrapped in cotton sheets and hidden in the cavity of the dwelling, the works were small in size, with dark and dull tones, but with the unmistakable pasty brushstroke of the Dutch artist.

Apple Announce The iPhone 13 Apple kicked off its fall product event by diving right into lots of product announcements. Here’s what Apple announced: The new iPad and iPad mini, The Apple Watch Series 7, The iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini, The iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro Max The new iPads will go on sale after the event on Tuesday and ship next week.

The new iPhones go on sale 17 September and ship on 24 September. The Apple Watch Series 7 will ship later this fall. OF note: it didn’t announce new AirPods.

Daniel Craig Is Made An Honorary Commander In The Royal Navy Daniel Craig has been appointed an honorary Commander by the Royal Navy.

The 53-year-old actor said he was ‘truly privileged and honored’ to have been given the title, which awards him the same rank as his most famous character, James Bond. He said: ‘I am truly privileged and honored to be appointed the rank of Honorary Commander in the senior service.’

First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, the head of the Royal Navy - who worked closely with Daniel and the crew on latest Bond movie No Time To Die - said the organization’s work was very similar to that done by the suave spy.

56

October

Ronaldo Replaces Lionel Messi As Highest-paid Footballer In Forbes Rankings Cristiano Ronaldo has replaced Lionel Messi as the highest-paid footballer in the world, according to latest rankings released by Forbes.

Ronaldo is set to make $125m (£91.63m) before taxes in the 2021-22 season after moving back to Manchester United with $70m (£51.31m) coming from his salary and bonuses at Old Trafford, according to Forbes.

The 36-year-old is set to earn an estimated $55m (£40.31m) from commercial deals, with only three athletes set to earn more from sponsorship; Roger Federer ($90m, £65.97m), LeBron James ($65m, £47.64m) and Tiger Woods ($60m, £43.98m).

Netflix Buys The Entire Roald Dahl Catalogue Netflix has acquired the entire catalogue of Roald Dahl, the beloved children’s author known for works including “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” and “Matilda.”

The U.S. streaming giant announced it has bought the Roald Dahl Story Co., which manages the rights to the British novelist’s characters and stories. Financial terms were not disclosed. “Excited to announce that the Roald Dahl Story Company (RDSC) and Netflix are joining forces to bring some of the world’s most loved stories to current and future fans in creative new ways,” Netflix said in a tweet, which featured a chocolate bar being unwrapped to reveal a golden ticket, in reference to the book “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.”

Facebook Announces Its New Ray-Ban Glasses Facebook unveiled its long-awaited collaboration with Luxottica: RayBan Stories smart glasses. The glasses, which start at $299, let users take photos and record videos with voice commands or by pressing a button on the right temple of the glasses. They also have small speakers that turn the smart glasses into headphones for listening to music and podcasts via Bluetooth from the smartphone they’re paired with.

And they include microphones, so you can talk on the phone through them. It’s the latest example of Facebook building new hardware, and they represent another step into a future where Facebook envisions people wearing computers on their faces, whether they’re Oculus virtual reality headsets or something more normal looking like sunglasses.

October

57

Trench Coats That You Will Wear

7 1

Forever!

2

6

3

4

5

1. Maison Margiela - Eur 3,413 | 2. Burberry - Eur 1,898 | 3. Givenchy - Eur 536 | 4.Tod’s - Eur 284 | 5. Comme Des Garcons - Eur 97 | 6.Tom Ford - Eur 2,260 | 7. Native Sons - Eur 410 | 8. Christian Louboutin - Eur

58

October

17 11

9

12

18

10

14

15

19 16 13

9. Burberry - Eur 2,000 | 10. Rokh - Eur 1,245 | 11. Petar Petrov - Eur 1,843 | 12. MM6 Maison Margiela - Eur 988 | 13. Amina Muaddi - Eur 970 | 14. Khaite - Eur 2,230 | 15. Christian Louboutin - Eur 994 | 16. Christian Loubouti - Eur 900 | 17. Bottega Veneta - Eur 242 | 18. Kilian - Eur 180 | 19. Isabel Marant - Eur 920

October

59

Culture

calendar An Evening Of Russian Symphonic Classics 15 October - Kolarac

Tricky

15 October - Belgrade Youth Center Legendary trip-hop musician Tricky will hold a concert on 15 October 2021 (21:00) in the hall “Americana” of the Belgrade Youth Center, as part of a tour on the occasion of the recently released album “Fall To Pieces”.

After collaborating with the cult band Massive Attack, Tricky released his debut solo album “Maxinquaye” (1995), with hits such as “Aftermath”, “Ponderosa”, “Overcome” and “Black Steel”, becoming a world star and one of the most influential pioneers trip hop. Tricky continued to develop his unique musical expression, recognizable by the multilayered, dark combination of hip hop, alternative rock and rag (ragga), on a total of 14 albums, the last of which was the acclaimed “Fall To Pieces” (2020).

Known for his inclination to perform grandiose programs, Alexei Volodin, the hero of the first philharmonic marathon of all Beethoven’s piano concerts in one evening, returns to our stage, this time with the first concert performances for this instrument by Sergei Prokofiev and Dmitry Shostakovich. In the second, he will be joined by our solo trumpet player, Jovan Savić, as the second soloist at this concert. The program is rounded off by the masterful film suite Lieutenant Kiže, and the concert ends with a big bang - Overture 1812 by P. I. Tchaikovsky.

Daniel Rajskin, conductor / Alexei Volodin, piano / Jovan Savic, trumpet Program: S. Prokofiev: Lieutenant Kiže; S. Prokofiev: Piano Concerto no. 1; D. Shostakovich: Piano Concerto no. 1; PI Tchaikovsky: Overture 1812

Belgrade Jazz Festival

26-31 October – Belgrade Youth Center The 50th Belgrade Jazz Festival will be held from 26 to 31 October, and it will present 25 bands, ie more than 100 musicians from 17 countries. Due to the jubilee, the manifestation will last for seven days with a special guest appearance in Novi Sad. The audience will be able to enjoy the best contemporary jazz from all over the world and more than 100 musicians from Europe, North America and Asia, including the most talented young authors of the Serbian jazz scene.

The slogan of the festival is “Jazz Flame” in line with an anniversary. One of the most famous composer of contemporary jazz, Maria Schneider, is coming from New York, accompanied by the best young, German big band “Subway Jazz Orchestra”. The Azerbaijani pianist Aziza Mustafa Zadeh will be a guest with her trio, and the festival will be opened by the Novi Sad “Miami Trio” with a special guest Urlich Drehsler. Trumpet player Theo Crocker and pianist Brad Mehldau are coming from the USA, as well as prominent names of the European jazz scene - “Rymden” from Sweden and “Markus Stockhausen Group” from Germany.

60

October

SEE MORE: WWW.CORDMAGAZINE.COM

RECOMMENDS

Tesla: The Wizard Of Electricity

Modern Cocktails

Who was Nikola Tesla? A visionary inventor? Eccentric genius? Outsider rebel? Now David Kent reveals the life, drama and mystery surrounding the romantic figure. An immigrant from what is now Croatia, Tesla would move to America and go on to create groundbreaking inventions including some that would change the world. He even electrified visitors at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair with an amazing never-before-seen electrical light display. Despite his successes, Tesla would become largely forgotten over the remaining dozen years of his life as others got credit for his remarkable scientific contributions. But after his death, he found renewed fame as the subject of conspiracy theories and as a pop culture idol. Through this fascinating book, you’ll come to know the dashing man that continues to capture imaginations today.

Matt Whiley, AKA The Talented Mr Fox, traces the evolution of the modern bartender against the backdrop of cocktail history with this stylish cocktail recipe book. With more than 60 recipes made from spirit bases including gin, vodka, whiskey, bourbon and cognac, alongside expert advice on equipment and glassware, this is the complete kit to modern cocktail making at home! Learn to make delicious and original cocktails such as the Bangkok Penicillin or the Marmite Martini, Pea Wine or the Rok House Bellini Fermented Cucumber Syrup. From highly acclaimed mixologist and drinks consultant Matt Whiley, this unique cocktail recipe book is the perfect inspiration for creating your own modern drinks cabinet and the perfect how to guide to making delicious and highly creative cocktails from scratch.

Goldfinch

Klara and the Sun

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction 2014 Aged thirteen, Theo Decker, son of a devoted mother and a reckless, largely absent father, survives an accident that otherwise tears his life apart. Alone and rudderless in New York, he is taken in by the family of a wealthy friend. He is tormented by an unbearable longing for his mother, and down the years clings to the thing that most reminds him of her: a small, strangely captivating painting that ultimately draws him into the criminal underworld. As he grows up, Theo learns to glide between the drawing rooms of the rich and the dusty antiques store where he works. He is alienated and in love - and his talisman, the painting, places him at the centre of a narrowing, ever more dangerous circle.

The Goldfinch is a haunted odyssey through present-day America and a drama of enthralling power. Combining unforgettably vivid characters and thrilling suspense, it is a beautiful, addictive triumph - a sweeping story of loss and obsession, of survival and self-invention, of the deepest mysteries of love, identity and fate.

‘The Sun always has ways to reach us.’ From her place in the store, Klara, an Artificial Friend with outstanding observational qualities, watches carefully the behaviour of those who come in to browse, and of those who pass in the street outside. She remains hopeful a customer will soon choose her, but when the possibility emerges that her circumstances may change for ever, Klara is warned not to invest too much in the promises of humans. In Klara and the Sun, Kazuo Ishiguro looks at our rapidly-changing modern world through the eyes of an unforgettable narrator to explore a fundamental question: what does it mean to love?

Getting Past No: Negotiating With Difficult People

No Time Like the Future: An Optimist Considers Mortality

We all want to get to yes, but what happens when the other person keeps saying no? How can you negotiate successfully with a stubborn boss, an irate customer, or a deceitful coworker? In Getting Past No, William Ury of Harvard Law School’s Program on Negotiation offers a proven breakthrough strategy for turning adversaries into negotiating partners. You’ll learn how to stay in control under pressure, defuse anger and hostility, find out what the other side really wants, counter dirty tricks, use power to bring the other side back to the table, reach agreements that satisfy both sides’ needs. Getting Past No is the stateof-the-art book on negotiation for the twenty-first century.

It will help you deal with tough times, tough people, and tough negotiations. You don’t have to get mad or get even.

Instead, you can get what you want!

The entire world knows Michael J. Fox as Marty McFly, the teenage sidekick of Doc Brown in Back to the Future.

His two previous bestselling memoirs, Lucky Man and Always Looking Up, dealt with how he came to terms with the illness, all the while exhibiting his iconic optimism.

In No Time Like the Future: An Optimist Considers Mortality, Michael shares personal stories and observations about illness and health, ageing, the strength of family and friends, and how our perceptions about time affect the way we approach mortality. Thoughtful and moving, but with Fox’s trademark sense of humour, his book provides a vehicle for reflection about our lives, our loves, and our losses.

David J. Kent 1943 rsd

Dona Tartt 1295 rsd

Roger Fisher, William Ury 1335 rsd

Matt Whiley 3240 rsd

Kazuo Ishiguro 1943 rsd

Michael J. Fox 2024 rsd

October

61

&FACES PLACES 07/09/2021

Premiere Of The Movie “Skok” The biographical film “Skok” (Jump” is dedicated to the life of the young basketball player Natasa Kovacevic, who lost her leg in a car accident, at a time when her career was in its infancy. She was only 19 at the time.

The entire film crew, led by Natasa Kovacevic, producer and screenwriter Aleksandar Miletic and director Ivica Vidanovic, bowed to the audience, to the applause of the entire hall. In addition to the central figure of the story, basketball legends of the Red Star and Partizan, as well as foreign officials, including the president of the Basketball Association of France, Jean-Pierre Sita, who also appears in the film, walked the red carpet.

09/09/2021

IWC Meeting AT The Residence Of Pakistani Ambassador The International Women’s Club of Belgrade held its first Coffee Morning event of the 2021-2022 club year on Wednesday September 8th. There was an unusually large crowd 76 people, a mix of members and guests. There were many ladies from the diplomatic community in attendance. IWC president Sonia Shehryar hosted the event at her residence, home of the Pakistani ambassador. Mrs. Shehryar spoke to the crowd, sharing interesting facts about Pakistan and thanking many people for their contributions to the IWC and to the book the club published to raise money for charities, Belgrade Through the Eyes of Foreigners.

10/09/2021

Circular Economy in Serbia - Nordic Experiences The embassies of Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, with the support of the Nordic Council of Ministers, have started the project “Strengthening the circular economy in Serbia - Nordic experiences”. The project was presented during a reception in the garden of the residence of the Ambassador of Norway to Serbia. H.E. Jørn Gjelstad. The intention of the embassies of the Nordic countries is to support Serbia in continuing to implement the principles of the circular economy, to share the experiences of their countries and raise awareness of local partners about the importance and benefits of circular economy, which affects each individual and society as a whole.

Speaking about the importance of the circular economy, the Ambassador of Finland to Serbia, H.E. Kimmo Lähdevirta, said “Key actors in this area, including the business sector and citizens, need to understand how the circular economy works, in order to be part of the transition from a linear to a circular economy.”

62

October

SEE MORE: WWW.CORDMAGAZINE.COM

15/09/2021

75 Years Of Diplomatic Relations Between Serbia And Mexico On the occasion of the celebration of the National Day of Mexico and 75 years of diplomatic relations between Mexico and Serbia, the Embassy of Mexico in Serbia hosted a special ceremony at premises of the Embassy, attended by friends of the Embassy and the Mexican people.

14/09/2021

Western Balkans Rail Summit In the European Year of Rail, at the beginning of the summit, “Connecting Europe Express” arrived at the Belgrade Center railway station, a train that travels through more than 100 cities, symbolically connecting Europe. The European Year of Rail is part of the EU’s efforts, and within the framework of the European Green Deal, which aim to transition to a sustainable economy through achieving climate neutrality by 2050.

The event was organised by the Transport Community Permanent Secretariat, the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and under the auspices the Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure of Serbia.

15/09/2021

Day Of Serbian Unity, Freedom And National Flag Marked President of the Republic of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic stated at a ceremony marking the Day of Serbian Unity, Freedom and the National Flag, that this is a holiday of identity, who we are as Serbs, where we come from and where we are going. Speaking on the Sava Square, near the monument to Stefan Nemanja, Vucic pointed out that King Petar Karadjordjevic the First handed over 51 regimental flags to his army in June and November 1911, and underlined that none of them had been captured, which is a precedent in the history of modern warfare. According to him, the date chosen, 15 September, is the date of the breakthrough of the Thessaloniki Front – the day in which both our pain and our glory lie.

October

63

&FACES PLACES

15/09/2021

NALED Marked 15 Jubilee Years Of Work At Its September Gathering NALED members and partners gathered on at the traditional September gathering at the White Palace, to celebrate 15 years of successful work on creating better living and working conditions in Serbia. Respecting all epidemiological measures, NALED hosted more than 500 state and local leaders, businessmen, representatives of the international community and the diplomatic corps at the White Palace.

The event was opened by the Executive Director and the first NALED employee, Violeta Jovanović and the President of the Managing Board Vladislav Cvetković.

16/09/2021

International Networking Cocktail The event was held at the Metropol Hotel in Belgrade, which gathered over 200 members of 11 bilateral chambers of commerce in Serbia, with the aim of improving mutual cooperation. The International Networking Cocktail has already become traditional and is organized for the fourth time.

The goal of this event is to improve the cooperation between foreign bilateral chambers in Serbia and their members, which is already at an enviable level. The guests were greeted by the presidents of the chambers.

64

October

SEE MORE: WWW.CORDMAGAZINE.COM

17/09/2021

Japan Bestows The Order Of The Rising Sun Decoration To Goran Ciric In the April of this year, the Government of Japan has made public the recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun, conferred

by His Majesty the Emperor of Japan on foreign nationals who have made distinguished contributions to enhancing friendly relations with Japan.

The Embassy of Japan led by Ambassador H.E. Katsumata Takahiko awarded the honorable decoration to the former chairman of the Parliamentary Friendship Group with Japan, Mr. Goran Ciric.

18/09/2021

Italian-Serbian Film Festival The Italian-Serbian Film Festival, organized by the cultural association Excellence International in cooperation with the Italian Embassy in Belgrade, the Italian Institute of Culture in Belgrade, the Yugoslav Cinematheque and the Italian Experimental Center for Cinematography, is being organized for the sixth time. Under the auspices of the Italian Ministry of Culture and the Luce Cinecitta Institute, the Festival was held in accordance with current epidemiological measures, in the striking ambience of the Yugoslav Cinematheque. At the conference announcing the event spoke H.E. Carlo Lo Cascio, Ambassador of Italy, Gabriela Carlucci - Artistic Director of the Festival, Marjan Vujovic - Director of the Museum of the Yugoslav Cinematheque, Roberto Cinkota - Director of the Italian Institute of Culture in Belgrade and Andjelka Jankovic - Representative of Iervolino Studios.

20/09/2021

Embassy Of Korea Hosts Concert Of Korean Traditional Music And Dance The Embassy of the Republic of Korea hosted a concert of Korean traditional music and dance at the Terazije Theater on 8 September.

Six Korean traditional performers associated with the Berliner Korean Cultural Center (Berliner GaMuAk) have been invited to this stage. Various Korean traditional music and dance performances were presented on the stage, such as Samulnori (Korean quartet with traditional percussion), Gayageum Sanjo (Korean zither performance accompanied by Yanggua) and SeungMu (dance of Buddhist nuns).

H. E. Hyong-chan Che, thanked the guests for attending the event despite the restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic, and expressed satisfaction that a concert of Korean traditional music and dance is being held again in Serbia and Montenegro.

October

65

&FACES PLACES

SEE MORE: WWW.CORDMAGAZINE.COM

20/09/2021

Wreath Laying In Honor Of Dr. Elsie Inglis And Members Of The Scottish Women’s Hospital The Deputy Ambassador of the British Embassy in Serbia, Chantel Kerr, and the military attaché, Colonel Sasa Toumes, laid a wreath at the Crkvenac memorial fountain in Mladenovac, built in 1915 by soldiers of the Moravian Division in gratitude to Dr. Elsie Inglis and other members of the Scottish Women’s Hospital.

Elsie Inglis (1864-1917) was a British humanitarian worker and activist for the social emancipation and political rights of women. She was one of the first women to complete her medical studies at the University of Edinburgh.

21/09/2021

Exhibition Marks The Jubilee Of The Non-Aligned Movement A part of the celebration of six decades since the first conference of the Non-Aligned Movement was held in Belgrade at the Museum of Yugoslavia. The exhibition “Prometheus of the New Century” was inspired by the relations between the founders of the movement, Yugoslavia and India, in the field of art and culture. The exhibition, whose authors are Ana Panić and Jovana Nedeljković, paid special attention to the works of the great Yugoslav painter Petar Lubarda.

25/09/2021

Closing Ceremony Of The 54/55th Bitef The closing ceremony of the 54th and 55th editions of the Bitef Festival included a rerun of the play Flash, on the stage of Oliver and Rade Markovic at the Belgrade Drama Theater. After the performance-installation by the French artist Frank Vigrou, a solemn announcement of the award winners was held, after which the guests enjoyed music and socializing. The Grand Prix “Mira Trailović” equally went to the two performances “I enchanted you” and “Cement Belgrade”.

66

October

FINLAND CAN ASSIST 08 SERBIA IN THIS GREEN TRANSITION

04 IT PAYS TO BE GREEN COMMENT

06

POLLUTION DOESN’T HAVE A NATIONALITY

H.E. SUSANNE SHINE, AMBASSADOR OF DENMARK TO SERBIA

2

KIMMO LÄHDEVIRTA, AMBASSADOR OF FINLAND TO SERBIA

COOPERATION FOR 10 SERBIA’S CLEANER AND BRIGHTER FUTURE JØRN EUGEN GJELSTAD, AMBASSADOR OF NORWAY TO SERBIA

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

ROOM FOR 12 GREAT PROGRESS

H.E. ANNIKA BEN DAVID, AMBASSADOR DESIGNATE OF SWEDEN TO SERBIA

14

PROUD TO SAVE LIVES

DEJAN LAKOVSKI, COUNTRY CLUSTER DIRECTOR, ASTRAZENECA

FULLY COMMITTED 18 TO SERBIA’S GREEN TRANSITION

DRAGAN RAJKOVIĆ, TETRA PAK REGIONAL SUSTAINABILITY DIRECTOR, EUROPE & CENTRAL ASIA

TO 20 DEDICATED ENERGY TRANSITION NEDA LAZENDIĆ, COUNTRY MANAGER, WV-INTERNATIONAL NBT

NORDIC 22

24

A LONG AND EXCITING JOURNEY

SMART WAY TO GET STARTED IN SERBIA

26

STEPPING BOLDLY TOWARDS A CIRCULAR ECONOMY

28

EXAMPLES OF GOOD PRACTICE FROM DENMARK

KNOW HOW

30

WE LEARN FROM THE BEST IVA PETROVIĆ, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE NORDIC BUSINESS ALLIANCE

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

3

COMMENT

It Pays TO

BE GREEN

Serbian citizens are painfully aware of climate change, biodiversity loss and resource scarcity, and – regardless of their political aspirations – they strive to have a country where each and every business, public body or fellow citizen will feel a responsibility to preserve the environment. This makes us at least a little bit Nordic.

T

he Danish Embassy in Belgrade recently became a buyer of the green energy provided by state Power Company Elektroprivreda Srbije.

Symbolically, this represents one more step in confirming that Nordic countries are eager to support the Serbian economy’s transition to the circular model.

Many more examples that lead in the same direction have been evident throughout Serbia. Those interested in Nordic solutions for waste and biowaste management had the opportunity to talk to Danish and Norwegian experts in Novi Sad. Sweden and Finland facilitated similar conferences in Kragujevac and Niš, while the final conference will be held in Belgrade on 12th October. This last event is related to policies and legislation related to the circular economy.

This series of events has been co-organised by the four Nordic Embassies in Belgrade, under the patronage of the Nordic

4

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

Serbian citizens, as demonstrated all over the country, are in need of more trees, better air, much better water and sustainable and responsible waste management solutions Council of Ministers, and covers all aspects of support that Nordic countries may provide to Serbia to help it transition from a country that sets a record in Europe for pollution-related deaths measured per capita, according to the 2019 report of the Global Alliance for Health and Pollution, to an environmentally friendly place.

It would be superfluous to state that a lot can be learnt from the global champions of green transition, in terms of adequate polices and commercial solutions that foster innovation, smart growth and the creation of new jobs.

Indeed, Nordic companies from both the public and private sectors have expertise and technology to resolve different environmental issues. For example, Denmark is a global leader in district heating, where connecting as many households as possible to district heating networks may significantly reduce air pollution. In Serbia, where the individual heating of households represents an important source of pollution, this experience is worth considering. The same applies to the example of food waste solutions, where lots of initiatives are mushrooming in cooperation between NGOs, the start-up community and large supermarkets.

This publication is dotted with first-hand examples of good practices from municipalities, public company experts and the like, and offers a glimpse into ideas that may lead the state, municipalities, businesses and citizens toward sustainable, environmentally-friendly solutions.

Serbia recently took some steps towards embracing a circular economy: the Ministry of Environmental Protection laid the groundwork for the strategy and developed a three-year action plan that must, step by step, lead Serbia along the often-challenging path towards a circular economy.

Serbian citizens, as demonstrated all over the country, are in need of more trees, better air, much better water and sustainable and responsible waste management solutions. In contrast to many other issues where citizens have often opposed visions, motivations and expectations, the preservation of the environment is a topic that reconciles voices from each and every side of the spectrum. This would certainly provide strong motivation for any government to sincerely embrace the green future. And, as the Nordic examples show, such a future creates stronger GDP growth, new jobs and a better society for all.

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

5

INTERVIEW H.E. SUSANNE SHINE, AMBASSADOR OF DENMARK TO SERBIA

Pollution Doesn’t Have

A NATIONALITY

The Nordic countries understand that pollution doesn’t respect borders and that environmental cooperation among countries can benefit all. That’s why we are eager to exchange views and cooperate with countries like Serbia. has offered to donate a million vaccines to countries in the Western Balkans, such as Bosnia-Herzegovina, North Macedonia and others. While I’m proud of Denmark’s eagerness to help the Western Balkans, I particularly want to thank the Serbian authorities for their well-organised response to COVID-19 and the exemplary way in which they provided vaccinations to diplomatic staff in Serbia,” says Ambassador Shine.

S

erbia recently received a new donation of Danish humanitarian aid in the form of protective medical equipment that was provided via the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, but this is only one example of the support that the Danish government provides to the Western Balkan countries, including Serbia. We spoke with our interlocutor, H.E. Susanne Shine, Ambassador of Denmark to Serbia, about different areas of support, exchanges of knowledge and possible areas of coopera-

6

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

tion related to foreign direct investments and the circular economy, where Denmark and other Nordic countries have superb knowhow and practises.

“Denmark has been keen to support Western Balkan countries in their efforts to medically combat COVID-19. For example, at the request of the Serbian authorities, Denmark recently donated FFP2 protective masks valued at more than €350,000 to Serbia and, similarly, medical equipment worth €1 million to North Macedonia. Additionally, Denmark

Danish companies operate successfully in Serbia. Have their experiences helped convince other Danish investors to consider Serbia as a destination for their investments?

- As you point out, a number of Danish companies are already operating successfully in Serbia, and I believe there are many more opportunities for Danish companies. In my work to attract more Danish companies, I use the success of Danish companies that are already operating in Serbia to illustrate the opportunities that exist here. Serbia provides excellent support to foreign investors, along with a qualified workforce, and increased global freight costs have also made it more relevant for Danish companies to relocate their foreign production operations to Europe. Nearshoring and shorter supply chains have become important factors for companies worldwide.

The actions of Danish companies are the best indication of how they perceive Serbia.

For example, Danish company Grundfos started production in Serbia a decade ago and today employs over 900 Serbian citizens and has become one of the country’s top 10 exporters. Grundfos has now started building

SUPPORT

SUPPORT

RECYCLING

Excellent support to foreign investors, along with a qualified workforce, have made Serbia attractive to Danish companies that are eager to relocate their foreign production operations to Europe

Denmark has been keen to support Western Balkan countries in their efforts to medically combat COVID-19

Danes have become increasingly conscious of the economic and environmental costs of food loss and waste, and have become more focused on reuse and recycling

a new production facility next to its existing factory. In July of this year, I was happy to join Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabić and others in breaking the ground for this new building, which will be fully equipped with solar panels and a Bio-Booster for cleaning its wastewater. Other examples of booming Danish companies are Better Collective and Kentaur, which have both grown to almost 200 employees in less than five years.

Denmark has spent years investing in researching sustainability and green solutions, while you also conscientiously care for the environment. What advice would you give to Serbia and its citizens, who are increasingly gathering to fight to protect their rivers, forests and air quality?

- The green transition in Denmark began with the oil crisis back in the 1970s. Decades of development have progressively transformed the Danish economy into a green one and given Denmark an environmental position that it uses to share experiences and help other countries on their own green journeys. Hopefully, other countries can learn from our experiences and, thus, cut years off their journeys. Grassroots initiatives have also been integral to Denmark’s green transition, and we have also seen many public-private partnerships, such as State of Green (stateofgreen.com), which gather not just state institutions and companies, but also universities, municipalities and civil society.

Your predecessor once said that Denmark isn’t rich enough to discard anything. But what are your experiences when it comes to food recycling, which represents an important part of the circular economy?

- In recent years, Danes have become increasingly conscious of the economic and environmental costs of food loss and waste, and have become more focused on reuse and recycling.

There is no governmental regulation preventing people from wasting food in

Denmark. However, as part of Denmark’s nationwide recycling programme, unused food is separated from other recycling and collected from households for use in biogas production. Danes have also supported a number of sustainable and innovative initiatives to reduce the amount of biowaste. For example, there is an app called “Too Good To Go (https://toogoodtogo.

We can offer expertise and technology, from both the public and private sectors, to solve different environmental issues. One potential area of cooperation is district heating, where Denmark is a global leader com)” which supermarkets, restaurants and bakeries use to offer perfectly fresh food in goodie-bags at the end of the day, at substantially reduced price. Check out similar websites, such as “Eatgrim (eat ugly) (https://eatgrim.com)” a subscription service for food that is perfectly good but does not comply with the standard size, shape etc., and https://foedevarebanken.

dk/, which delivers surplus food to poor and vulnerable people in need.

The circular economy, of course, encompasses a very broad area. Which topics will the upcoming October conference focus on exploring?

- The first in a series of four Nordic conferences just took place in Novi Sad on 15th September. Danish and Norwegian experts spoke about Nordic solutions for the management of waste and bio-waste. It was a fascinating conference that included highly constructive discussions with Serbian stakeholders. Later in September, Sweden and Finland will facilitate similar conferences in Kragujevac and Niš. The final conference will be held in Belgrade on 12th October and will focus on policies and legislation related to the circular economy. This series of conferences has been organised jointly by the four Nordic Embassies in Belgrade, under the patronage of the Nordic Council of Ministers.

What kinds of opportunities exist for greater cooperation between Serbia and Nordic countries in this area?

- The Nordic countries are frontrunners in many areas, not least the environment. We can offer expertise and technology, from both the public and private sectors, to solve different environmental issues. One potential area of cooperation is district heating, where Denmark is a global leader. During our conference in Vrdnik in May, representatives of the Danish Board of District Heating discussed the advantages of connecting as many households as possible to district heating networks in order to reduce air pollution. They also discussed constructive ways of switching to greener sources of energy, such as biomass. The Nordic countries understand that pollution does not respect borders and that environmental cooperation among countries can benefit all. That’s why we frequently have regionally aligned policies and are eager to exchange views and cooperate with countries like Serbia.

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

7

INTERVIEW KIMMO LÄHDEVIRTA, AMBASSADOR OF FINLAND TO SERBIA

Finland Can Assist Serbia In This

GREEN TRANSITION

Along with other Nordic embassies in Serbia and the Nordic Business Alliance, but also the Nordic Council of Ministers, Finland is sharing its vast expertise in digitalisation and the development of the IT sector and the circular economy, where Serbia is showing some promising results but also faces some tough challenges related to environmental protection.

W

e’ve seen continuing dynamic political dialogue and a high degree of mutual understanding between Finland and Serbia over the previous few years, particularly in the context of Finnish support to Serbia’s European integration process. As such, our first question for Finnish Ambassador to Serbia Kimmo Lähdevirta was how much has this process has advanced since the period of your country’s 2019 EU presidency?

“Being aware of all the benefits of EU membership, Finland is a strong supporter of Serbia’s EU accession and we hope it will speed up in the coming period. At the moment, the main reason the process is lagging behind is the lack of results in the field of the rule of law,” says our interlocutor.

“We therefore encourage Serbia to concentrate on rule of law reforms, especially the fight against organised crime and corruption, media freedom and providing a safe environment for the work of journalists and civil society organisations. In addition, the outcome of the ongoing interparty dialogue, facilitated by EU mediators, is of great importance when one considers the dire need to increase trust in the electoral process in Serbia. All these efforts, regardless of how we name them, are essential for advancing the EU integration process.”

The trade exchange between our two countries hasn’t been hit significantly during the pandemic, although it remains at a fairly low level. In your opinion, what’s the key to further progress?

- There has been a positive trend in the trade exchange between Finland and Serbia year on year, even during the pandemic. However,

8

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

there is still a lot of potential for trade growth.

In my opinion, it is of key importance to raise awareness among Finnish companies about business opportunities in Serbia and vice versa. The Embassy of Finland has supported the sharing of knowhow in different fields that are important for improving the business environment in Serbia. We usually operate as

part of the Nordic team, by joining forces with other Nordic embassies in Serbia, the Nordic Business Alliance and the Nordic Council of Ministers.

Direct, face-to-face contacts usually yield the best results, and thus we should work on creating opportunities where our people and companies can meet and start developing

EXPECTATIONS

DIGITALISATION

COOPERATION

I very much hope that the steps currently being taken by the Government of Serbia will translate into tangible results in the areas of the rule of law, media freedom and interparty dialogue

We cooperate with the Serbian authorities in the fields of digitalisation and IT, as well as on promotion of the use of artificial intelligence

There has been a positive trend in the trade exchange between Finland and Serbia year on year, even during the pandemic

business relations. In this regard, we are happy to announce that the Embassy team has a new member as of this summer: Mr Janne Sykkö, whose task is to promote trade between Finland and Serbia, as well as other Balkan countries.

progress has been made in this sphere, in your opinion, and what does the very energised activity of Serbian citizens in terms of protecting water sources and forests, and the struggle for clean air, tell you?

- It is very encouraging that Serbian citizens are increasingly active in the field of environmental protection. Globally, citizens are often the first to react to ecological risks in their surroundings, and that’s why it’s important to

ronmental protection in Serbia. There is a need for the wider use of renewable energy sources, to transition from the linear to the circular economy and a stronger commitment to fighting climate change. Finland, along with other Nordic countries, can assist Serbia in this green transition.

How is bilateral cooperation unfolding in the domain of digitalisation and IT sector development?

- Finland is the most digitalised country in Europe and one of the global frontrunners in 5G mobile communications technology.

Therefore, cooperation with other countries in the fields of digitalisation and IT are high on our agenda. Our goal in Serbia has been to maintain a continuous public-private dialogue between the Nordic companies and institutions and the most relevant local stakeholders.

In this context, together with other Nordic embassies, we have organised seminars and conferences focused on the digitalisation of public administration in Serbia, digital solutions to make public procurements more efficient and transparent, smart cities and related digital tools and solutions.

During the course of the COVID-19 Pandemic, all countries have undergone a swift transition to working online, including in the field of education. When it comes to the field of digitalising education, which of Finland’s experiences could Serbia utilise?

- When the pandemic forced schools to operate fully online, the expertise and flexibility of Finnish teachers were crucial in handling the crisis.

The principles of Finnish education are equality, high quality and respect for every student’s right to learn and grow to become the person they are – and achieving and maintaining that requires relentless work every day. I believe that all education systems should uphold the same principles, while instruments to do so have to take local contexts into account.

The process of building an institutional framework for the environmental sector has been underway in Serbia since 2018. What kind of

The Nordic embassies, in cooperation with the Nordic Council of Ministers and local stakeholders, are organising a series of events on the circular economy that are taking place in Novi Sad, Kragujevac, Niš and Belgrade during September and October have a high level of awareness regarding these issues among the population. In addition, when citizens demand green policies, politicians and authorities have to uphold and apply them in practise.

We have to admit that there are still significant challenges when it comes to envi-

To what extent is the circular economy part of Finland’s day-to-day reality and which experiences from this area could find applicability in Serbia?

- Finland has a history of developing circular solutions, which include new business models and new ways to consider an item’s life cycle.

It was the first country in the world to prepare a national circular economy roadmap in 2016.

Our cities are already working on solutions to become carbon neutral and implement circular economy principles in practise. For example, the City of Lahti is the European Green Capital for 2021 and it serves as a great example of how circular economy solutions can be applied.

Having this in mind, we can really say that the circular economy is a Finnish day-to-day reality and that we are honest when it comes to promoting it worldwide. From 13th to 15th September, Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra, together with Canada, organised the World Circular Economy Forum 2021. It was hosted in North America for the first time and focused on the system-level changes, or “game changers,” that are needed to accelerate the transition to a circular economy.

Here in Serbia, the Nordic embassies, in cooperation with the Nordic Council of Ministers and local stakeholders, including the Ministry of Environment, NALED and the Circular Economy Hub of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce, are organising a series of events on the circular economy. These events, which are taking place in Novi Sad, Kragujevac, Niš and Belgrade during September and October, aim to share the Nordic experiences in this field, increase the awareness of local stakeholders regarding the circular economy and provide proposals on how to continue the implementation of these principles in Serbia.

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

9

INTERVIEW JØRN EUGEN GJELSTAD, AMBASSADOR OF NORWAY TO SERBIA

Cooperation for Serbia’s Cleaner

AND BRIGHTER FUTURE We believe that we can together turn problems into opportunities and achieve results for a cleaner and brighter future. Those of us in the North started earlier, so we have learned some lessons the hard way. And we want to share those lessons with Serbia, so that this society can avoid our mistakes and reproduce our success stories.

However, we have implemented a number of energy efficiency projects in the public sector in Serbia, including the Centre for Social Work in Bela Palanka, a nursery school in Babušnica and a library in Golubac. Norway also supported the reconstruction of the Dositej Obradović Primary School in Bela Crkva and the Veljko Dugošević Culture Centre in Kučevo. All these projects improved the energy efficiency of the public institutions in question.

N

orway is a consistent supporter of the socioeconomic development of the Western Balkans, and it cooperates closely with local and national governments, international organisations and civil society to achieve the best possible results.

“I would particularly highlight our model for support to local businesses, especially in the less developed municipalities in Serbia,” says Jørn Eugen Gjelstad, Ambassador of Norway to Serbia.

The applied Norwegian model is actually quite simple: public calls for support are announced and the best proposals are awarded grants for implementation, with substantial technical assistance and guidance provided over the course of the project.

“One of the most successful calls was targeting business support entities, enabling them

10

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

to support local businesses in a coordinated manner,” says our interlocutor. “We see time and time again that small businesses, through relatively minor financial support from our side, are able to increase their production capacity and productivity, employ more people, identify new markets or production technologies, and obtain certificates that open the door to exports to the European market.”

Norway’s assistance to Serbia is directed towards SMEs in relation to energy efficiency.

How many of these kinds of projects were instigated in 2020?

- Norway is focused primarily on increasing the compliance of SMEs with the industrial emissions directive of the European Union, which relates to the improvement of their competitiveness, performance and resilience.

From the perspective of Serbian enterprises, energy efficiency and the circular economy are mostly viewed as being primarily connected to expensive investments. What does Norway’s experience in this area tell us in that regard?

- Industrial transformations are always costly, but virtually all experts agree that we need to cut emissions drastically. The alternative is catastrophic for the globe, both for the environment and for societies. Green energy, energy efficiency and the circular economy represent the backbone of the path forward.

And I believe you are right in pointing out that it should be seen as an investment, rather than a cost. Investments in technology tend to yield excellent results in the long run, and the future is green. Businesses and societies that don’t invest in the future will fall behind. In today’s global markets, going green is a matter of competitiveness. I believe that Norwegian businesses are not willing to accept the risk associated with not investing in the green future. The proposed European carbon border adjustment mechanism is a clear signal that the EU is serious about the green transformation, and that its trading partners need to follow suit.

This is an additional reminder and incentive, both

RECOGNITION

COMMITMENT

COOPERATION

Making a big impact in local communities is precisely the aim of the “Norway for You” project, which in itself has become a recognised development brand both in Serbia and around the region

Norway will continue its close engagement with the health authorities in Serbia and the Western Balkan region in order to enhance the overall efficiency and capacity of the healthcare systems

The concept of regional cooperation has long traditions in all Nordic countries. It is therefore encouraging that a similar cooperation model is being developed for the Western Balkans

for Norwegian and Serbian businesses, to speed up the green transformation in both countries.

think it’s important to stress that no country was fully prepared or equipped to handle, or even predict, the immediate consequences of the pandemic. Furthermore, the procurement of sophisticated equipment was complicated by the extremely high demand and limited capacity on the side of suppliers.

- The “Open Balkans” initiative was launched just recently with strong political support by the leaders of Albania, Serbia and North Macedonia. Like its predecessor, the “mini-Schengen” initiative, Open Balkans aims to further strengthen regional cooperation in the Western Balkans, through increased

We will have an opportunity to hear more about this topic in early October, at the conference that you’re preparing. What will be the main messages of this event?

- The main message is that we are enthusiastic about the future of Serbia!We believe that we can together turn problems into opportunities and achieve results for a cleaner and brighter future.

And this is exactly what the green shift and the circular economy are about! We take the waste and turn it into a resource, into “gold”, so to say.

Climate change has forced us all to realise that what we have been doing over the last century or so is not sustainable. We must limit pollution too. We cannot endanger the lives of our children and jeopardise their future. We must preserve nature while creating jobs and prosperity. Those things do not need to be mutually exclusive!There are a lot of opportunities there. We just need to do things differently. Let’s work together. Those of us in the North started earlier, so we have learned some lessons the hard way. And we want to share those lessons with Serbia, so that this society can avoid our mistakes and reproduce our success stories. Free of charge!

Norway has been providing assistance to Serbia’s healthcare system for many years, as well as the healthcare systems of other Western Balkan countries. To what extent has this support helped Western Balkan countries navigate the pandemic with relatively high success?

- Norway has a highly developed capacity to respond quickly to crises and disasters by allocating targeted resources for dire needs. I was both proud and happy to see that we managed, during the first phase of this outbreak, to act accordingly and make significant funds available for Serbia to mitigate the effect of this crisis, including the procurement of respirators, PCR tests and protective equipment. This was an immediate act of solidarity, deeply rooted in the long-term friendship between our two countries. Nevertheless, I

Norway sees regional initiatives like “Open Balkans” as being complimentary to the ongoing EU accession processes, and stands ready to support tangible initiatives that can facilitate cooperation across the region Your country has repeatedly supported the “mini-Schengen” concept, which has now been renamed the “Open Balkans”. How much progress has been made on this cooperation and are there elements that are beginning to resemble cooperation between Nordic countries?

economic cooperation, the free movement of people, dissemination of technology and access to higher education, services and culture. The concept of regional cooperation has long traditions in all Nordic countries. Nordic cooperation is based on a set of shared norms, values and a common history, and stands out as one of the oldest, most comprehensive and successful partnerships we have today.

It is therefore encouraging that a similar cooperation model is being developed for the Western Balkans, and I believe it has strong potential to improve quality of life for ordinary citizens. Some progress has been made, but a lot remains to be achieved. It is time to focus on implementation.

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

11

INTERVIEW H.E. ANNIKA BEN DAVID, AMBASSADOR DESIGNATE OF SWEDEN TO SERBIA

Great Room

FOR PROGRESS

As friends of Serbia, we want to cooperate with and support Serbia in meeting the conditions for its EU integration. I believe in particular that there is great room for progress on environmental issues, and we are working with the Serbian government on many projects aimed at improving the quality of life of the Serbian people.

S

weden has provided strategic, predictable and long-term support to Serbia’s EU integration process for over two decades. This assistance has a number of strands that come together to support processes that are indeed building blocks to full membership: rule of law, public sector governance and accountability, economic performance and employment generation, the protection of natural resources and fundamental rights.

With a total value of eight per cent of Serbia’s GDP (approximately €3.8 billion in 2019), public procurement is a very powerful tool to direct public spending towards better services where the citizens need them.

“For citizens, it matters how the economy fares and how resources are distributed and spent,” says H.E. Annika Ben David, Ambassador Designate of Sweden to Serbia. “Citizens want value for their tax money, but this value does not literally translate into how little you spend. It also includes a measure of effectiveness and efficiency in the use of public resources. We exert additional effort to harness this purchasing power to buy more sustainable goods and services, and both the environment and society will benefit.”

The project “Effective public procurement for economic growth”,

12

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

which is being financed by Sweden and implemented by NALED (National Association for Local Economic Development), aims to help Serbia strengthen its knowledge base and streamline its public procurement procedures through further digitalisation and an inclusive public-private dialogue.

As our interlocutor explains: “a dialogue between the public and private sectors was launched this summer, with July being dubbed “the month of public procurement”.

However, we want this dialogue to continue every day until we reach an average of 3.5 bids per tender, instead of the current 2.5. The momentum for an open dialogue about moving environmental considerations higher up the list of criteria is here and we should use it”.

Early October will see the staging of Nordic conferences dedicated to promoting the circular economy in Serbia. Which conference topics would you single out for the special attention of our readers?

- I believe that would be the issue of waste management. We are aware of the problems that many Serbian cities are having with landfill sites and waste treatment. The Nordic countries had similar problems and have learned to view waste as a resource; a resource that can be used to create energy, fuel, heating

DEMOCRACY

SUPPORT

OPPORTUNITY

Quality of life can’t be improved without strong institutions and a vibrant democracy. Strong institutions and their accountability are essential elements of any democracy

Sweden is a strong supporter of Serbia’s EU integration. Our countries have strong ties, not least because of the large Serbian diaspora resident in our country

By keeping products and materials in use and recycling energy and waste, we will create new jobs and hatch new businesses in a resilient and inclusive way

and many other components that can make our cities function in an environmentally-friendly way. This marked the start of an important change in our societies.

Instead of discarding waste, it has become a resource that creates jobs and innovative industries. Together with the Serbian Government and more than 17 local municipalities, and throughfinancingfromtheEU(theIPA project Source Separation in Four regions), we are now preparing for large scale source separation reform to be launched in Serbia. This investment covers more than 800,000 citizens!

And it will boost the circular economy in the years to come.

The Nordic countries responded to the need to control the spread of infection in quite different ways during the pandemic. Which of your positive experiences would you share with our readers?

- I am aware of the widespread international attention the Swedish response to the COVID-19 pandemic has generated, including in the Serbian media.

The Swedish national strategy was set up by the Swedish Public Health Agency. The strategy was designed to consider public health from a broader perspective than just the pandemic. Considerations such as mental health, obesity and the socioeconomic impact of regulations were considered. The model was not perfect, and like many countries we failed to protect groups among the elderly and most vulnerable. I think evaluations on best practices should be conducted primarily by experts.

Thanks to a successful vaccination campaign and low levels of hospitalisations, we are this month lifting most of the remaining restrictions.

Together with the Serbian Government and more than 17 local municipalities, and through financing from the EU, we are now preparing to launch large scale source separation reform in Serbia Currently, 75% of the Swedish population aged over 16 has been vaccinated with two doses. Looking back, we can see that the pandemic created a situation with no ready answers. I’m glad that we decided to keep our primary schools open.

This proved not to lead to any increasing contamination, but to kids not having their education interrupted. For their health and wellbeing, going to school meant psychological normalcy, a hot meal and psychosocial problems not going unnoticed. Moreover, their parents were able to continue working, including in sectors that have been under great stress: hospitals

and elderly care, for example.

All in all, I believe that even though our model wasn’t without problems, it still seems to have worked very much thanks to the general public’s strong trust in our institutions, experts and science. It has allowed us to keep our society open.

Sweden has established good cooperation with the Serbian Ministry of the Environment and the City of Niš regarding wastewater treatment, and your country’s greater engagement in this area has also been announced. Do you agree with your predecessor, Ambassador Lundin, that this is among the

crucial topics for Serbia’s European integration?

- It is often said that pollution knows no borders – and clearly combatting air and water pollution is a shared purpose for all EU countries. The focus of Sweden’s development cooperation in Serbia – strengthening EU integration – is right on target.

We have strong cooperation on the environment and climate.

Serbia has high ambitions to increase wastewater treatment over the coming years. Together with the Government, municipalities and the EU, Sweden is preparing for large scale investments in waste treatment, for example in the City of Niš, but also in the City of Čačak.

We also have inter-municipality cooperation between Swedish and Serbian municipalities on water and waste-water management, for example preserving the quality of water in Lake Ćelije!

In order to create successful projects and investments, we work actively with our Serbian partners to: achieve EU environmental standards, strengthen intermunicipal cooperation and build projects in close cooperation with the local administration and citizens. This is important for us to gain sustainable projects that improve the quality of life in Serbia.

Which other areas provide great room for progress within the scope of Serbia’s EU integration?

- Quality of life can’t be improved without strong institutions and a vibrant democracy. That’s why a third of our development assistance goes towards strengthening institutions and their accountability, the rule of law, anti-corruption and media freedom. These are all essential elements of any democracy.

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

13

BUSINESS DEJAN LAKOVSKI, COUNTRY CLUSTER DIRECTOR, ASTRAZENECA

Proud To

SAVE LIVES

AstraZeneca is among the leaders in the research and development of innovative medicines, as part of efforts to deliver the most advanced therapies and scientific achievements. Based in Cambridge, UK, AstraZeneca operates in over 100 countries, while its innovative medicines are used by millions of patients worldwide

14

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

T

his company has delivered over 1.3 billion doses to over 170 countries in the space of just one year! Nothing on this scale has ever previously been attempted, but AstraZeneca managed, in a matter of months, to do what would normally take years. And it has done so for the benefit of all, without any financial interest.

In which therapy areas are you most dominant?

- AstraZeneca is a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company. Our business is organised to deliver our strategic priorities sustainably, supporting continued scientific innovation and commercial success. We focus on the discovery, development and commercialisation of prescription medicines in Oncology and BioPharmaceuticals, including Cardiovascular, Renal & Metabolism, and Respiratory & Immunology. In addition to our core therapy areas, we added a fourth engine of growth recently, with the addition of Alexion’s rare disease business.

The financial results you published recently were quite good, as covered widely by the media. Could you share more details?

- AstraZeneca is on a strong growth trajectory. We have grown at a double-digit rate for the last two years. We are accelerating our double-digit growth this year and expect the company to continue growing in double digits until 2025. Growth is robust across all regions and disease areas, as we continue to advance our portfolio of life-changing medicines.

With increased investment in R&D, we continue to invest in the future of AstraZeneca and build on our already significant achievements.

AstraZeneca in the Balkans is no exception and contributes strongly, with 12.7% growth this year to date, while introducing innovations to meet significant need across the area.

Serbia is equally positioned within our Balkan cluster and is doing very well in a challenging environment. We have a great team in place and will continue and accelerate our growth and investement plans moving forward.

AstraZeneca has become very well known globally over the last year. Is this due to the

fact that you quickly developed an effective vaccine against the novel coronavirus?

- The company has been present for well over a century. Astra was founded in Sweden in 1913. And it was in 1999 that it merged with Zeneca Group PLC, which was formed when ICI Pharmaceuticals (a UK-based company founded in 1926) demerged three of its businesses.

The Vaxzevria vaccine was developed

by Oxford University’s Jenner Institute, working with the Oxford Vaccine Group.

The partnership with Oxford University is unprecedented. It was negotiated in just 10 days, as an urgent response to the escalation of the COVID-19 Pandemic. The team at Oxford recognised that a partnership with AstraZeneca would accelerate global clinical development, scale up manufacturing and crucially drive broad and equitable access around the world.

Are you proud that AstraZeneca was among the leaders of this global, life-saving project?

- Yes. We are incredibly proud of what we’ve done and the difference we’ve made. We save lives. This is a vaccine for the world and AstraZeneca has done more than any

Growth is robust across all regions and disease areas, as we continue to advance our portfolio of life-changing medicines other company to make the vaccine available, at no profit, to countries regardless of income level.

The majority of our vaccine doses have gone to low- and lower-middle-income countries, accounting for more than half of all COVAX deliveries, which we were the first to sign up for across the entire industry.

The pandemic has shown that continuous and wise investments in healthcare are important for both the life and health of the people, but also for the economy and stability of a society. Have we learned our lesson for the future?

- While the vaccine is the key element that will help the world return to normal, we must also look beyond and at the way in which we

rebuild our health systems. The broader issue of the resilience and sustainability of healthcare systems must be where our attention shifts once we overcome the immediate challenges of the pandemic.

That’s why, alongside our partners at the World Economic Forum and London School of Economics, we initiated the Partnership for Health System Sustainability and Resilience (PHSSR).

From new models of care to innovative financing mechanisms and breakthrough technologies, the PHSSR aims to identify solutions with the greatest potential across multiple healthcare systems and assess ways to support their adoption, with the ultimate ambition of better understanding the policy options and other tools that can build healthcare system resilience and sustainability.

We brought together policymakers, academics and the private sector to discuss how to implement these findings to really make a difference on the ground. The first phase of the PHSSR concluded successfully in March 2021, while the second phase has just begun.

AstraZeneca has specially designed programmes for the youth. Could you tell us more about that?

- Wherever we work in the world, we aim to have a positive impact on people and their communities. An example of that is the Young Health Programme (YHP) that was launched 10 years ago. This is a global non-communicable disease (NCD) prevention programme with a unique focus on young people aged 10 to 24. In partnership with UNICEF, the YHP has reached more than 30 countries and 12 million young people with information about NCD and risk factors for mental health issues and obesity. This also includes acting on smoking prevention among the youth, which is the focus of the YHP that we’ve had in Serbia since 2018.

You invest a great deal of your time and finances on promoting illness prevention and healthy lifestyles, but your business is manufacturing and selling medicines.

Are these two areas not contradictory?

- We believe they are not, as we recognise health as a human right. Our approach goes beyond our medicines. We provide health-

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

15

BUSINESS INTERVIEW

that is just a transition step and is already a reality. AstraZeneca has medicines that are already established around the world and which provide, for example, more than five years with no signs of deterioration following a devastating ovarian cancer diagnosis, or three years of additional life for a person with lung cancer, both in the case of positive genetic predispositions.

And this is the type of reality that we also want to see being advanced in Serbia, through the improving of access to healthcare and investments in personalised medicine, as well as the implementing of

Our bold ambition is to find a cure for cancer, by first transforming it into a chronic disease, but that is just a transition step and is already a reality principles of initiating treatment during earlier stages. The innovative medicines that allow earlier treatment of cancer are saving and improving patients‘ lives and also supporting the general efficiency of the healthcare system. We believe that we are working towards a future where all people in Serbia have access to sustainable healthcare solutions for life-changing treatment and prevention.

care solutions along a continuum of care from prevention, awareness, diagnosis and treatment, to post-treatment and wellness.

Healthcare is our core business; we seek to prevent disease and support people on their path to better health. For those who have been diagnosed with a condition, we strive to ensure access to effective treatment.

16

Nordic Countries & Srbia 2021

At AstraZeneca, we truly place patients‘ benefits at the heart of everything we do.

One of the many examples of our values being put into action are our efforts in Oncology. Our focus is on some of the most hostile and hard-to-treat cancers. Our bold ambition is to find a cure for cancer, by first transforming it into a chronic disease, but

Tell us something about you, your career...

- I joined AstraZeneca at the beginning of March 2021 as Cluster Country Director, Balkans, which encompasses Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia and other Western Balkan countries. I have over 20 years of experience in the pharma industry and an extensive background in successfully leading teams across countries in this part of Europe. Being a medical doctor by education, placing patients at the heart of every decision and action is my nature, so joining the patient-focused AstraZeneca was an intuitive step. In my new role, I look forward to building a diverse, strong and forward-looking team that plays a key role in accelerating the company‘s growth in the Balkan region, focusing on new launches and raising organisational capabilities by implementing an innovative model of customer and patient engagement.

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

17

BUSINESS

DRAGAN RAJKOVIĆ, TETRA PAK REGIONAL SUSTAINABILITY DIRECTOR, EUROPE & CENTRAL ASIA

Fully Committed To Serbia’s

GREEN TRANSITION

I

t’s been 70 years since we started producing a beverage carton that should save more than it costs. Serbia is one of the key spots on our global map, and our Gornji Milanovac factory is one of the best in class. The COVID-19 crisis has demonstrated how important it is to have a resilient food system and to make food safe and available everywhere. Serbia and its major food manufacturers have done an excellent job of keeping the dairy and juice infrastructure going during these very challenging times.

Today, more than ever, our business is very dedicated to climate neutrality, biodiversity preservation and effective waste management.

Plant-based raw materials, such as wood and sugar cane, are essential to our low-carbon circular economy approach.

The recycling rate of beverage cartons in Europe has increased from just over 5% in 1993 to more than 51% in 2019. And our aim is to collect 90% of all used beverage cartons by 2030.

AN EFFECTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR SERBIA Over the past 10 years, we have worked hard to increase the level of beverage carton recycling in Serbia and invested significantly in collection systems and a local paper mill.

However, if we want more recycling, there must be more waste collection supportedbyadequateinfrastructure.

Increasing the collection rate is possible through improved Extended

18

With innovations in reverse vending machines and smart bin technologies and digitalisation, Serbia has an opportunity to set up a broad DRS that will improve packaging waste collection and recycling results significantly Producer Responsibility, as a scheme based on the shared responsibility model for everyone in the value chain and, as part of that, Deposit Return Schemes (DRS) like the one the Serbian government aims to introduce.

In practise, a DRS system would require Serbian consumers to pay a small deposit at the point of purchase, which they would get back

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

when returning the empty container for recycling. The best results are achieved when this includes all packaging formats. Our recent project in Kragujevac shows how a DRS system can also reward consumers via public transportation or mobile communications financial recompense.

With innovations in reverse vending machines and smart bin technolo-

gies and digitalisation, Serbia has an opportunity to set up a broad DRS that will improve packaging waste collection and recycling results significantly. A deposit system model needs to be set up in a broad way from the perspective of products types, packaging material types and packaging formats and sizes.

The introduction of so-called “smart” or “digital” DRS, with broad scope, allows high collection results and the high quality of various collected packaging as a raw material for recyclers.

A broad system will result in reduced costs per unit, reduced consumer confusion on how to contribute to the collection, a much higher influence on achieving climate goals and conditions to use collected material as recycled content for new production, which will also support the development of local recycling capacities.

Tetra Pak welcomes the government’s commitment to sustainability and looks forward to helping Serbia achieve its ambitious environmental goals.

The estimate of packaging placed on the Serbian market in 2020 is at 66 kg per capita, while the projection for 2030 is 78 kg per capita. The main recommendations for the Serbian packaging waste management system include: the obligation for households to sort waste, the inclusion of the informal collection sector, ensuring equal rules for all actors, a well-functioning monitoring system and for the full net cost of waste collection, sorting and treatment to be covered by all producers and brand owners.

ELNOS GROUP BUSINESS

Proven Business Across

THE NORDIC MARKET Elnos Group is a domestic company that considers Sweden, Iceland and Norway as its second home. Headquartered in Southeast Europe, it operates throughout the continent in the field of electrical energy, specialising in facilities of up to 400 kV

W

ith a scope of work that encompasses participation in the most challenging and complex energy projects, Elnos Group has to date confirmed its professionalism and expertise on multiple occasions. Employing more than 600 workers, it operates in 14 business centres in Southeast, Central, Northern and Southern Europe.

NORDIC SPOTLIGHT Over the ten years of its work on the Nordic market, Elnos Group has successfully implemented more than 90 projects. With engagements in Sweden, Norway and Iceland, the company’s teams have so far reconstructed and built thousands of kilometres of transmission lines and dozens of substations in these countries.

Through an expert approach to projects, the staff of Elnos Group have repeatedly left the public breathless with their implementing of (im)possible missions. They constructed the 220 kV Kröflulína 3 transmission line across Icelandic lava fields, participated in the construction of the Búrfell 2 hydroelectric power plant (270 MW) that’s located 100 metres underground, built a 100-metre-high transmission line on the shores of Sweden’s Lake Mälaren, participated in the construction of the longest HVDC interconnection in Europe and much more.

Elnos Group teams travelled to Iceland and Sweden on special charter flights during the period of the complete shutdown of European airports, in order to continue implementing capital projects previously initiated in these countries According to Elnos Group Management Board Vice President Branko Torbica, “Elnos Group is today one of the leading service providers in the Nordic countries, and to date we’ve left our greatest mark by working on the Swedish and Icelandic markets. Our future plans include strengthening our existing portfolio in these two countries,

with the intention of expanding it in the segment of infrastructure and industry. We also aim to develop further on the market in Norway, the country where we formed part of the capital project for the construction of the NordLink HVDC interconnection”.

Adding that the company is also making increasingly significant

strides on other European markets, Torbica explains: “We are increasingly working in Germany and the Netherlands, and during the previous few months we’ve signed our first contracts in Portugal and the UK, while we also plan to enter the Danish market by the end of this year”.

This Group today works in cooperation with local Scandinavian partners on the implementing of projects for companies Svenska Kraftnät, Vattenfall, E.ON, Elevio, Landsnet, Landsvirkjun and many others.

Elnos has such strong business links with the markets of the Nordic countries that it even broke down barriers during the pandemic. It was then that Elnos Group teams travelled to Iceland and Sweden on special charter flights, despite the complete shutdown of European airports then in force, in order to continue implementing capital projects that had previously been initiated in these countries.

According to Elnos Nordic Director of Operations Nenad Vukomanović, “with the establishing of site management at the level of Elnos Nordic, we contributed to the creating of all necessary conditions for even more intensive cooperation with our partners. The Nordic market is one of the most important markets of the Elnos Group and I’m convinced that we’re now on the threshold of a new and even more successful stage of our operations in this part of Europe”.

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

19

BUSINESS

NEDA LAZENDIĆ, COUNTRY MANAGER WV INTERNATIONAL EMERGY

Dedicated To

ENERGY TRANSITION It was a full 11 years ago that Windvision, as a company engaged in wind farm construction projects and wind farm operations in Belgium and France, recognised Serbia’s potential, although adequate legislation was not then in place. And it didn’t regret that choice

W

consist of clusters of wind farms that are being developed in several South Banat municipalities, with a total installed capacity of 690MW. The projects are at various stages of development, from planning preparation to detailed project-technical documentation, resolving legal property ownership relations and preparing environmental impact studies. Considering that this relates to several wind farm projects, their construction and commissioning will unfold successively, from 2024 to 2026.

e’ll spend the next five years busily realising, constructing and commissioning the Alibunar 1 and 2 and Banat 1-6 wind farms, as well as developing solar power plants, with which we’ll contribute to Serbia’s energy transition, as one of the country’s national goals - says WV International Emergy Country Manager Neda Lazendić.

It was 11 years ago that Windvision recognised Serbia as an attractive environment for doing business, despite conditions being far from ideal. Do good conditions for developing wind farms exist in our country today?

- It was way back in 2010 when Windvision recognised the potential of Serbia, although there was then no adequate legislation and other conditions for large-scale investments. After just two years, in 2012, construction of the Alibunar 1 (99MW) and Alibunar 2 (75MW) wind farms was launched, though they didn’t receive the status of a temporary privileged electricity producer within the scope of the feed-in tariff incentive model and the first quota of 500MW, despite having valid permits. From 2016 until today, we’ve been working to obtain permits for roads, transformer stations and transmission lines, whilst also working on new projects for the construction of the Banat 1-6 wind farms, with a total installed

20

In 2020, we began developing new projects for the construction of the Banat 1-6 wind farms, on the territory of South Banat, with a total installed capacity of 690 MW capacity of 690MW, but also on expanding our portfolio in terms of technology – solar power plants with an installed capacity of 80MW. What has happened with the Alibunar 1 and 2 wind farms in the meantime?

- We’ve just obtained new building permit solutions for both projects, which enables us to install the latest technology wind turbines, or more precisely the wind turbines of manufacturer Vestas, V150 model with a unit capacity of 4.2 MW. Their construction depends on the implementation of a new model of subsidies that’s envisaged by the Law on the

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

Use of Renewable Energy Sources, and those are auctions. The first are expected to take place at the end of thisyear,andwearecurrentlyworking to ensure Alibunar 1 and 2 emerge with the most competitive price. We believe that green electricity from these wind farms can be available on the network by as early as 2023.

Serbia turned out to be the right place for you, both because of the good wind and because of the great local team. Does that mean you will expand your operations?

- In 2020, we began developing new projects for the construction of the Banat 1-6 wind farms, which

You have knowhow, experience and a reliable partner. Does that guarantee that the projects will be implemented successfully?

- Under the scope of our corporate restructuring, projects in Serbia remained the property of Dutch founder WV-International, which was joined in early 2021 by Norwegian company NBT AS, or Emergy, as it is now called. Funds were thus provided for the realisation of the complete portfolio in Serbia within the planned deadlines. Our partnership with such an experienced investor will certainly help us in most effectively realising our common goals, but I would particularly like to welcome the great cooperation and support of the Norwegian Embassy in Belgrade, H.E. Jørn Eugen Gjelstad and the entire team, as well as cooperation with the Nordic Business Alliance.

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

21

SWEDEN AND THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY

A Long And

EXCITING JOURNEY Known for being one of the world’s most innovative countries, Sweden has good prospects to be at the forefront of circular economy practises. From the perspective of business, this can create many new advantages and opportunities for Swedish companies operating on the global market.

S

weden aspires is to become one of world’s first fossil-free nations, as part of its commitment under Roadmap 2050, and a circular economy should play an important role in reaching this goal. In July 2020, the Swedish

The role of government is to create the conditions necessary to encourage and support the good work that is already underway in the country’s regions and municipalities, the business sector, universities and civil society government introduced a national strategy for the circular economy, outlining the country’s determination to accelerate its transition to a circular economy. This should help achieve Sweden’s ambitious environmental and climate change objectives.

Time will be needed to transition from a linear economy, where valuable material is used only once and then discarded, to a circular economy that is smart and much better for the environment. In general, the timeline describing the evolution of Swedish waste management over the last 50 years can

22

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

be described as following: - 1970s and ‘80s: recycling processes introduced, leading to less than 1% of Swedish household waste ending up in landfills today. The other 99% is recycled in various ways. This is in stark contrast to 1975, when only 38% of household waste was recycled.

This is referred to as the Swedish Recycling Revolution, as the rapid increase in environmental awareness and recycling over the last several decades has led to something of a ‘revolution’.

- 1990s: eco-cycling, which is aimed at waste prevention, changing consumption habits and introducing more efficient production methods. Swedish towns and municipalities developed a tradition of using a systematic approach by taking into account that municipal practises and functional policy areas are interrelated and impact one another.

- 2000s: sustainability has been successfully introduced in Sweden by combining citizen engagement, high ambition levels, set by both the public and private sectors, and international solidarity. As a result, Sweden has repeatedly ranked as the world’s most sustainable country over recent years.

- 2010s: the circular economy takes off in Sweden, as a country that is particularly well placed to take a leading role in enabling the production and delivery of resource-efficient goods, solutions and services. Sweden’s national strategy for the circular economy was introduced in 2020.

It is important to note that if the Swedish transition to a circular economy is to succeed, it needs to be implemented jointly by politicians, the business sector, the public sector, academia, private citizens and civil society.

The role of government is to create the necessary conditions to

encourage and support the good work that is already underway in the country’s regions and municipalities, the business sector, universities and civil society.

Each strategy should have a vision at its core.The Swedish government hopes that this strategy will lead to “a society in which resources are used efficiently in toxin-free circular flows, replacing new materials.” As such, work on a national circular economy strategy will focus

on the following key areas: • Sustainable production and product design.

• Sustainable ways of consuming and using materials, products and services.

• Toxin-free and circular eco cycles.

• The circular economy as a driving force for the business sector and other actors, through measures to promote innovation and circular

business models.

Known for being one of the world’s most innovative countries, Sweden has good prospects to be at the forefront of circular economy practises. From the perspective of business, this can create many new advantages and opportunities for Swedish companies operating on the global market. It should also lead to the creation of new companies and jobs, while contributing to reducing environmental impact.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Ronny Arnberg has worked at Borlänge Energi AB since 1972, where he currently holds the position of President of Development and International Division. Borlänge Energi is a public utility company wholly owned by the Municipality of Borlänge, which is located some 200km northeast of Stockholm. The company delivers a whole range of services to its customers, such as tap water, electricity and district heating, waste handling, broadband access and management of all green areas within the municipality. Ronny helped to develop and implement the municipality’s first ever waste plan, which included a 100% waste sorting system for recycling.

Since 2012, he has also been involved with IVL - Swedish Environmental Research Institute, serving as project manager and sales coordinator. In his work at IVL, he is focusing on the following key areas: - Coordination and supervision of projects related to waste management technologies and approaches, including business models and management aspects; - Carrying out feasibility studies and strategic planning related to recycling and the use of waste materials in efficient and environmentally sound ways; - Mentoring and supervising master thesis students in international projects.

Ronny’s participation in international projects ensures that he has extensive experience of working in international, multi-cultural and multi-language settings. In this part of Europe, he assisted and advised on the creation of Albania’s National Energy Plan in 2013. Since 1998, he has played an advisory role in multiple EU-level projects related to water, sewage, waste and energy in Romania. He maintains several professional memberships, such as serving in the role of Vice President of Swedish Environmental Technology since 1999.

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

23

BY JENS MÅGE

NORWEGIAN EXPERTISE CONTRIBUTES TO BIOWASTE MANAGEMENT IN SERBIA

Smart Way To Get

STARTED IN SERBIA Biowaste management is a starting point and a prerequisite for all waste management in a circular bioeconomy. It preserves the environment, creates new green jobs and enables Serbia to meet the recycling targets and requirements of the EUs new Green Deal and waste directives.

In August this year, fires again broke out in Vinča, a mega landfill located 12-15 km from the centre of Belgrade. The toxic smoke could be felt throughout the city. Unfortunately, this is not an unusual phenomenon in Serbia.

D

enmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, with the support of the Nordic Council of Ministers, have launched the project “Boosting Circular Economy in Serbia - Nordic Experience”.

The embassies invited experts from the Nordic countries to present good practice examples and show the importance and benefits of a circular economy. The first conference was held in Novi Sad on 15th September, and I was invited from Avfall Norge to share experiences from Norway.

Status of waste management in Serbia - My knowledge of Serbia was very

24

limited before this visit. I thus really appreciated learning more about the country and meeting many engaged Serbs and people who are now involved in developing the country in a circular direction. This includes the Nordic ambassadors and staff at the Nordic embassies.

Serbia has significant production of coal and steel, with high emissions.

Environmental regulations and their enforcement, including following up on environmental violations, are insufficient to meet today’s expected standards. This results in a lot of pollution, together with emissions from traffic, coal power plants, heating with lignite and wood in houses, apartment and office buildings. In addition, there are the constant

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

fires at landfills and dumpsites, as well as discharges due to a lack of waste management.

Only 11 of around 160 Serbian municipalities have some form of sorting and waste treatment. In practise, virtually all waste heads to landfill sites untreated. And most of these sites are not “sanitary” landfills, and are thus categorised as dumpsites.

Landfill fires - a big problem - Belgrade and other cities in Serbia and the Balkans regularly top lists of the most polluted cities in the world.

A report from the Global Alliance for Health and Pollution from 2019 stated that Serbia has set a record in Europe for pollution-related deaths measured per capita.

Biowaste must be sorted and treated separately - In 2025, landfills will account for 8-10% of man-made greenhouse gas emissions, according to international waste organisation ISWA’s pioneering report from 2016. Today, Serbia does not have adequate landfill fees or other incentives to reduce the amount of biowaste discarded at landfill sites. The renovation fee for households is artificially low (about a tenth of Norway’s), which is far from enough to secure investments in infrastructure and solutions for waste management.

The experience from Norway and other Nordic countries is that positive change comes through legislation and the enforcement of regulations, national objectives, municipalities’ own goals, climateand waste management plans and market requirements, including the demand of inhabitants for a better environment.

Over recent years, development has also been largely driven by the UN Sustainable Development Goals, transition to a circular economy - new ambitious goals and regu-

lations from the EU, including the Green Deal and “Fit for 55” and taxonomy - sustainability criteria for investments.

contaminated starting point. ‘Shit in - shit out’ applies just as much in the recycling industry as it does in many other industries.

Waste management provides renewable energy - An investment in sustainable waste treatment and recycling is also a great opportunity for more renewable and local energy production and new green jobs in Serbia.

For example, biowaste can be converted into sustainable biogas that replaces fossil natural gas or diesel, but also into biofertilizer that replaces fossil fertilizers. The residual waste, i.e., products that cannot be reused, repaired or recycled, can be incinerated with energy recovery and district heating. Even the ashes from the incineration process can eventually be used as a resource.

Precious metals can be extracted in “urban mining” processes and the salts from the ash can be utilised in new industrial processes.

Norwegian company NOAH will soon start building a pilot plant for salt recycling on the peninsula of Herøya in Norway. The project is called Resalt and the goals are to reduce the amount of hazardous waste that is stored and produce high-quality salts from a number of industrial streams.

Biowaste must be handled as a resource, sorted out at source and treated separately. All other material recycling and utilisation of household waste as a resource into new products depends on wet biowaste being sorted. In Serbia, as much as 50% of household waste consists of biowaste. This waste has up to 70% water-content and will contaminate all other waste streams if not separated at source.

Moreover, due to its low calorific value, this wet biowaste is not suitable for waste incineration. Nor will incineration of biowaste meet the EU standard for recycling.

You cannot make new high-quality recycled materials from a dirty and

New green jobs in the circular bioeconomy - The first treatment plant in Norway (incineration) was built in Oslo in the late 1960s. The country today has as many as 16 industrial biogas plants, 50 composting plants and 20 incineration plants of varying sizes.

Norway and other Nordic countries are considered as being very

a study by Avfall Norge. Additionally, value creation comes from all other materials and value chains in the circular economy, reuse, repair and new business models and business opportunities in almost all product types, deliveries and services.

Another study from Norway has shown that the transition to a circular economy in general can contribute to the creation of 50,000 new jobs, reduce CO2 emissions by about seven per cent and improve the trade balance by more than two percentage points.

The programme proposal includes five regions with 25 municipalities.

Garden waste from households is planned to be treated by home composting, assisted by local training programmes conducted by NGOs and communication arrangements.

The government will then support and tender the purchase of composting bins, collection solutions with “big bags”, collection vehicles and open composting plants (windrow composting) for the collection and treatment of green waste.

Improved biowaste management

If Serbia is to achieve the goals and requirements of the EU’s circular economy targets, the country must make major improvements to the whole waste system advanced and have world-leading companies in deposit return schemes of empty bottles (PET and aluminium, with 90% collection rates) as well as advanced sorting systems (Tomra) and advanced biogas systems for sewage sludge (Cambi). Still, the country needs to improve collection and recycling rates from today’s level of around 35-40% for biowaste on the whole.

From the value chains of biogas and biofertilizer from biowaste, Norway can - with its 5.3 million inhabitants - create 20,000 new green jobs within 10-20 years, according to

Serbia begins with garden- and park-waste - Biowaste, i.e., green waste, garden/ park waste and food/kitchen waste, accounts for 50% of total waste production in Serbia, with over a million tons annually.

Speaking at the Novi Sad conference, Assistant Minister Sandra Dokić, responsible for strategic planning and European integration at the Ministry of Environmental Protection, presented a draft of a programme for the collection and treatment of garden- and park-waste.

is key to recycling household waste and diverting such waste away from landfills, with all the associated environmental problems. This programme can therefore be a smart way to get started in Serbia.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Jens Måge is a circular economist specialising in the circular bioeconomy, biowaste collection and treatment and textiles. He is an advisor at Avfall Norge and a board member of the European Compost Network, ECN

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

25

FINLAND

Stepping Boldly Towards

A CIRCULAR ECONOMY Since the creation of Finland’s roadmap to a circular economy, ever more countries have recognised the importance of advancing a circular economy to mitigate climate change and tackle a host of crises, from resource scarcity to biodiversity loss and climate change.

By Laura Järvinen, Sitra Leading Specialist, and Riku Sinervo, Sitra Specialist

O

n a planet that’s being ravaged by the climate crisis and biodiversity loss, wellbeing can no longer be based solely on the manufacturing of new goods and introducing of new natural resources.

The circular economy is an economic model that aims to optimise the system as a whole and tackle the root causes of biodiversity loss, climate change and natural resource depletion.

26

Rather than producing more and more goods, in a circular economy we get more value from what we have, and we retain that value within the economy for as long as possible, through smarter designs, digital solutions and a shift from owning products to using services.

But how can we actually make the transition to a circular economy? In 2016, Finland was the first country in the world to prepare a national circular economy roadmap, under the leadership of the Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra. This roadmap provides a plan to move the country

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

away from a ‘make-take-waste’ linear economy model to one that protects resources and eliminates waste along value chains.

The roadmap has proven to be a strong tool in launching a circular change and creating a strong commitment throughout Finnish society. Finland today has a variety of ongoing circular economy activities in several sectors, a governmental programme for advancing the circular economy, and the highest number of circular economy higher education courses in the world.

Since the creation of Finland’s

roadmap, ever more countries have recognised the importance of advancing a circular economy to mitigate climate change and tackle a host of crises, from resource scarcity to biodiversity loss and climate change.

Circularity is even shaping many visions for the future. For instance, the EU’s new Circular Economy Action Plan featured as a key element of the European Green Deal, which is itself an ambitious plan to build a carbon-neutral economy. The roadmap can be an important route to kickstart new circular initiatives.

Here is a selection of Finland’s key lessons learned from the creation of its circular transition roadmap.

CONTEXT IS KEY The most important aspect of creating a circular economy roadmap is to design solutions that work for a particular context and that keep a country’s particular perspective in mind. Circular solutions cannot simply be imported from other countries without alteration. They must make the most of a country’s capabilities and resources.

To that end, Finland brought together a core working group that included 50 changemakers from all sectors of society. In addition, hundreds of participants took part via workshops and online commenting. With everyone around the same table, it was possible to create a shared mindset regarding a path towards a sustainable future.

OOPERATION IS REQUIRED C FOR PROGRESS Winning solutions are not simply created using the old ‘top-down’ way of doing things, but rather by demanding diverse cooperation and persevering with effort and commitment. Expertise from government, business, academia, civil society and the public are all needed for change to take root and grow.

A just transition to a circular economy also requires cooperation across borders. According to Circularity Gap Report 2021, the world economy is only 8.6% circular.

As most countries are too small to be entirely self-sufficient in circularity, it is essential to find ways to make global resource extraction and processing more sustainable. It will also be crucial for circular principles and practises to be adopted globally.

INVEST IN EDUCATION System-wide change is not possible without a major investment in education. Professionals, experts and decision-makers, both now and

in the future, play a decisive role in building a new future.

Knowing the importance of education, it was back in 2017 that Finland created an education initiative for students to study the circular economy. This was a new initiative that ranged from primary schools to universities. The study packages and teaching materials were developed together with schools in a series of projects for circular economy education in 2017-2019. Since then, circular economy teaching has established itself as a permanent part of the Finnish curriculum.

LEARNING FROM FINLAND Finland’s road map was more than just an official document. Several projects of significant importance to Finland’s circular transition were agreed on during the road map process. For instance, governmental innovation and funding organisation Business Finland launched a four-year, 300-million-euro circular economy programme. Technology Industries of Finland, together with Sitra and Accenture Strategy, created a playbook for circular economy business development

System-wide change is not possible without a major investment in education. Professionals, experts and decision-makers, both now and in the future, play a decisive role in building a new future Moving forward, education will come in the form of upskilling, as the principles and practises of the circular economy will impact almost every job. Vocational education, and lifelong learning in particular, need new solutions, allowing professionals in different sectors to apply the principles of a carbon-neutral circular economy to their own work.

for Finnish SMEs operating in the manufacturing industries.

Such efforts led to one-of-a-kind experiments, such as the regenerative agriculture pilot project called Carbon Action, which gathered more than 110 farms to tests different farming methods for enhancing soil carbon sequestration. This experiment then evolved into the Carbon Action Platform, which

develops and researches ways of accelerating soil carbon sequestration and verifying the results scientifically.

With a roadmap in place, the circular economy has established itself in the public discourse and materialised at a practical level as tangible actions.

Good initiatives have been generated, for example in the areas of mobility services, nutrient cycle and promotion of the use of waste materials from the construction sector. The Finnish Government’s Circular Economy Programme, published in early 2021, represents an important milestone in Finland’s circular economy work. Finland aims to reduce the use of natural resources by 2035 and has committed to achieving climate neutrality by the same year. Such goals are only possible when the growth of the economy and people’s wellbeing are no longer based on the wasteful use of natural resources.

Supported by research institutes, small and agile companies have been able to develop solutions that use resources in a more efficient manner than was the case before. The circular economy also has strong support among Finnish citizens. According to a 2021 Sitra survey, 82% of Finns believe that a circular economy creates new jobs and wellbeing in Finland.

The Finns don’t have all the answers – they are learning as they go, like the rest of the globe. However, they have learned first-hand the importance of adapting and scaling up existing solutions, investing in a participatory process, working together and investing in education. These factors – sparked by their roadmap – have been the key elements of Finland’s transition to a circular economy.

A longer version of this article was originally published on 9th June 2021 on the website of the World Economic Forum

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

27

EXAMPLES OF GOOD PRACTICE FROM DENMARK

The Circular Economy Is

AN INSPIRING JOURNEY Climate change, biodiversity loss and resource scarcity oblige us all to rethink our businesses and our responsibility. The fact that we, at Odense Waste Management, have amassed so much knowledge over so many decades gives us a special obligation to actively use this knowledge to, among other things, encourage the implementation of a circular economy. We invite you to make use of our knowledge, and we look forward to assisting in the development of the circular economy in Serbia, as well as in other countries.

T

here is a worldwide need to manage waste in a much better way by being innovative and finding new paths, so that we can make better use of our resources. Circular thinking must be integrated into the entire consumption and production chain.

Companies and consumers must find ways of using resources in a far better way than we do today.

In Odense, Denmark, the City Council is about to approve a new waste management plan that contains several initiatives supporting a circular economy. The 200,000 citizens of Odense are encouraged to upcycle, reuse and recycle more.

The plan also contains actions that support new business within the circular economy.

These initiatives link to the recently released “Climate Action Plan 2022”, which will, among other things, make Odense climate neutral by 2030 through the removing of 490,000 tons of CO 2 in Odense Municipality.

Serbia is also embracing the circular economy: a roadmap has been developed by the Ministry of Environmental Protection and a three-year action plan is currently being developed. Odense Waste Management participated in the

28

recent conference “Boosting Circular Economy in Serbia – Nordic Experiences”, which was organised by the embassies of Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden in Novi Sad and presents initiatives from Odense to inspire local actions in the circular economy in Serbia.

3 EXAMPLES OF CIRCULAR PROJECTS IN ODENSE Odense Waste Management is a limited company owned by Odense Municipality. We have been collecting municipal waste since 1885.

Apart from having collected waste from citizens and small enterprises for decades, we have also collected experience and knowledge about all aspects of waste management. The fact that we have accumulated so much knowledge through so many decades gives us a special obligation to actively use this knowledge to encourage the implementation of a circular economy.

The last decade’s focus on the cradle-to-cradle concept, the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the circular economy has given us the opportunity to capitalise on our knowledge with concrete projects producing tangible results. Let us present three of them here.

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

ONATION OF EQUIPMENT: D FROM WASTE PREVENTION IN DENMARK TO BETTER RECYCLING AND BETTER WORKING CONDITIONS IN BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA AND SERBIA In 2019, Odense Waste Management was set to replace outdated equipment due to the introduction of a new waste collection system.

The fibreglass containers no longer met the required standard or the needs of Odense and were originally intended to be shredded. However, a request from the City of Prijedor in Bosnia-Herzegovina, which was in need of new equipment for waste collection, encouraged us to rethink and take a more circular approach. We decided to send 2,000 old containers to Bosnia-Herzegovina and this donation made it possible to introduce the collection of more waste fractions in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Requests soon followed from nine other cities in Bosnia-Herzegovina and from Serbia’s Guča and Lučani. In total, OdenseWaste Management was able to donate 8,602 waste containers.

According to the Head of theTransportation Department at Odense Waste Management, Lars T. Hansen, “it was a big job to get the containers to Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia, but having seen what a difference they make I have no doubt that it was worth the effort”.

ROMOTING CIRCULAR P CONVERSATIONS THROUGH THE SECOND-HAND SHOP, REUSE WAREHOUSE AND COLLABORATION PLATFORM FOR GREEN ENTREPRENEURS IN ZIRKEL In 2020, Odense Waste Managementopeneditsdoorstozirkel,ahouse of circularity where items collected from recycling centres’ containers for “Reusable effects” are collected, distributed, exhibited or sold.

The zirkel second-hand shop aims to shows the beauty and possibilities of many discarded items in a different

With Serbia embracing the circular economy, there is a lot that it can learn from Danish experiences. Representatives of Odense Municipality’s Odense Waste Management participated in the recent conference “Boosting Circular Economy in Serbia – Nordic Experiences” and showed their knowhow and creative setting. zirkel is not a traditional second-hand shop, but more of a showroom for the better use of discarded materials, upcycling and circular thinking. Visitors to the zirkel second-hand shop are inspired to be creative and to see discarded materials in new contexts.

The zirkel reuse warehouse is packed with items that the second-hand shops of humanitarian organisations have access to and are able to pick up and sell in their own shops. Several filled containers are transported every week from recycling centres to zirkel, where they are sorted and neatly stacked on shelves for collection by humanitarian organisations. The zirkel warehouse is a resource bank for entrepreneurs, artists and educational institutions. zirkel is also a platform for collaborations with entrepreneurs, artists, local enterprises and educational institutions that want to work together

to promote upcycling, redesign and circular thinking. zirkel is an example of how items from recycling stations can be used in numerous ways, as opposed to being incinerated, deposited or recycled.

It is also an example of how we can promote circular thinking by collaborating and experimenting. “ CIRCULAR IN ODENSE” – CREATING GREEN ENTERPRISES AND PRODUCTS The EU-funded “Circular in Odense” project aims to help green entrepreneurs, from idea to prototype, and at best also to business.

Over the three years of this project, Odense Waste Management has succeeded in helping 10 partners work with different circular issues, from textile recycling to a packaging-free grocery store and social urban furniture. The project runs until

the end of 2021 and offers everyone a business idea, based on the circular economy, assistance with business development and the possibility of becoming a partner and receiving financial business start-up support.

The “Circular in Odense” project has initiated new circular prototypes and new circular businesses, while it has also inspired others to seek green business opportunities. This provides an important contribution to the circular conversation locally and globally.

The 10 partners’ business cases are an excellent source of inspiration for other entrepreneurs who aspire to make a difference by establishing a circular production chain.

“Circular in Odense” is an example of how a company can use its knowledge and passion to speed up circular development. It is our experience that, by being willing to invest time and share materials from the recycling centres, our relatively small contribution is a catalyst for many emerging entrepreneurs with ideas of how to make circular production and consumption chains.

OOPERATION IS KEY FOR C US AND FOR THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY For many people, waste collection and waste management are associated with a low status. However, for our 180 employees, waste management is associated with high importance: our employees are proud to be waste collectors, waste guides and waste experts. We think it is very interesting to be able to use the knowledge we’ve accumulated over many years to make a difference in the green area.

We invite you to utilise our knowledge and look forward to assisting in the development of the circular economy in Serbia and other countries.

Michael Dino Hansen is Waste Management Specialist at Odense Waste Management Ltd. Dorthe Lind Christensen is Senior Advisor, CSR and Sustainability, at Odense Waste Management Ltd.

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

29

INTERVIEW IVA PETROVIĆ, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE NORDIC BUSINESS ALLIANCE

We Learn

FROM THE BEST We believe that we can together turn problems into opportunities and achieve results for a cleaner and brighter future. Those of us in the North started earlier, so we have learned some lessons the hard way. And we want to share those lessons with Serbia, so that this society can avoid our mistakes and reproduce our success stories “There has already been a lot of talk about that and the good news is that, in the last year, there have been encouraging indicators that the state is now more prepared to get to grips with resolving these problems, at least when it comes to increasing investments in communal infrastructure – we have announcements of larger investments in the sewerage network, wastewater treatment plants, sanitary landfills and the like,” says Nordic Business Alliance Executive Director Iva Petrović. “What is less known is that the construction of the lacking infrastructure would simultaneously pave the way for changing the growth model in Serbia and shifting from a linear model of the economy to a circular one. That in itself represents a step towards a greener future for Serbia, because it implies less pollution, more efficient production and reduced use of resources.”

S

erbia is facing great challenges in the field of environmental protection, which was neglected during the previous period, due to the low level of environmental awareness in the society. Weak institutions, the failure to implement regulations and very low investments in public utilities infrastructure over the last 20 years have led to

30

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

SerbiatodaybeingamongEurope’smostpolluted countries – which poses a serious threat to the health of citizens and impinges on their quality of life. The first step in resolving environmental problems demands the strengthening of the state’s institutional capacities, but also huge public investments in communal infrastructure totalling almost 10 billion euros.

These are this year’s key topics for the European Union, the Nordic countries and their embassies, and also, to a certain extent, for Serbia. What activities have you planned and what will be in your focus?

- That’s right. At the heart of the European Green Deal, which is the EU’s new strategy for long-term economic development, are the fight against climate change and low-carbon development, more efficient production and a toxin-free environment by the middle of this century. The Nordic countries, as pioneers of sustainable development in Europe, fully share the vision of such a Europe, and that vision is also extremely relevant for Serbia, as an EU membership candidate country and a country with an economy that is closely connected to

the European common market. Given that Serbia is at the very beginning of its transition to a circular economy, the basic idea of this project is to propel this process forward by transferring the many decades of successful experience of the Nordic countries in the areas of waste management, wastewater treatment, reliance on renewable energy sources and other activities that simultaneously enable economic growth and a cleaner environment. Through several workshops to be held in Novi Sad, Kragujevac, Niš and Belgrade, experts from the Nordic countries will present best practice examples and point out the incontrovertible benefits brought by a circular economy.

When it comes to developing a circular economy in Serbia, which areas could primarily absorb the technological knowhow of Nordic companies?

- The management and processing of waste, as well as wastewater treatment, are areas where Nordic countries have extremely rich experience, which is why these two areas naturally impose themselves as potential very fertile ground for future cooperation.

Specifically, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden are practically leaders of Europe as a whole when it comes to all forms of waste treatment – incineration, recycling, composting – as reflected in the fact that only about 1% of municipal waste generated in these countries ends up in landfill sites. On the other hand, we have a completely different picture in Serbia, where only about one per cent of municipal waste is processed, with the remaining 99% discarded at landfill sites.

A large part of that waste ends up in one of the approximately 3,000 illegal dumps in the country or in municipal landfill sites that often don’t satisfy even the minimum environmental requirements. We need strategic solutions for some important segments of waste management, such as recycling and packaging waste, which is also an area where we can learn a lot from the Nordic countries.

You recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with representatives of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce & Industry’s Centre for Circular Economy that aims to strengthen these two business associations in the area of developing the circular economy. What are the next steps?

- Apart from the Nordic Business Alliance, the Nordic embassies’ partners in the implementation of the project “Boosting circular economy in Serbia - Nordic experiences” also include NALED, the Serbian Chamber of Commerce & Industry, the Chamber of Commerce of Vojvodina and the cities of Novi Sad, Kragujevac and Niš. As such, a natural need arose for cooperation between the two business associations, in which the key contribution of the CCIS Centre for Circular Economy in this phase is to identify domestic companies for which the workshops that we organise are relevant – whether those are companies that the transfer of the technology and experiences of Nordic partners should be directed

Political decision-makers and local institutions must be the leaders of this transition, which will result in the better management of waste and wastewater, improved air quality and greater reliance on renewable energy sources towards or domestic innovative companies and start-ups that are just starting to engage in the circular economy. Further cooperation

should enable the fortifying of existing links within the scope of the established network between the Nordic embassies, domestic institutions, experts and local partners – all with the aim of providing support to Serbia in the development of a low-carbon and permanently sustainable circular economy.

What do you expect from the upcoming conference on the circular economy?

- I believe that, after this conference, all key actors in Serbia will have a better understanding of the concept of the circular economy - how it works and what their role is in the transition process. That is extremely important, because although there’s been a lot of talk about the circular economy in Serbia lately, it seems that the general public still isn’t fully aware of what’s actually meant by this model of economic development. Apart from providing an overview of the technological solutions that the Nordic countries have implemented successfully, an important stride forward should also be made by overcoming the prejudice that environmental protection is just an economic expense and developing an understanding that transitioning to a circular model brings tangible opportunities for economic growth and job creation. It is precisely this fact that should provide additional motivation for the Government and local authorities in Serbia to intensify their efforts when it comes to strengthening all elements of the state system for environmental protection, as well as launching an investment cycle in this area.

In cooperation with the Belgrade Running Club’s Nordic Walking School, you recently promoted this sport. What makes it attractive during these days when it seems that the pandemic will again confine us to four walls?

- It is no coincidence that Nordic walking was the Nordic Business Alliance’s first public event after last winter’s wave of the pandemic abated. After a long and difficult year, we all had a need to move, socialise, connect, try new things, gain new experiences and build new friendships. But the first step is for us to be healthy. And Nordic walking distinguishes itself as the most inclusive form of training, because everyone can join, regardless of their age and level of physical fitness, which is also an ideal combination of the values that we nurture at the Nordic Business Alliance.

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

31

32

Nordic Countries & Serbia 2021

2

3

4

FEATURE

GERMANY 2021

FEATURE

5

GERMANY 2021

CONTENTS FEATURE

08

POST-MERKEL COOPERATION COMMENT

DIRECTOR OF THE GERMANSERBIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE (AHK SERBIA)

10

CONTINUITY IS A GERMAN TRADEMARK H.E. THOMAS SCHIEB, AMBASSADOR OF GERMANY TO SERBIA

26 20

18

GROWING OPPORTUNITIES FOR COLLABORATION FRANK ALETTER, MANAGING

30

KNOWLEDGE LEAPS BORDERS MILOMIR GLIGORIJEVIĆ, CEO OF TELEGROUP SYSTEM

14

COOPERATION GROWING WIDE AND DEEP UDO EICHLINGER, PRESIDENT OF THE GERMAN-SERBIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE (AHK SERBIA)

GASES FOR LIFE MESSER TEHNOGAS

22

READY FOR THE NEXT STEP IN SERBIA ROMAN STRAKOŠ, MANAGING DIRECTOR, BROSE SERBIA

24

HOW VISION BECOMES REALITY ZF SERBIA

CULTURE IS ESSENTIAL IN PANDEMIC TIMES FRANK BAUMANN, DIRECTOR, GOETHE-INSTITUTE BELGRADE

27

QUALITY AHEAD OF ITS TIME ZORAN ĐURIĆ, MIELE SERBIA GENERAL MANAGER

34

EMPLOYEES ARE OUR GREATEST ASSET PIERLUIGI GHIONE, MANAGING DIRECTOR & HEAD OF HEADPLANT, LEONI WIRING SYSTEM SOUTHEAST

28

QUARTET FOR A SECURE FUTURE DUŠICA, NEVENA, SLOBODAN AND DUŠAN JANKOVIĆ, Inmold Plast

IMPRESSUM EDITOR IN CHIEF Neda Lukić n.lukic@aim.rs ART DIRECTOR Branislav Ninković b.ninkovic@aim.rs PHOTOS Zoran Petrović COPY EDITOR Mark Pullen mrpeditorial@mail.com

6

PROJECT MANAGERS Biljana Dević b.devic@aim.rs Vesna Vukajlović v.vukajlovic@aim.rs Mihailo Čučković m.cuckovic@aim.rs OFFICE MANAGER Svetlana Petrović s.petrovic@aim.rs FINANCE Dragana Skrobonja finance@aim.rs

GENERAL MANAGER Maja Vidaković m.vidakovic@aim.rs PUBLISHER Ivan Novčić i.novcic@aim.rs DIRECTOR Ana Novčić a.novcic@aim.rs a.novcic@cordmagazine.com

PRINTING Rotografika d.o.o.

Segedinski put 72, Subotica GERMANY 2021 Published by: alliance international media Prote Mateje 52, 11111 Belgrade 17, PAK 126909, Serbia Phone: +(381 11) 2450 508 Fascimile: +(381 11) 2450 122 E-mail: office@aim.rs; office@cordmagazine.com

www.aim.rs; www.cordmagazine.com No 32 ISSN: 2560-4465 All rights reserved alliance international media 2021 The views expressed in this publication are those of the presenter; they do not necessary reflect the view of publications published by alliance international media

THIS PUBLICATION IS FREE OF CHARGE

50

RIGHT ON TRACK PETER WOLF, SECTOR FUND MANAGER, GIZ

40 37

NEW INVESTORS ARRIVING DRAGAN SIMOVIĆ, MEMBER OF THE SUPERVISORY BOARD OF MILITZER & MÜNCH SERBIA; MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE SERBIAN-GERMAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE (AHK SERBIA)

NURTURING IT’S OWN LEADERSHIP POSITION LJILJANA TOPIĆ, DIRECTOR, GALENIKA PHARMACIA

ORDNUNG MUSS SEIN

GERMANY 2021

36

44

CLIMATE IS THE KINGMAKER IN GERMAN COALITIONBUILDING

56

GERMAN CAR BRANDS ENGINEERED TO PERFECTION

46

AN EXAGGERATED TREND?

41

38

EVERY CHALLENGE IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR GROWTH BRANKA PERIĆ ŠLJIVIĆ, DIRECTOR OF INTERNATIONAL TRANSPORTS AT PERIĆ TRANS COMPANY

STRIVING FOR A WORLD BEYOND POVERTY TIMO STEGELMANN, INTERIM MANAGING DIRECTOR OF HELP - HILFE ZUR SELBSTHILFE – SUSTAINABLE AID WORLDWIDE

48

MODERN ARCHITECTURE IN GERMANY

60

RELIABLE PARTNER TO THE SERBIAN ECONOMY FOR 20 YEARS GERMAN-SERBIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE / AHK SERBIA, ACTIVITIES

42 39

SATISFIED PARTNERS ARE KEY TO SUCCESS NEMANJA ĆIRIĆ, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER, GP GRADJEVINAR

THE DANUBE CONNECTS SERBIA AND GERMANY CRISTIAN SALLAI, DIRECTOR OF THE GERMAN NATIONAL TOURIST BOARD’S BELGRADE OFFICE, REGIONAL OFFICE OF BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA, BULGARIA, CROATIA, MONTENEGRO, ROMANIA AND SERBIA 7

GERMANY 2021

COMMENT

POST-MERKEL COOPERATION Some of the topics that top the bilateral agenda include strategic cooperation in the field of climate change, as well as in the field of research and innovation. These themes are of lasting importance to mutual cooperation between the two countries and will hopefully outlive any election outcomes

G

ermany’s 25th September elections were from the very beginning dubbed “the most unpredictable elections in years”, as they indeed usher in a new era after Chancellor Angela Merkel’s 16 years in office. The outcome, which was watched closely around the globe, is of particular importance for the Western Balkans, and probably for Serbia in particular, as Chancellor Merkel’s policy had a strong impact on all aspects of political and economic life in Serbia. Some observers, such as Simon Ilse, director of the Heinrich Böll Foundation’s Belgrade office, think that her objective of eventually bringing Serbia closer to the EU has failed and state that “it is now high time for a fresh, new start to Germany’s relationship to the key enabler or blocker of a European future for the region – Serbia”.

Indeed, Merkel’s attitude towards the Western Balkans was a key shaper of European Union policy towards the six countries of the region. It will obviously take some time before we can discern how the European and Balkan policies of Markel’s successor

8

will look and whether the Western Balkans will remain a German strategic interest.

Merkel certainly intrigued many with her decision to devote one of her last foreign visits in her capacity as chancellor to Belgrade and Tirana.

German investors increasingly see the Western Balkans and Serbia as places to invest in more complex activities Some believe that she wanted to deliver a critical message regarding future bilateral relations between these two countries, while others are of the opinion that she wanted to support President Vučić ahead of upcoming elections. Some interlocutors emphasise in particular her message related to the exploration of lithium.

It remains to be seen which of these reasons is correct.

If one turns to hard data, there is one area that shows strong and unambiguous evidence in all aspects: over recent years, German companies

have invested around €3 billion in Serbia, creating more than 65,000 jobs and turning a significant number of Serbian SMEs into supplier companies of the German car industry. As a result, the trade exchange between the two countries is growing constantly, reaching 5.3 billion euros in 2020.

According to the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce, German investors see Serbia as a suitable destination for investment. According to the results of the opinion poll that’s regularly conducted among German companies in Serbia, the investment climate is good and the business environment is slowly but surely improving.

Another sign of progress in mutual relations is the shift from labourintensive activities to those that are at a higher technical level. Furthermore, suppliers are today working on much more complex projects than they were previously, while the topics occupying the interest of political leaders from both sides include cooperation in the field of climate change and in the field of research and innovation.

These are all good news items.

9

GERMANY 2021

INTERVIEW

H.E. THOMAS SCHIEB, AMBASSADOR OF GERMANY TO SERBIA

CONTINUITY IS

A GERMAN TRADEMARK

There is no doubt that the Western Balkans and EU enlargement will remain high on Germany’s agenda.

Whoever becomes the next Chancellor will certainly have a significant interest in democratic, prosperous and stable Western Balkan countries that are part of the European family and will be part of the EU as soon as possible ~ Thomas Schieb deliver on reforms, the EU will also deliver,” says Schieb in this interview.

A

ngela Merkel’s stepping down from the political scene was followed closely in Serbia and the other countries of the Western Balkans, with attention that reflected the common belief that this German Chancellor has had a decisive influence on the policy pursued in this 10

Your Excellency, departing German Chancellor Angela Merkel has chosen the Western Balkans as the last region that she will visit prior to concluding her professional career. What kinds of messages do you think should be drawn from that fact?

To start with, I’d like to say how grateful we were for the very warm welcome Chancellor Merkel received in Belgrade. With her trip to Belgrade and Tirana, Chancellor Merkel once again underlined the great significance that the German government attaches to Serbia, the region as a whole and its EU integration. In Belgrade, she had excellent talks with the President about all relevant issues. Chancellor Merkel also exchanged views with civil society representatives from all Western Balkan countries. She then met all six heads of government in Tirana. She underlined the great importance that the Berlin Process, launched by Germany in 2014, continues to bear fruit. Serbia and the region will remain high on our agenda. region by the European Union. With assurances that Germany will remain committed to the EU enlargement process, regardless of who becomes the new chancellor, German Ambassador Thomas Schieb insists that “the speed of enlargement remains in the hands of the respective countries. When you

To what extent will Chancellor Merkel’s final visit to Serbia and the messages she gave be binding for her successor? Do you expect new developments in German relations with Belgrade?

A trademark of German foreign policy is continuity. There is no doubt that the

EU ACCESSION

INVESTMENTS

OPEN BALKAN

Germany is, and will remain, a strong supporter of Serbia’s EU accession. Our position is clear: clusters can and will be opened contingent on reform progress, particularly in the area of the rule of law

Since the year 2000, German companies have invested approximately 3.1 billion euros in the country and created around 70,000 jobs. This is impressive indeed

The Open Balkan initiative, in our understanding, provides an important impulse to ongoing efforts to realise the regional economic integration of all WB6 countries

Western Balkans and EU enlargement will remain high on Germany’s agenda.

Whoever the next Chancellor will be, whether Armin Laschet or Olaf Scholz, they will certainly have a significant interest in democratic, prospering and stable Western Balkans countries that are part of the European family and will be part of the EU as soon as possible.

The speed of enlargement remains in the hands of the respective countries.

When you deliver on reforms, the EU will also deliver.

the resumption of the opening of EU accession negotiation chapters, i.e., clusters. Why is that?

Germany is, and will remain, a strong supporter of Serbia’s EU accession.

Our position is clear: clusters can and will be opened contingent on reform progress, particularly in the area of the rule of law. It is true that Serbia

Should the current European integration deadlock be attributed to a lack of results in the dialogue with Priština or the poor assessment of the situation in Serbia with regard to the rule of law?

Both areas are relevant for EU integration. Justice reform, progress with other relevant legislation and – even more importantly – the implementation of laws in the rule of law, e.g., with regard to the fight against corruption and for the improving of media freedom – are key elements for the progress of accession talks.

Federal elections were held in Germany at the end of September, marking an historic change of chancellor, with the departure of Angela Merkel. However, you have noted that there will be no major changes to German foreign policy. Do you nonetheless expect some new directions in terms of the topics or policies that will be prioritised?

Indeed, Germany elected a new Bundestag on 26th September. This heralded the end of an era in a way, as Angela Merkel will leave office after 16 years – only Helmut Kohl served for a similarly long period. But, as I said before, I don’t expect any major changes in Germany’s foreign policy.

In principle, all political parties that have a realistic chance to form a new government agree that European integration is of key importance, as are the transatlantic partnership, the promotion of multilateralism and an international rules-based order. One issue that will certainly be an even higher priority for every new government is the fight against climate change.

During Chancellor Merkel’s visit, we once again heard that Germany supports Serbia’s EU integration path. However, the fact remains that Germany and other EU member states don’t currently support

Whoever the next Chancellor will be, whether Armin Laschet or Olaf Scholz, they will certainly have a significant interest in democratic, prospering and stable Western Balkans countries that are part of the European family and will be part of the EU as soon as possible has delivered on some relevant opening benchmarks, but there was not enough time for the EU to assess that before the June conference. I am quite optimistic for December. I strongly encourage all relevant stakeholders to remain committed to the reform path.

You’ve spoken about the excellent cooperation between Germany and Serbia on the economic front.

How would you explain the continuous interest in investing in Serbia among German investors, despite Serbia’s slow progress on EU accession?

Since the year 2000, German companies have invested approximately 3.1 billion euros in the country and created around 70,000 jobs. This is impressive indeed.

The “quality” of German investments is also improving, i.e., German companies are investing more and more long-term, helping to transfer knowhow and technology, as well as fostering innovation potentials, generating higher ‘added value’ in Serbia. The close proximity to the European Union, the availability of a skilled workforce and an environment that’s generally supportive of foreign direct investments are among the main factors contributing to Serbia’s attractiveness as a destination for investments by German companies. Moreover, those German companies that are already present in Serbia are satisfied – according to the annual survey of the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce, AHK, around 90% of its members would invest in Serbia again.

11

GERMANY 2021

INTERVIEW

remain. The OHR still has an important role to play in maintaining stability and security in the country, and to ensure the implementation of the civilian aspects of the Dayton Peace Agreement.

Given the experience and expertise of new High Representative Christian Schmidt, I expect that he will keep Bosnia-Herzegovina high on the international agenda. Besides that, he will focus on achieving progress in the implementation of the 5+2 Agenda, which is a precondition for the successful completion of the mission of the OHR – also with a view to speeding up the country’s journey “from Dayton to Brussels”.

At the same time, it is important to note that reforms to foster competition and improve the provision of public services, as well transparency and legal security, will further contribute to promoting a strong and competitive private sector in this country. Sustainable economic growth in Serbia, based on a strong private sector, is crucial when it comes to making Serbia’s economy fit for EU accession. Investors are very well aware of this and they are counting on Serbia’s path towards the EU. How would you assess the regional initiative that was recently renamed Open Balkans?

The Berlin Process, initiated by Germany in 2014, aims at improving regional cooperation among the WB6 countries and thereby facilitating their path towards EU accession. One concrete endeavour is to create a Common Regional Market in the Western Balkans, thus boosting economic relations among the WB6 countries. At the last Berlin Process summit meeting in 12

It is true that Serbia has delivered on some relevant opening benchmarks, but there was not enough time for the EU to assess that before the June conference.

I am quite optimistic for December July, leaders of the Western Balkans reconfirmed their commitment to this important project. The Open Balkan initiative, in our understanding, provides an important impulse to ongoing efforts to realise the regional economic integration of all WB6 countries. It is very important that any regional initiative is inclusive, i.e., open to all WB6 countries.

What do you expect from the Bosnia-Herzegovina mission of your countryman Christian Schmidt?

Since its establishment, the Office of the High Representative (OHR) has contributed substantially to peace and stability in B-H. And yet, challenges

Elections will also be held in Serbia next year. Do you believe that the interparty dialogue will prove successful and provide conditions for free and fair elections, preventing another opposition boycott of the elections?

Plurality of opinions is obviously very important in every democracy. A parliament should reflect the opinions of its citizens and allow for constructive political debates. We therefore hope that the interparty dialogue, which is facilitated by the European Parliament, can contribute to providing the conditions for free and fair elections and, thus, the participation of opposition parties in the elections.

One of the key elements of this dialogue, which also includes the participation of representatives of the European Parliament, is media freedom. Do you think the current situation in the Serbian media can ensure the fair representation of all participants in the elections?

We share the assessment of the EU Commission that more needs to be done to ensure media freedom in Serbia. The goal must be to enable an environment in which freedom of expression can be exercised without hindrance. This includes journalists being able to work without threats, media laws being fully implemented, the independence of the Regulatory Body for Electronic Media being strengthened and transparency in media ownership increased.

GERMANY 2021

FEATURE

13

GERMANY 2021

INTERVIEW

UDO EICHLINGER, PRESIDENT OF THE GERMAN-SERBIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE (AHK SERBIA)

COOPERATION GROWING WIDE AND DEEP There are great opportunities for cooperation between German and Serbian companies, and both sides are ready to use those opportunities. German companies that currently operate in the country are satisfied with the productivity and motivation of their employees, while new prospective investors are increasingly looking for Serbian suppliers specifically

G

erman companies are increasingly considering Serbia under the scope of their strategies to secure nearshoring suppliers, says Udo Eichlinger, President of the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce (AHK Serbia). Indeed, he notes, over the past year AHK has observed that more German companies are looking specifically for suppliers from Serbia.

“This is certainly done from two points of view: on the one hand, we have positioned Serbia as part of the Western Balkans purchasing initiative as a supplier market for Germany.

On the other hand, we find that German companies base their purchasing strategy on different pillars,” says Eichlinger. “Here again, the proximity to the EU and good quality structure of Serbian products offer themselves”.

According to our interlocutor, the focus is currently on the metal processing industry, mechanical engineering, IT and the food industry. The metal processing industry accounts for almost 40% of Serbia’s manufacturing exports and is experiencing continuous growth.

In the IT industry, Serbia has established itself as an outsourcing location for software, telecommunications and consulting services. Serbia has very favourable climatic conditions for a wide variety of agricultural products, experienced and quality-conscious manufacturers, suitable expertise and food technicians, as well as a globally recognised selection of various plant products. “We should continue to mar-

14

PROGRESS

FOCUS

EDUCATION

In the latest survey conducted by the German-Serbian Chamber, the list of positive factors cited by German-Serbian companies includes the tax system and tax management for the first time

The focus of German companies in Serbia is on the metal processing industry, mechanical engineering, IT and the food industry

Serbian education has to turn learning through work into a competitive advantage in attracting foreign investments that contribute greatly to the Serbian economy

ket these positive aspects in order to use the advantages of a realignment in the purchasing area,” says Eichlinger.

East and West, human resources, and to persevere in improving the business environment. For many major investors, in their final decisions concerning investment location, infrastructure, the education of workers, the proximity of the market and the possibility of protecting contracts and property were more important than subsidies.

to our business concept of having sustainable operations. But where there is a different approach, it is definitely beneficial to have this kind of support and commitment to the EU principles of free competition and equality.

What criteria would you cite as being decisive in choosing an investment destination?

The availability of professional staff is nowadays one of the most important factors in a company’s decision to invest in a particular country. This is exactly the chance for Serbian education to turn learning through work into a competitive advantage in attracting foreign investments, which contribute greatly to the Serbian economy. In addition to that, a concentration of sectors in the same area can ease efforts at developing the required talents. Training and school resources can be bundled and a joint definition of required skills can improve the content of curricula.

If you were to rank the factors that attract investors in terms of importance – from an improved business environment, the rule of law, good geographical connectivity and others – how would subsidies rank on your list and why?

Thanks to the demanding economic reforms it has implemented in the previous period, Serbia has positioned itself as one of the most important investment destinations in Central and Eastern Europe. Attracting foreign direct investment, mainly through the investments of multinational companies, is seen as a way to transfer knowhow, technology and business organisation to domestic companies, as well as to increase labour demand and increase exports. Due to the connection of domestic companies with foreign investors and their inclusion in the value chain, their productivity and product quality increase. It is necessary to make the most of the key advantages of Serbia, which are embodied in its regional position and preferential access to the markets of

At Siemens we are particularly proud of our Mobility factory in Kragujevac, which produces trams and components for light rail vehicles. Many projects are underway and a lot of trams will be produced here and used throughout Europe It also needs to be noted that subsidies are also available to Serbian companies in the same way. Taking subsidies or not is definitely a business decision and a need of both foreign or local companies. For example, Siemens in Serbia did not take subsides, due

According to the Government of Serbia, we are no longer a country of cheap labour. Does this concur with the perspective of German companies doing business in our country? What do they see as being the most important criteria?

Serbia is of great interest to the German economy, both as a procurement and sales market and as a production location. There are great opportunities for cooperation between German and Serbian companies, and both sides are ready to use those opportunities.

Numerous factors that could be of great interest to potential German partners are noteworthy, including the free trade agreement with the EU, a productive and high-quality labour market, state subsidies and good logistical connections to Central and Western Europe.

Having said that, we also find it important that jobs are also created for less skilled people to achieve inclusive growth of the economy.

Your member survey for this year showed that AHK Serbia member companies are extremely satisfied, while the list of key challenges that they identify still includes the business climate, legal framework and corruption. Have your members noticed any positive shifts in these areas, and, if so, where?

Exactly, the results of the latest survey conducted by the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce in March and April show optimism. Satisfactory assessments of German-Serbian companies were given to criteria related to the labour market in Serbia: companies are satisfied with the productivity 15

GERMANY 2021

INTERVIEW

alone. Each region brings with it some benefits. There are numerous opportunities to establish cooperation with Niš, Čačak, Zaječar and Kragujevac, and here we are primarily referring to areas like the automotive, textile, IT and some other industries. At Siemens we are particularly proud of our Mobility factory in Kragujevac, which produces trams and components for light rail vehicles. Complete trams are manufactured in Serbia. Many projects are underway and a lot of trams will be produced here and used throughout Europe.

and motivation of employees, their qualifications, academic education and dual education, and for the first time the list of positive factors includes the tax system and tax management.

Unfortunately, it needs to be noted that Transparency International’s research shows no change in the corruption index. We have addressed this with the Serbian government on various occasions and offer our assistance to improve the business environment to a sustainable level.

Serbia has an ever-increasing problem when it comes to retaining its educated and talented young workers. What do you think is the cure to this brain drain?

German companies are committed to Serbia. German companies transfer certain values to their way of doing business. I just want to mention that we run an additional health programme that gives a great benefit to our employees. We find that a working healthcare system and good infrastructure – not only in the larger cities, but also in rural areas – are key to avoiding a certain brain drain.

How do you attract educated personnel at Siemens specifically?

Nowadays it isn’t always easy. It became a challenge to attract engineers to our area of business, since it is predominantly one of the most in-demand 16

By using innovation, we can truly change people’s lives with solutions for the future, which really makes us an attractive employer occupations of the last decade. But, to tell you the truth, we consider ourselves lucky, as employees choose us on many occasions. That’s not just a phrase, but something that Siemens has been working on for more than 170 years. We have almost 400,000 employees worldwide and we’re all bound by the same principle: to work for a company that cares about people, about the work-life balance, about society. Needless to say, our company is among the world’s most innovative companies. Using innovation, we can truly change people’s lives with solutions for the future, which really makes us an attractive employer, wouldn’t you agree?

We are increasingly seeing German companies heading to Serbia’s interior. With the exceptions of Belgrade and Novi Sad, which of the country’s industrial centres would you single out and why?

German industry is present in all parts of Serbia – more than 70,000 people are employed at about 400 German companies. For example, more than 50 German companies operate in Vojvodina

Do you consider Serbia as being on the right track when it comes to keeping pace with the Fourth Industrial Revolution and digitalisation? Apart from the building of eGovernment structures, do you see any domains of the industrial sector that could represent good examples of this transformation?

I must say that the Government of the Republic of Serbia has recognised the importance of digitalisation, which has contributed to significant development in this area over the past few years. The Government has acknowledged the importance of investing in this as great capital for economic stability and future growth. Digitalisation, as one of the priorities of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, transforms everyday work in the public sector and raises its economy, transparency and quality of work.

I believe Serbia should just maintain the good direction it is taking by nurturing a positive business climate in the country, which proved to be extremely stable, even under the conditions of the coronavirus pandemic last year, which means a stable GDP this year and certainly the creation of even better conditions for young people and talented individuals who live and work in Serbia, as well as to entice our people who have left Serbia to come back and have good and stable jobs. One aspect of the new normal we have all been living in over the past year and a half is remote working, and with this model it is possible to work from any part of the world in some business areas, so why not use this opportunity and stay in Serbia?

17

GERMANY 2021

INTERVIEW

FRANK ALETTER, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF THE GERMAN-SERBIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE (AHK SERBIA)

GROWING OPPORTUNITIES

FOR COLLABORATION

Serbian companies are very well positioned to attract the interest of German investors seeking to diversify their supply chains or find alternative sourcing destinations. This trend mirrors an upsurge in bilateral business relations

T

he Delegation of the German Economy in Serbia and the German-Serbian Economic Association celebrated their 20th anniversary in Serbia this year, while the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce (AHK Serbia), which unites them, celebrated its fifth anniversary this April.

“There have always been good business relations between Germany and the Western Balkan countries,” says our interlocutor Frank Aletter, Managing Director of the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce (AHK Serbia).

These business relations have increased over recent years, not only in terms of trade, but also with regard to

18

How do you see the chamber’s future operations and activities?

What has changed, or has yet to change, when it comes to the way AHK Serbia delivers its services?

The German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce regularly provides information and networking events for its members.

At the same time, it also addresses current economic topics and provides a public-private dialogue. The challenges of doing business have, however, increased over the previous years when it comes to climate and environmental protection, digitalisation and finding the right talents for companies. These topics need to be addressed with strategic partners and stakeholders. The chamber has established working groups in these areas to provide knowledge support for its members.

German FDI. This trend started around 2012 and, according AHK data, the COVID situation has only marginally slowed the interest of German investors.

“Due to the disruption of the supply chain from Asia, interest of German investors who want to diversify their supply chains has been picking up again.

At the same time, companies based in Germany are also seeking alternative sourcing destinations and Serbian companies are very well positioned in this regard,” says Aletter.

“These developments are also reflected in the number of members of the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce, which started with 30 member companies and now stands at 370 corporations.”

The AHK Road Show has been held in cities that are considered as being Serbia’s new centres of innovation, such as Novi Sad and Čačak, for example. How attractive are these centres to German companies that have a higher technical level of operations?

During the roadshow to Novi Sad and Čačak, it was particularly interesting to meet Serbian companies in the IT sector or in the field of digitalisation and robotics. These are certainly areas that are very interesting for the German market. In addition to that, there is high demand for skilled and experienced personnel in the field of digitalisation.

Thus, companies in these two cities are very attractive for potential partnerships

INTERESTS

Climate and environmental protection, digitalisation and finding the right talents for companies are emerging topics that need to be addressed with strategic partners and stakeholders with German companies. The AHK Road Show has proven to be a good marketing tool to promote these two locations.

AHK Serbia has an important role to play in supporting dual education in Serbia. To what extent are your members involved in dual education today; and how has the COVID-19 Pandemic impacted this area of their work?

Currently, one of the main pillars of AHK Serbia is the support and implementation of dual education as vocational training and dual studies in Serbia, especially when it comes to guidance and practical training provided by our members. Our chamber built a “Dual education” working group – to support members through the implementation and conducting of dual education in their companies. AHK enables a strong network amongst members and stakeholders for sharing experience, monitoring the implementation of the dual education law and bylaws in Serbia, building synergies for cooperation with VET schools, using linkages to Serbian VETs, universities, training and science centres, as well as to German dual education institutions and providers like the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIPP), the international AHK network, the German IHK network and to German VET schools as well. We also gather feedback from our members regarding the implementation phase of dual education and its success and challenges, and then forward the main issues of that feedback to leading bodies like the Serbian Ministry of Education, the local chamber of commerce in Serbia, other stakeholders and key players in the country.

After being introduced to secondary schools, dual education is now gaining a more prominent role in tertiary education in Serbia. How important is tertiary dual educa-

INVESTMENTS

Various German companies are investing in the R&D field, particularly in the areas of the automotive sector, energy solutions and artificial intelligence

tion for German companies, both at home and abroad?

Our members are in the process of restructuring and updating their industrial processes in line with new technologies, furthering digitalisation through the use of, for example, AI, 3D printing, or augmented reality, and thus complex digitalised technologies demand spe-

AHK enables a strong network among its members and stakeholders for sharing experiences, monitoring the implementation of the dual education law and bylaws in Serbia, as well as building synergies for cooperation with various partners cialised knowledge and skills based on further education and qualification, and the higher education of their employees.

As it is essential to educate young people at an academic level that can provide solutions to complex and abstract questions, the helpfulness of also hiring young people who have already been exposed to practical tasks can’t be overlooked. In Germany, the concept of dual education

POTENTIALS

Companies in Novi Sad and Čačak that hail from the IT sector or operate in the field of digitalisation and robotics are very attractive for potential partnerships with German companies also transferred to tertiary dual education. This has been proven as a working tool to provide the right personnel for the relevant job profiles. The future will show whether this is a concept that will work in Serbia. AHK Serbia offers a wide network and the support of an expert in the development of dual study programmes, thanks also to the international network of the GIZ programme “Business Scout for Development”.

You’ve noted the fact that fostering cooperation in science and research, and in business areas, would benefit both countries. Could you be more specific with regard to areas and fields of cooperation?

Various German companies are not only investing in the area of production in Serbia, but also in the field of R&D. This has been seen in particular in the areas of the automotive sector, energy solutions and artificial intelligence. There are flagship projects on the way, in which those companies cooperate with universities.

Such initiatives are welcome, but can certainly be increased in the aforementioned sectors or other areas of activities.

Some foreign and bilateral chambers of commerce in Serbia are involved in supporting Serbian start-ups or pairing start-ups and traditional companies from their own countries with innovative companies from Serbia. Have you considered such an option?

This has already been practised for the last several years. AHK Serbia is a bilateral organisation that also supports Serbian companies in matching with German companies in Serbia, as well as providing support to enter the German market. If a start-up company approaches us, we provide all relevant services and open access to our network.

As mentioned above, demand is very high, particularly in the IT sector, and creates opportunities.

19

GERMANY 2021

FEATURE

MILOMIR GLIGORIJEVIĆ, CEO OF TELEGROUP SYSTEM

KNOWLEDGE

LEAPS BORDERS TeleGroup system is one of the leading technology companies in the field of information and communication technologies, the modernisation of the electricity industry, technical and Cyber security, intelligent transportation systems and the construction of telecommunication infrastructure in Serbia

D

eutsche Telekom assessed TeleGroup as a modern, structured company with excellent potential and that, with our expertise, working discipline, experience and references, we are worthy of their attention and trust in becoming their partner - proudly notes TeleGroup system’s CEO Mr Milomir Gligorijević.

Over the past 20 years of operations on the Serbian market, TeleGroup has succeeded in gaining an enviable reputation in our region and abroad.

What makes you particularly proud?

I’m primarily proud of our many years of operations and survival on such a dynamic market. We have been operating in Serbia for 20 years, and in BosniaHerzegovina for 25 years, while we are also present in other countries of the region, where we operate to the highest standards of the sector. Our success is precisely the fact that we know what we’re doing and that we always keep pace with modern technologies. Thanks to our knowhow, competencies and our personnel, we are today participating in the development of strategic projects. I’m proud of the entire families that have grown up and work at our company today, and I’m also happy about the frequent returns of the best staff after they’ve worked on foreign markets and projects.

Our results, our people, our courage and knowhow have built a reputation that has stood the test of time and earned the attention of foreigners.

It was five years ago that you recognised the potential to expand

20

we are part of that. Deutsche Telekom, as one of the world’s leading telecom operators, is striving to become a leader in building Europe’s digital sovereignty.

It is a special honour for us that – alongside the infrastructure investments that we’ve agreed to make over the next five years, as well as maintenance – we are today jointly discussing great ideas and opportunities to engage highly qualified personnel for future project planning, optimisation and design projects in telecommunications. We are today working and thinking together with the teams of Deutsche Telekom.

We consider the model of work in Germany and at home as being optimal for our mentality your operations to the territory of Central Europe. How did Germany distinguish itself on that large market of huge opportunities?

Germany is the economic locomotive of our part of the world. We analysed the development of telecommunication and saw that our expertise would be important in the future, particularly in the area of building optical infrastructure.

That future is already unfolding today, as we talk. Germany has strongly, and with huge resources, launched the implementation of a huge project – FIBER OPTICS TO EVERY RESIDENT – and

How did your cooperation with Deutsche Telekom come about?

What recommended you to them – was it your strong references, expertise, experience?

The initiative originated with our company. We are fortunate that, in addition to wonderful engineers, we have excellent experts working in communications and international relations, who recognised that our knowhow can leap borders. With clear communication and the presenting of our expertise, Deutsche Telekom gave us the opportunity to prove ourselves on pilot jobs in the German cities of Kiel and Braunschweig. We’ve proven ourselves and met expectations in the domain of our working method, knowhow and quality. Next came a chance to cooperate further on the building of future networks over the next five years and in maintaining existing infrastructure. My dream, which I initiated five years ago while working with Siemens, has now blossomed with new energy

with the launch of Deutsche Telecom projects development. I have enjoyed the way they discuss, do business and plan, because their procedures, rules and business culture were things that attracted and encouraged us to endure on the difficult path of proving our competencies.

How does your cooperation with Deutsche Telekom function? Directly or through subsidiaries? Do you have subcontractors?

Our cooperation with Deutsche Telekom is totally direct and open. We create it mutually. We easily agreed that, due to simplicity and legal regulations, the cooperation would be led by TeleGroup GmbH, as a German legal entity.

Deutsche Telekom is acquainted in fine detail with the personnel and all other capacities and resources at TeleGroup system’s disposal, and it accepted to enable other companies in our system, apart from TeleGroup GmbH, to participate in projects: TeleGroup Belgrade and TeamEnergo from Serbia, Tech Team from Croatia, TeleGroup Banja Luka, TeleGroup Sarajevo, G&T Inženjering Banja Luka from Bosnia-Herzegovina and Diagram from Slovenia.

All of our companies are involved in this project, yet even all of us are not enough, we strive to cover the vast needs and as a key partner of Deutsche Telekom Technik in Balkans we are broadening our human resource capacities to meet the groving needs of the work in the next five years in the North of Germany.

Is it true that you have the best teams in the area of copper and optical infrastructure, and that your cooperation with Deutsche Telekom provides an opportunity for TeleGroup employees to train and develop?

Yes, that’s correct. We really have high-quality teams. These are people who’ve been working together for a long time and have been engaged in projects with almost all telecom companies in the region. Our people are really top masters of their craft, ennobled with knowledge and, even more importantly, vast experience. We love our home,

family, friends from the neighbourhood, our cafes and musicians. That’s precisely what brought us all back from the abroad to our homeland. However, in order for our region to be modern and competent, we must sometimes stretch our seven-league boots. That’s why we consider the model of work in Germany and at home as being optimal for our mentality. For us, cooperation with Deutsche Telekom represents, among other things, a chance to train and improve our people and to work at home, but also in Germany, with a

have the ambition to be the first in the development of fiber optics, which is why we are happy to have arrived at the right time! TeleGroup GmbH is growing and developing through ever more projects, the technological equipment we have at our disposal, the expansion of our human resource capacities and expansion to new offices in Hamburg and Kiel.

We are currently concentrating on the north of Germany, where we were welcomed very collegially and with great respect. We independently, as a system,

Ivana Kojadinović Žižić (Telegroup), Borislav Tadić (Senior Vice President Deutsche Telekom ), Annett Berthold (Senior Vice President Calculation Deutsche Telekom), Milomir Gligorijević

We are currently concentrating on The North of Germany, where we were welcomed very collegially and with great respect reliable employer that keeps pace with the ambitions of the market.

Are you proud of the fact that your cooperation with Deutsche Telekom has opened the door and provided an opportunity for other Serbian companies to work on this demanding market?

TeleGroup is the first company from Serbia to have direct cooperation with Deutsche Telekom, and we consider that a great success and a true privilege. Germany and Deutsche Telekom

covered the areas of Braunschweig, Kiel, all the way to Lubeck.

We are happy with the fact that we have justified the trust of our German partner and thus enabled other companies from our market to demonstrate their expertise and knowhow. We are impressed that we are in the company of serious companies from Serbia, that we are together defending and raising the reputation of our country and profession.

Our company’s doors are constantly open to all interested engineers, technicians and fitters who have knowledge of the German language and accept discipline and apply the rules of the profession, and who strictly respect the organisation and wish to shoulder with us, work “side by side”, to build something great together!

21

GERMANY 2021

BUSINESS

ROMAN STRAKOŠ, MANAGING DIRECTOR, BROSE SERBIA

READY FOR THE NEXT STEP IN SERBIA Brose is the world’s fourth-largest family-owned automotive supplier. In 2021, the company’s new site in Pančevo started its operations - and the next development steps are already being prepared negative effects, we were able to cope well thanks to close cooperation with our partners.

Brose Serbia achieved every important milestone on time or even quicker than originally planned. Our plant has been in operation since 1st July. We are currently producing electronics and cooling fan motors, while preparing to increase our capacity as planned.

The next step will be the start of our production line for electric oil pumps in early 2022.

I

n his interview for CorD, Brose Serbia Managing Director Roman Strakoš expresses his satisfaction with the decision to set up a new location near Belgrade and describes his plan for the next years.

Is everything in your new plant in Pančevo progressing according to plan? What exactly will be produced at this facility located near Belgrade?

We struggled with COVID restrictions over recent months, just like 22

The next step for Brose Serbia will be the start of our production line for electric oil pumps in early 2022 other companies. We were particularly hard hit regarding the training of our new employees abroad, due to various, changing regulations. The situation also had a negative impact on the availability of the necessary construction workforce and material. Despite those

How would you assess your company’s cooperation with representatives of the City of Pančevo and the Republic of Serbia? Have they done everything required to ensure that this largest German investment in Serbia to date is being implemented to the mutual satisfaction of all involved?

I see Serbia as a great place for our production and development location, with many people qualified and willing to take part in creating the future of mobility. This was the reason we chose Serbia in the first place, and good cooperation with the local and national government confirmed our decision. So far, we have always been able to find a way to together resolve every issue that came up.

How much assistance in the implementation of this project have you received from representatives of the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce and the Serbian Development Agency - RAS?

We received major support and guidance from RAS, which was and is very helpful. The commitment of the entire RAS team is outstanding, and the Republic of Serbia can be really proud of them. With the Chamber of Commerce, we mainly cooperate with regard to educational topics and in order to get in contact with other German companies.

How much have you invested in Serbia to date and what is the total value of this latest investment?

Until the end of 2021, we will have invested a high double-digit million euro amount here, which is about three quarters of our investment for the first phase of the new location.

Alongside the constructing of the factory and procuring of equipment, you’ve also worked to identify the best possible personnel. Are you satisfied with the quality of the workforce that’s available? How many workers will be employed?

This autumn, we will also start our internship programme: 19 students will be working at Brose, with some of them even staying in Germany for a couple of months In general, we are very satisfied with the technical qualification of people, as well as their ability to speak English. At the moment, more than 350 people are working at Brose Belgrade. This number is supposed to grow to 1,100 by 2025. Of course, this growth will depend on the further development of the automotive industry, which is still rather volatile due to the pandemic and the shortage of semiconductors.

Are you perhaps planning to collaborate with local schools, colleges and institutes on identifying and promoting talented individuals at an early stage and encouraging the development of research projects?

We are in intensive discussions with local high schools in Pančevo to set up a

dual education programme. There is also close cooperation with the universities of Belgrade and Novi, Sad specifically the faculties of Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Technical Sciences. This autumn, we will also start our internship programme: 19 students will be working at Brose, with some of them even staying in Germany for a couple of months.

How realistic is your plan to achieve revenue of around €440 million in Serbia by 2025?

With our long-term planning and order situation, that goal is still realistic. However, as already mentioned, our business development is closely linked to the situation of the automotive market in general, which is still facing several crises today.

23

GERMANY 2021

BUSINESS

ZF SERBIA

HOW THE VISION BECAME REALITY The story of ZF Serbia began in 2018, when the foundations of this important greenfield site of ZF’s youngest and innovation-driving E mobility division were laid in the city of Pančevo, in Vojvodina, Serbia

Z

F was then already leading the transformation to new mobility and taking major steps to advance new technologies and products, with the strong conviction that electromobility is the future of the automotive industry, and all strategic decisions were made with the aim of developing, expanding and accelerating this change.

With ambitious future plans, ZF decided to come to Serbia and invest in a new production site, and by the time this modern production facility was officially opened, in June 2019, the investment had already increased and the extension of the plant and research & development centre were already under construction.

A significant investment of 160 million euros was agreed for the construction of phases I and II of the Pančevo plant, as an expansion of ZF’s global production

24

FROM LEFT: MILAN GRUJIĆ, MICHAEL STAUCH

network, and additional funds amounting to 35.6 million euros were allocated in the second phase of the investment for the construction and equipping of the ZF Serbia engineering centre Pančevo.

This marked the biggest German investment in Serbia, initiated the new industrial zone in Pančevo and was a signal for other investors to come to Serbia.

ZF understood and recognised the positive change in the investment climate, local efforts that will secure long-term political and economic stability, and also adequate infrastructure and workforce potential, but also the most important factor: the existence of credible and consistent local and national government support and understanding that will enable the desired progress of this project.

Today, just three years on, we can have a realistic view of the impressive

results that ZF Serbia has achieved here and state that this location is an evident example of strategic thinking, correct decision making, great visons, promises kept and the joint effort of ZF team members and successful cooperation, but also great friendship between Serbia and Germany, company ZF and the City of Pančevo, which will continue through new plans and future challenges.

ZF Serbia’s Pančevo location is today the biggest E-mobility location outside Germany, covering the entire design and production process from the first customer product to serial production, bringing the advantages of all those processes being instigated at the same time and in the same location. The growing team of highly skilled, trained and educated employees at this 58,000m2 production facility is currently working mainly on the production of starter generators for Volvo vehicles, electric motors for the third generation of hybrid transmissions for BMW and electric axle drives for Mercedes-Benz.

Furthermore, microswitches and gear shift systems are also produced at the Pančevo plant.

The state-of-the-art engineering centre, comprising 3,000m2 of office space and 3,600m2 of its high-tech testing area, currently employees 100 engineers. A cross-functional engineering team deals with the development of new products of the Division Electrified Powertrain Technology, the design of electric motors, the development of electric axle drives, as well as software calibration, testing and validation.

Within the scope of the testing centre, in which approximately €20 million has been invested for modern testing equip-

ment, there are 16 test rooms for testing and verifying electric motors, as well as endurance and performance tests in active and passive operations, but also for validating the overall system. It was in January 2021 that the first tests began being conducted at in this most modern research centre in Serbia, and they have been in operation ever since, while also supporting serial production at the Pančevo Plant.

The ZF Serbia Pančevo plant, together with the associated research & development centre, currently employs close to a thousand people.

We, as the new E Division, are convinced that now is the time to put sustainable mobility at the heart of everything we do. We contribute by electrifying mobility globally, with ZF technology inside.

Our goal is very clear: for us to become a world leading company in electrified mobility!

speed and, realistically, have managed to do more than we planned. ZF is the most modern trend in the automotive industry. This has been recognised by our clients, partners, employees, the entire company and the division within which we operate.

We now know that ZF’s innovative and courageous vision of the future and well-conceived strategy have yielded results and we remain on the right track as inspirers and leaders of change when it comes to the development of the automotive industry.

WORD FROM THE MANAGEMENT Michael Stauch, ZF Serbia, Managing Director - Technical The Engineering centre in Pančevo is the final improvement of this ZF location.

On the one hand, we have current serial production, while on the other, we now have everything in one place. This is authentic for us and a great opportunity for the location in Pančevo, Here we have a young team that’s motivated, well-educated and able to absorb the knowledge of new technologies, which is why ZF is developing the location faster and into more areas than what we initially intended. We are now a complete plant, we are able – from the first contact of a customer, via development and production – to deliver everything to any automotive customer with regard to E-mobility, and that’s something we didn’t initially think we would be able to achieve so quickly, after just two or three years.

Milan Grujić, ZF Serbia, Managing Director - Technical We have invested significant resources and all our knowledge, provided support for this project to proceed at incredible

ZF is a global technology company that supplies systems for passenger cars, commercial vehicles and industrial technology, enabling the next generation of mobility.

With its comprehensive technology portfolio, the company offers integrated solutions for established vehicle manufacturers, mobility providers and start-up companies in the fields of transportation and mobility. ZF continually enhances its systems in the areas of digital connectivity and automation in order to allow vehicles to see, think and act.

The company has a global workforce of 153,500, with 271 locations in 42 countries. In 2020, ZF achieved sales of €32.6 billion.

Founded in 1915, ZF has evolved from a supplier specialising in aviation technology to a global mobility technology company. With the acquisition of WABCO, the company significantly increased its competence, especially in the field of technology for heavy commercial vehicles, buses and trailers. ZF last year spent more than seven per cent of its turnover from sales on research and development.

With its innovative portfolio, ZF focuses on “Next Generation Mobility” for passenger cars, commercial vehicles and industrial applications. Group shareholders include the Zeppelin Foundation, administered by the City of Friedrichshafen, holding 93.8% of shares, and the Dr Jürgen and Irmgard Ulderup Foundation, Lemförde, with 6.2%.

25

GERMANY 2021

BUSINESS

MESSER TEHNOGAS

GASES FOR LIFE Messer Tehnogas AD, a part of Messer SE & Co. KGaA, a leading international family-owned company in this field, is the largest producer of industrial, medical and specialty gases in Serbia and the Balkans, and it’s 92 years of tradition guarantees the reliability and quality of delivered products

M

esser Tehnogas supplies over 4,000 customers in Serbia and abroad, selling over 650,000 tons of products in Serbia and throughout the Balkan region. Its clients have at their disposal professional and responsible teams for technical and logistic services 24-hours-a-day, 365-days-a-year, using over 50 trucks and tank trailers.

MEDICAL GASES Messer Tehnogas AD has been at the forefront of the fight during the COVID-19 Pandemic, as a producer and distributor of liquid and gaseous medical oxygen, which the WHO has declared an essential medicine for the treatment of COVID-19 patients.

During the state of emergency, at a time when virtually nothing was known about the virus and most of the economy had ground to a halt, this company was working every day, with increased capacity for the production of medical oxygen.

In order to meet the requirements to increase the oxygen supply capacity, the company has invested significant funds: 14 stable storage tanks were mounted and more than 20 mobile storage tanks were made operational; central gas supply systems were installed in seven hospitals, sometimes even while patients were already admitted; thousands of seamless cylinders for compressed gases were procured or repurposed, while production switched from one-shift operation to three-shift operations, at all five Messer locations. Logistics, under extraordinarily dynamic engagements, made deliveries around the clock, without breaks for weekends and holidays.

Through constant communication, Messer Tehnogas performs the regular 26

By implementing over 300 applications of different gases in everyday life, Messer Tehnogas constantly shows how important its business is for everyday life and work! and reliable distribution of medical gases to all necessary institutions on the territory of Serbia.

SPECIALTY GASES The Messer Tehnogas specialty gases portfolio consists of several product lines: high purity gases; standard and individual gas mixtures; specialties like some inorganic gases, refrigerants and liquid helium, as well as high purity liquid gases. All of these products are

delivered from the Pančevo production plants to customers in Serbia and across the SEE region.

The applications of special gases are very diverse. Many modern analytical methods require pure gases or gas mixtures as working gases, while analysers must be calibrated by high precision gas mixtures. Gaseous Helium is used for filling of balloons and aircrafts, to detect leaks and in liquid phase as an MRI coolant reaching superconductivity state. Resonators in CO2 lasers work using specific, precisely defined gas mixtures. Noble gases or their mixtures with other components are used to charge halogen bulbs, for insulation in windows or for production of plasma display panels.

As different applications of specialty gases mixtures are, so are the industry areas: for quality control in the fields of petrochemical, chemical, pharmaceutical or food industry, specialty gases are used for analytical purposes. In hospitals, calibration gases are used from blood gases analysis to lung function diagnostic. Simulations of natural gas mixtures are used for the calorific control and composition of natural gas; gas mixtures are used in biogas plants for the control process, as well as for quality control when adding biogas to the natural gas grid. Approvals for placements of new motor vehicles on the market, as well as regular technical inspections for the control of exhaust fumes, are based on high-precision calibration gases. Low concentration calibration gases are used to control emissions of exhaust fumes from various industrial plants, as well as for the continuous monitoring of air quality.

ZORAN ĐURIĆ, MIELE SERBIA GENERAL MANAGER

QUALITY AHEAD OF ITS TIME

Since its founding in 1899 until today, when it employs almost 21,000 people, Miele has remained a family company which has at its core commitment and responsibility towards the founders, employees, customers, suppliers, the natural environment and society

M

iele Serbia achieves excellent sales results that rank it alongside economically stronger markets, and thus, from year to year, it records double-digit growth in terms of turnover and increases its network of showrooms and its local Miele team Miele is a beloved brand in Germany, as the world’s leading manufacturer of premium home appliances that also operates successfully in Serbia. What else do we need to know about your company?

Miele is today synonymous with highquality, durability, innovation and service values in all markets where it operates.

Our dedication to our customers is reflected primarily in top quality and the guarantee of a long service life of appliances. At a time when there is lots of talk suggesting that products from the consumer electronics segment are nowhere near as reliable as they used to be, each of our appliances is tested for a 20-year service life. In addition, led by the needs of users, we strive to continuously improve, implementing the latest technologies and creating appliances that will ease users’ daily lives.

When it comes to Miele in Serbia, more than a decade of successful operations has shown us that customers in this area really know how to recognise and value quality.

Your brand’s motto is “Immer Besser (forever better)”. Does that mean forever better than others, because you don’t give way to the competition? Or forever better than yourself, because you provide your customers with only the best?

than they do for other brands. For me personally, being “Immer Besser (forever better)” means providing full support to consumers and going a step further than what they already expect. With this goal, at the beginning of this year we opened an exclusive Miele sales salon or, as we call it, the Miele Experience Centre, in the Belgrade Waterfront area, which provides customers with the opportunity to utilise the professional help of advisors and the widest range of appliances that they can try at the sales salon to select the one that best suits their lifestyle.

We strive to continuously improve, implementing the latest technologies and creating appliances that will ease users’ daily lives The fact that we strive to be better than ourselves leads to us being “Immer Besser (forever better)” in everything we do. It is actually this guiding idea that was imprinted on the first machines by the company’s founders, Carl Miele and Reinhard Zinkan, that motivates us, on a daily basis, to redefine the notion of excellence in doing business and enables us to advance year on year when it comes to quality and innovation in our range. This is also expected of us by consumers, who traditionally set higher criteria for Miele

Miele is known as a company that sets standards when it comes to quality and design, but also when it comes to care for resources and sustainability. Is it time for long-life devices in the field of home appliances?

Although sustainability only recently came into the focus of the general public, with us it is a corporate principle that has been applied since the company’s founding, primarily through the longevity of appliances, which is the ultimate form of sustainability and a counterpoint to the current culture of discarding.

The desire for us to also be “Immer Besser (forever better)” in this segment is at the heart of the brand’s current global campaign, through which we want to show how Miele offers its customers “Quality ahead of its time”, in terms of product design, performance and sustainability.

It is very important for us that – through this campaign on our local market, now with a focus on sustainability – we will be one of the pioneers and will impact on the world being a better place to live.

27

GERMANY 2021

BUSINESS

DUŠICA, NEVENA, SLOBODAN AND DUŠAN JANKOVIĆ, INMOLD PLAST

QUARTET FOR A SECURE FUTURE The core business of Požega-based company Inmold Plast is the production of high-quality tools for injection moulding of plastics and non-ferrous metals. It specialises in tools for injection moulding of thin-walled packaging and tools for injection moulding of technical parts, while it is additionally engaged in the production of IML robots fairs, trips, conferences and meetings.

Nevena: At work I currently mostly use the way of thinking that I acquired during my studies.

Slobodan: I had the good fortune to study in a country that has a very developed industry, where we also operate, so I learned many things that we’ve applied in our company. One of the main advantages of studying abroad is that a person matures more than they would by studying in their home country.

I

nmold Plast is a family-owned company that has changed a lot in the 15 years since it was founded. Apart from the uncompromising quality of its products, of which founder and owner Goran Janković is extremely proud, he is equally proud of his four children who are already involved in the business.

As a graduate mechanical engineer, Goran started his private business in a 1994 partnership. He then became independent in 2006 and founded family company Inmold, which has become a serious company over the past 15 years, growing at an average rate of more than 30 per cent annually. He and his wife, Milka, began including their children in the company’s work to a greater or lesser extent, with daughters Dušica and Nevena and sons Slobodan and Dušan joining the business. Although they were all educated abroad, they see their future in Serbia,

28

in this family company that employees don’t leave. Their parents are their role models in both work and life, while they are each other’s greatest support.

What compelled you to decide to stay with the family company, despite having the clear possibility of working abroad?

Dušica: Our father started gradually including each of us in the work before our studies. We travelled a lot with him and met many people from the business world. I quickly realised that a job with the family business would allow me to travel and study.

How much of the knowledge that you acquired during your studies have you managed to apply at the company?

Dušica: I apply a lot of what I learned during my studies on the job, mostly at

And how useful was the knowledge you acquired at the company during your studies?

Dušica: Everything I’ve ever learned could also be applied during my university education at some point.

Nevena: Working at the company during my summer holidays changed the way I viewed my studies - I acquired a better notion of what work I wanted to do and how to apply the knowledge I gained at university.

Slobodan: The way of thinking and professional knowhow that I mastered at the company helped me to initially pass exams in production engineering.

Dušica and Nevena, what is it like to work together in the same company with your sister?

Dušica: Work has been easier and more relaxed for me since Nevena joined me, because from that moment I’ve had someone to share the responsibility that we bear on our shoulders, as children of the owner.

Nevena: Dušica broke the ice, so it was easier for me. I work with her like I do with every other colleague in the company.

Slobodan and Dušan, how did you end up studying at the same faculty? How much was your brother a factor?

Slobodan: We were influenced the most by our father, of course in a positive way. If I’d been asked, I would have suggested that Dušan study something else.

Dušan: My decision to enrol at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering was influenced by the whole environment, not only my father, but great “credit”, or “blame”, for that belongs to Slobodan.

Is there anything you would change at Inmold Plast?

Dušica: The company is growing ever more year-on-year, which is why I think we need better organisation and an amendment of the current system and way of working. But we’ve already started working on that...

Nevena: With us there is constantly something that’s changing, in accordance with the growth of the company.

I also have some new ideas that we’ll work on in the period ahead.

Slobodan: We’ve become an extremely complex system over the years, which must be viewed as a whole and constantly improved as a whole. All the knowledge acquired abroad – at fairs, in visits to other companies and working with suppliers, customers and partners – should be adapted to our company and implemented to bring us growth and progress.

Dušan: I wouldn’t comment on this topic as yet. The others have more knowledge and experience than me.

Is there anything that you’re particularly proud of when it comes to your family business?

Dušica: I’m very happy that we invest a lot in young personnel and employees generally. Inmold Plast really offers many opportunities for further development, for travel, participation in conferences, fairs etc. I’m proud of the fact that we collaborate with many companies that are synonymous with quality, not only on the European market, but also worldwide, but I’m also proud of our membership in the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce.

Nevena: I’m proud of the fact that, unlike our peers who study here and then move abroad, we did the opposite – we returned to Serbia to work for ourselves.

I’m proud of the way our company works with students. I’m proud of the employees who view this company as their home, the people who participate in changes, the organisation of the company, the list of customers who place their trust in us over many years etc.

Slobodan: I’m proud of the fact that my father, with his knowledge, work

and experience, succeeded in developing such a successful company in a small community like Požega.

Dušan: I constantly think about the rhythm at which we’re developing and the ambitions of my family that drive us forward, and that makes me very proud.

Do you have a motto or something that guides and directs you?

Dušica: You shouldn’t go through life, but grow through life.

Nevena: If you can dream something, you can also make it happen.

Slobodan: There’s no way I could decide on just one... I have multiple lessons: whatever happens, a solution can always be found, you just don’t need to panic. Whoever stops advancing starts regressing. Work, work and only work!

One needs to move forwards at all costs.

Dušan: Hard work pays off.

What is the most precious thing in your life?

Dušica: My family is my most precious thing: my husband and my son Matija. Knowhow, family upbringing, dear people.

Nevena: Family, proper friends, honest advice and the positive people around me.

Slobodan: A family that I can always rely on and that I know wants the best for me. In the first place are my daughter Dunja and my wife, who is a great pillar of support for me in everything.

Dušan: Family and friends.

What have you learned from each other?

Dušica: That we should fight if we want something and not give up easily.

Nevena: We are constantly learning from each other and pointing out each other’s flaws and mistaken moves, but we also know how to offer praise when someone does something well. I learned to more quickly and easily accept constructive criticism. We learned tolerance and how to work together to solve problems. We apply that both in life and work.

Slobodan: That each of us, with our own characteristics and abilities, is unique in this community of ours. We differ from each other greatly, which provides us with lots of room to learn from each other.

Dušan: I learned from my three older siblings to be tenacious and persistent in everything I do.

What are your plans?

Dušica: I plan to work on myself, to improve, and thus contribute maximally to the further development of the company.

Nevena: On the business front, I intend to dedicate myself to learning and improving my knowledge, and on the personal front I want to travel a lot and meet new, interesting people.

Slobodan: I want to continue developing Inmold, together with my family.

Dušan: My plan is to contribute as much as possible to the progress of our company with my knowhow and fresh ideas.

29

GERMANY 2021

INTERVIEW

FRANK BAUMANN, DIRECTOR, GOETHE-INSTITUTE BELGRADE

CULTURE IS ESSENTIAL IN PANDEMIC TIMES “When I think about a dream project that could be done in the future, the first thing that comes to my mind is that we should organise a big party and concert on the occasion of Serbia entering the European Union” Goethe-institute. That was the effect of 2020. We tried, like everybody else, to switch and change formats, but some of us cannot stand to hear the word “streaming” any longer, because it has become too much. Everything is streamed, everybody produces, but where is the audience?

L

ike other cultural institutions, Goethe-institute is facing lots of challenges during the still ongoing pandemic. Nevertheless, it has adapted to the new reality, establishing its COVID relief fund and changing the way projects are implemented. Here we speak to Goetheinstitute Director Frank Baumann to discuss various topics, including the importance of culture during a crisis, how to act against disregard for culture, relations between official institutions and the sphere of culture, and mainly the Goethe-institute’s past, current and upcoming projects.

30

During past months we’ve seen lots of analysis and discussion about the impact of COVID-19 on the economy, on education and even on international relationships. In your opinion, what is the most significant impact that the pandemic has had on the culture and creative sector?

As is known, all cultural events had to be cancelled in the previous period, all institutions in the field had to be closed and all artistic projects were postponed or cancelled. The same applied to the cultural and creative industry and, of course, to us at the

If we reflect on the period behind us, what could be concluded about the importance of culture during a crisis?

If we’re talking about the lockdown situation and the complete shutdown that was unnecessary, my impression is that places of culture should be among the first to reopen, and not among the last. And the question is: with which institutions or spheres of live do we compare culture and cultural institutions? The importance of culture is evident, as it can help people overcome their fears. And fear is palpable when a life-threatening virus is waiting just around the corner. The problem is that there are people who regard art, music, literature, and film as something almost superfluous, something you can easily do without, which is wrong. All these people who see the fundamental relevance of culture as being in line with leisure activities, comparing it with fitness studios and casinos, must allow themselves to be accused of being too lightly discrediting everything that defines our democracy. Because culture is essential in pandemic times.

In Germany, we have the term “Systemrelevanz” - what is relevant for a society and what is not. And culture was obviously not relevant.

There were a bunch of artists who used this and said: “We ARE systemically relevant”. It cannot be that system relevance includes only that which is countable and that which is measured in prices, numbers and values. The filling station is relevant, but the cinema is relevant as well, for other reasons.

How can we combat the serious undermining of culture that you mention?

By speaking about it further and, as a cultural institution, by trying to reopen platforms, rebuild stages, make even bigger projects, increase the budget and support local artists and the culture sphere.

The Goethe-institute and the German Federal Foreign Office, together with some other organisations, established the International Relief Fund which has, for the second time, provided support to mainly NGOs in dealing with the negative consequences of the coronavirus pandemic.

And we could support local NGOs not just by coproducing projects, but by supporting them in a tangible, budgetary way, including by purchasing the technical equipment that they need or, for example, covering staffing costs. This fund is present in several countries – Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia and a couple of others – and it could serve to prove that this is situation where even dinosaurs like the Goethe-institute are able to react quickly and adequately.

At least two of your projects – “Playing Narratives” and the platform “Next Generation” – are aimed towards the youth. Could you tell us more about this and the responses you’ve received?

“Playing Narratives” is a project that targets young professionals and those who want to become professionals in the gaming field. It is about bridging the gap from a comic story to a game i.e., how to develop it. The idea originated with our French colleagues and is our joint project. For us, it was interesting to see how immense the support was from Serbian companies that operate in the gaming business. These companies have been really interested, because they also know that they can get a grip on these talented youngsters through such a project.

“Next Generation” is the creative platform that we established in 2010 in order to deepen our communication with the youth. We have been focused on a few projects over the last several years. In cooperation with visual performance artist Darko Dragićević from Berlin, we realised the projects – “Failure as Practice”, “Lie & Theft as Practice” – the book will be presented soon – and we are now in the third phase, “Inequality as Practice”. The young artists who participate in this platform have a possibility to attend workshops

The importance of culture is evident, as it can help people overcome their fears. And fear is palpable when a life-threatening virus is waiting just around the corner with Darko and other visiting professors, mainly from Berlin, sharing the specific experience of connection in the collective body and working on a given topic.

Before the pandemic, this project was well noted in Berlin, and the cooperation we’ve already established with the Tanzfabrik Festival will continue. For us, this means the building of bridges between Berlin and Belgrade.

Among other programmes within the scope of the “Next Generation” platform, we currently have a programme in which

IMPROVED RELIABILITY FIRE PROTECTION DAMPERS IN HOTELS

With a long and successful tradition, Gruner is today one of the leading independent producers of automotive relays and actuators for fire protection and smoke protection. Actuators for fire protection and smoke protection can be supplied as spring return actuators (series 340 and 360) and as smoke protection actuators (series 342 and 362).

All major parts of these actuators are made of steel, ensuring that they are able to cope with temperatures exceeding 120 degrees – even over extended periods. Gruner developed its fire protection damper actuator according to a minimalist design, creating a unit capable of functioning reliably and rapidly in serious situations.

Numerous product features are expressly prescribed by today’s industry. This fact confirms and justifies the company’s motto – ‘innovation instead of imitation’ – on the market. In the area of latching relays for smart metering, the company is the undisputed technology leader and world market leader.

GRUNER Serbian D.O.O. Ul. Marka Oreškovića b.b.

16210 Vlasotince Tel: + 381 (0) 16-230-800 Fax: + 381 (0) 16-230-801 www.gruner.de

31

GERMANY 2021

INTERVIEW a group of ten young artists and visual artists are dealing with the issue of commons. The topic they are working on is the institution of the future.

Speaking in some previous interviews, you mentioned that you see “a certain threat wherever culture and history are presented (and financed) top-down.” How would you describe the relationship between officialdom and the sphere of culture?

The relationship between official, state institutions and the cultural scene is always asymmetrical. That happens because the first one should partly finance the second, which is something that’s demanded in our contemporary societies. We have the right to demand this – that the state finances culture. But, of course, it is not just a deal like any other, because in culture you never know what you’ll get. In my eyes, that is something that should be accepted as being part of the game. That’s because culture is not financed for those who pay for it, but for society as a whole. I’m now speaking about artistic freedom, which is a very important value. We have the idea that art is basically allowed to do everything, which doesn’t mean 32

“Playing Narratives” is a project that targets young professionals and those who want to become professionals in the gaming field.

It is about bridging the gap from a comic story to a game i.e., how to develop it

We staged this exhibition in cooperation with the EVZ foundation (The Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future) and the preparatory phase alone lasted almost three years.

We are very satisfied that we could continue this exhibition’s international tour. Namely, the initiative originated in Belgrade but included five other cities – Novi Sad, Podgorica, Tirana, Augsburg and Berlin - and also four curators and around 10 artists who dealt with the issue of forced labour under Nazi occupation. We consider this topic as being very important and so many families have their personal stories, but we noticed that those who were impacted very rarely speak about it, nor is that present in the public sphere.

That’s why the exhibition is entitled “Missing stories”. It encompasses different perspective from several countries.

It has to date been organised in Belgrade, Novi Sad, Podgorica and Tirana.

Every place has brought something that was peculiar to that city, and the accompanying programmes have been different. Hopefully, the exhibition will be presented in Augsburg and should end its tour in Berlin.

that it must do everything. But it is generally allowed to do so. I then found this quote by a former German constitutional judge and high-ranking lawyer: ‘the liberal and secularised state lives on the condition that it cannot guarantee itself’. This is an interesting philosophical approach we should reflect on.

What are your plans for the coming months?

We are once again collaborating with the Belgrade Jazz Festival and the BITEF festival. We also have our own Goethe Film Festival, organised together with KC Grad.

I have to say that, unlike in the other countries where I’ve worked, Serbian partners always know who they would like to present and invite from Germany. Awareness of what is going on in Germany is at a very high level here.

One of the Goethe-institute projects is the transnational exhibition “Missing Stories. Forced Labour under Nazi Occupation.

An Artistic Approach”, as an issue that presents one of the forgotten memories in regional history education. What have reactions to the exhibition been like and are you planning similar projects in this field in the future?

Is there any (dream) project that you would really like to do, in terms of cultural exchanges between our countries, but which you have not yet implemented?

When I think about a dream project that could be done in the future, the first thing that comes to my mind is that we should organise a big party and concert on the occasion of Serbia entering the European Union.

33

GERMANY 2021

BUSINESS

PIERLUIGI GHIONE, MANAGING DIRECTOR & HEAD OF HEADPLANT, LEONI WIRING SYSTEM SOUTHEAST

EMPLOYEES ARE OUR GREATEST ASSET With its global production network and technological expertise, Company Leoni is one of the leading manufacturers of wiring systems that help customers build next-generation vehicles. Its Kraljevo production facility is the largest Leoni plant in Serbia

L

eoni Serbia takes care of, and invests in its employees, as human resources are seen as the company’s biggest asset. That’s why Leoni organises numerous internal and external training courses and programmes aimed at developing and enhancing talent, but also to encourage the hiring of highly qualified staff

Is it true that Serbia is the only European country in Leoni’s global production network that has four production plants? Have you already become the largest employer in our country’s manufacturing industry?

That is correct. Leoni Serbia is currently the only European entity with four production facilities within the Wiring Systems Division. The company’s management recognised Serbia as not only a great investment destination, but also an opportunity to build and operate at four production plants within a single country. Our first plant, in Prokuplje, was opened in 2009, then came Malošište plant in 2014, and Niš factory in 2017 and, finally, our Kraljevo plant, the construction of which began in 2018. Leoni Serbia currently employs around 13,000 people, which makes us the largest private industrial employer in the country. Moreover, this strengthens Leoni’s position as a high-performance supplier to the international automotive industry.

Is Kraljevo factory, where 50 million euros have been invested, among your largest plants? What kind of capacity does it have?

34

The construction of the plant began in August 2018 and we have just now, in September 2021, marked its official opening. The entire building spreads over an area of more than 60,000sqm, 45,000sqm of which represents the production area. The business produces harnesses for one of the world’s premium carmakers, with a capacity and planned production of up to 2,000 cable sets per day. Leoni has to date invested 55 million euros in the building and equipment for its newest production facility.

Leoni Kraljevo plant currently employs 3,728 people, while at its full capacity (by year’s end 2023), the factory will be employing around 5,000 people. This also makes our Kraljevo production facility the largest Leoni Serbia plant when it comes to the number of employees.

Leoni has to date invested 55 million euros in the building and equipment for its newest production facility

You are proud of your investments in your people and their continuous professional advancement. Does this mean that you consider employees your greatest and most important resource when it comes to ensuring good operations and excellent results?

Leoni Serbia won the People Development Award at our Wiring Systems Division Summit, which also confirms our efforts and the company’s dedication to its employees’ professional advancement and overall progress. The most important share of our successful business operations on a daily basis falls under the category of individual and team accomplishments, without which we would not have reached the company’s scale and business performance that we have today.

FireBox for your safety The FireBox is tested for power cables of up to 16 mm2 and has been approved for fire and telecommunication cables with a wire diameter of 0.8 mm.

The expanded FireBox product family guarantees the maintaining of electrical function according to DIN 4102 Part 12 in the case of fire.

Both power cables and data cables can be connected or branched, while two different sizes, with six different connection units, provide additional application options. The FireBox is tested for power cables of up to 16 mm2 and approved for fire and telecommunication cables with a wire diameter of 0.8 mm. Thanks to the inclusion of V-TEC cable glands, or flexible plug-in seals, cable insertion is made particularly easy. A simple 90° turn of the corner screws fixes the FireBox lid quickly and simply.

The high temperature-resistant ceramic connection unit of the OBO FireBox is completely preinstalled and, together with the bolt ties, forms a fire protection system that’s tested for the maintaining of function according to DIN 4102 Part 12. As such, it meets the strict requirements for electrical connections of key safety systems. It is no longer necessary to cover metal parts, as the protective conductor terminal is connected to the support clamp. The robust housing, made of halogen-free thermoplastic, can withstand the heaviest loads. It is impactresistant, break-resistant and, with its high IP66 protection rating, provides protection against spray water.

Together with OBO products for individual function maintenance routing, the FireBox offers a unique range of cable routing options, with the maintaining of electrical function for 90 minutes (E90). OBO is one of only a few manufacturers to offer function maintenance systems for the connection, fastening and distribution of power and data cables in cable systems from a single source.

OBO BETTERMANN d.o.o. Stara Pazova 22000 Stara Pazova, Evropska 2 tel: +381(0)22 21 50 346 web: www.obo.rs 35

GERMANY 2021

FEATURE

PETER WOLF, SECTOR FUND MANAGER, GIZ

RIGHT ON TRACK As a provider of international cooperation services for sustainable development, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH is dedicated to building a future that’s worth living in for around 120 countries worldwide

T

he results that we’ve achieved over previous years, such as the introduction of digital solutions for better public services and the improvement of framework conditions and capacities for water and waste management in many local communities, instil us with confidence that we are on the right track - says GIZ Sector Fund Manager Peter Wolf.

GIZ has spent a full decade working around the world, on behalf of the German government and its international partners, to shape the future. Are you satisfied with what you’ve achieved?

The GIZ Open Regional Fund for Southeast Europe – Modernisation of Municipal Services (ORF MMS) that I am allowed to introduce today is conceived as a cooperation and networking platform for all relevant stakeholders in the six Western Balkan countries (WB6) who want to use the benefits of stronger regional cooperation and improved local economic development. Together with our partners, we are creating better living conditions and perspectives for the local population across the region.

With the development of an e-registration system for seasonal workers in agriculture, over 46,000 people could work with full social security benefits, while the government generated 4.8 million euros in additional taxes and contributions from 2019 to 2020. The overarching framework for all the activities of our 23,600 employees, cooperation partners and commissioning parties is the 2030 UN Agenda, with its Sustainable Development Goals.

You are currently focused on the new 2021-2024 project cycle. What can you tell us about this cycle?

36

proposals to national authorities and intensive capacity building measures to local governments aimed at fostering economic development and improving the business climate.

The transfer of best practices, such as the e-registration system for seasonal work from Serbia to other WB6 countries, will be facilitated, including further digital transformation in local communities, COVID- 19 post-pandemic recovery and the promotion of inclusiveness through the support of vulnerable sections of the population following the principle “Leaving no one behind”.

We managed to reform the system for issuing building permits that led to the country climbing 177 places on the World Bank’s Doing Business list In the upcoming project phase, a strong focus will be placed on further strengthening regional networks and their capacities to create a businessfriendly environment. Based on the transfer of knowledge between governments, civil society and the private sector at the local, national and regional levels, as well as the exchange of best practices from EU member states, this project will facilitate cooperation and develop innovative approaches to fostering economic reforms.

The efficient dissemination and transfer of knowledge will be implemented throughout sector-specific network organisations.

The project will provide support for the development of concrete reform

You work to improve conditions for the development of municipalities and local economies in the six countries of the Western Balkans.

Who are your partners in this important work?

In order to meet these challenges, our ORF MMS constantly strengthens the capacities of regional sector-specific networks, such as the Network of Associations of Local Authorities in Southeast Europe (NALAS), the Regional Capacity Development Network for Water Public Utilities in Southeast Europe (RCDN) and the Network for Business-Friendly Certification Southeast Europe (BFC SEE). These are the strategic partners of our work in the region.

The ORF MMS additionally promotes cooperation between these regional networks and national decision makers.

Beside the involvement of ministries, municipalities, public utilities enterprises and their regional umbrella organisations, as well as international and bilateral donor programmes, the constant growth of the commitment of the private sector is duly noted and highly appreciated.

GERMANY 2021

DRAGAN SIMOVIĆ, MEMBER OF THE SUPERVISORY BOARD OF M&M MILITZER & MÜNCH SERBIA; MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE SERBIAN-GERMAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE (AHK SERBIA)

The policy of the Government of Serbia plays one of the crucial roles, because subsidies encourage the arrival of investors. With the connecting of the Serbian-German Chamber of Commerce and the Government of Serbia, the bringing in of foreign investors is being implemented successfully, which represents a recipe for success

T

he Militzer & Münch Group employs approximately 2,100 workers in 27 countries. And over the course of just two years, M&M Serbia has reached a level of six branches and more than 160 employees in the country. M&M places its focus on complicated markets and demanding customers who expect the best prices, shortest deadlines and top professionalism.

Are you satisfied with the results that you’re achieving?

I am satisfied with the increase in the number of workers, because a larger number of workers shows that we have ever-more work. I estimate that we will not stop here when it comes to achieving our goals, i.e., the jobs that should be implemented over the next year. With the concluding of new contracts, there will also be an increase in the number of employees. The current forecast for the next year is that we will have around 250 employees in Serbia.

What distinguishes your company from the competition the most?

What currently sets us apart from our competition is automation and the use of modern technologies, in order to conduct work better and faster. We offer our clients faster and more efficient handling, i.e., realising work in the warehouse, with the installing of lifts and conveyor belts with a capacity of 500 to 700 cartons per hour. Likewise, under the scope of the automation of our warehouse, included in our latest investment is a so-called sorting machine, which sorts up to 1,500 cartons

We offer our clients faster and more efficient handling with the installing of lifts and conveyor belts with a capacity of 500 to 700 cartons per hour per hour, thus shortening the time needed to unload, separate or sort goods by destination, which reduces errors to a minimum.

To what extent does the SerbianGerman Chamber of Commerce encourage cooperation between our countries and businesspeople; and how much does it contribute to the arrival of new investors in Serbia?

BUSINESS

NEW INVESTORS ARRIVING The Serbian-German Chamber of Commerce has great significance in contributing to the arrival of new investors in Serbia. The first contact that a potential investor company makes, apart from with the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, is with this chamber. The SerbianGerman Chamber of Commerce’s board of directors comprises successful businesspeople whose companies have invested in Serbia and serve as role models.

I could take as an example the ZF Friedrichshafen factory, which, apart from employing a large number of people, has brought high technology to Serbia. In that sense, this factory represents a paragon for other potential investors from Germany, with which interest in coming to Serbia has increased greatly.

What changes were brought to you by the pandemic?

During the time of the pandemic, we saw what was happening with transport and logistics, and how much the pandemic impacted the business.

The ban on movements accelerated online commerce in a way, which was demonstrated during the first days of lockdown in Serbia. A trend of increasing online business still exists and is expanding. An important element of e-commerce is the courier service, i.e., the logistics sector, to ensure the timely delivery of a shipment, which can also be specific. I believe this trend will continue and increase in our country, because online commerce is currently undergoing expansion.

37

GERMANY 2021

BRANKA PERIĆ ŠLJIVIĆ, DIRECTOR OF INTERNATIONAL TRANSPORTS AT PERIĆ TRANS COMPANY

EVERY CHALLENGE IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR GROWTH Perić Trans Company was founded almost three decades ago. It has been providing international transport services since 1996, while it has also been selling and leasing used construction machinery and equipment since the 2000s. This company has been patiently conquering new markets for years, growing and developing to the position where it today has 160 employees

T

hanks to its wide range of construction machinery and equipment, state-of-the-art fleet, mobile services and professional personnel, this family company is able to offer and guarantee the fast and high-quality implementation of works for its clients

Your company celebrates its 30th birthday during next year. What has your development path looked like?

Your portfolio surely wasn’t as rich and diverse at the start...

Perić Trans Company is a family company that was founded in 1992, and we’ve been engaged in international transport services since 1996. The company has grown gradually over the years, developing and conquering markets. We currently have 160 employees.

New business opportunities on the market encouraged us to develop another sector of operations: sales and hiring of used construction machinery and equipment. This proved to be another excellent business move, as shown today by the more than 250 different units in stock that are available for to buy or hire.

In late 2016, due to the need to expand our business and function more easily on the European market, we founded a subsidiary company, Perić Trans Company in Slovenia. I can state unreservedly that we are in that group of companies that have taken great strides forward from year to year and from decade to decade, so that today, after almost thirty years 38

What is your recipe for success?

How important was the fact that Perić Trans Company is a family company when it came to expanding your business, increasing the number of employees and securing a leadership position in your branch of industry?

One of the main factors is persistence and perseverance in achieving plans set, as well as responsibility and a desire to respect everything agreed upon. The proper selecting of clients was certainly a crucial factor, because our company has developed and advanced gradually thanks precisely to our clients, to their needs and requirements. The long-term commitment of the family spawned Perić Trans Company as it is today.

We have developed and advanced gradually thanks to our clients, to their needs and requirements of operations, we have become a modern company with the latest generation haulage vehicles and a wide range of construction machinery and equipment.

Our core business is international transport to the European market, while a large part of our operations comprises the selling and leasing of construction machinery and equipment, as well as civil engineering works. We are among the top players in every segment of our operations and invest constantly in the company’s development.

What are the biggest challenges you face and how do you handle them?

Considering the turbulent years behind us, we have grown accustomed to challenges and resolve them as we go.

We consider large projects that force us to leave our comfort zone as challenges, and we see them as opportunities for the company to grow. Our primary advantage is the exceptional flexibility and readiness of the company to respond to inquiries and implement works quickly and to a high standard of quality. When it comes to the renting of equipment, we cover the whole of Serbia, and one of the biggest jobs currently is linked to the construction of the Moravian Corridor, from Pojat – Kruševac to Čačak.

SATISFIED PARTNERS ARE KEY TO SUCCESS

GERMANY 2021

NEMANJA ĆIRIĆ, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER, GP GRADJEVINAR

Since its founding more than three decades ago, GP Gradjevinar has been, and remains, a company that insists on the high quality of every project phase, respect for agreements with partners, the constant educating of employees and the application of the latest technologies. And all of this in combination has led to it building an enviable reputation

G

P Gradjevinar received numerous messages of commendation from German partners for its work constructing the new buildings of the German Embassy and the German School in Belgrade, as well as for the reconstruction of the building of the Goethe Institute, which proves that GP Gradjevinar satisfies Europe’s most stringent standards of quality.

After three decades of operations, GP Gradjevinar is today a recognisable brand not only in Serbia, but also abroad. What forms the basis of your excellent reputation?

The very fact that GP Gradjevinar has existed as a company for more than three decades is one of the factors proving that we’ve become a recognisable brand. From the very outset, one of the most important principles that has been present in our operations is the inclusion of high quality in every part of a project’s implementation.

That is one of the key elements of our brand.

Moreover, by respecting all agreements with all our partners, both domestic and foreign, we have gained great trust, which wasn’t easy to maintain during the previous difficult decades. Of course, in order for us to be able to continue providing that high quality, we also pay great attention – apart from quality and respect for deadlines – to the constant educating of our associates, thus enabling us to monitor and apply all new technologies. All of this together helps to rank us among the most serious construction companies operating on the market of the Republic of Serbia, and thus also a recognisable brand.

very important for us, because our investors are very pleased to continue collaborating with us and are happy to recommend us to their partners who are planning activities in Serbia. In short, works are the best advertisement and recommendation

Our investors are very pleased to continue collaborating with us and are happy to recommend us to their partners Your company’s motto is “ Satisfied partners are the key to our success”.

Are satisfied partners also the best advertisement and the best recommendation?

We think it is. When we say “partners”, we aren’t only referring to our investors/ clients, but also our long-term suppliers, subcontractors and others who participate together with us on the implementation of all projects. With dedication, expertise, commitment and serious work, the results must be positive and our investors/clients satisfied. This kind of recommendation is

Is the fact that you were engaged on the construction of the new buildings of the German Embassy and the German School in Belgrade, as well as the reconstruction of the building of the Goethe Institute, proof that you satisfy even the most stringent European standards of quality?

The constant education and training of all associates in our company enabled us, as a general contractor, to implement even the most demanding projects when it comes to high standards in the field of construction, and to implement them to a high quality in the projects that you listed. The realisation of these projects was a great and beautiful challenge for us, in which we showed that we can satisfy the most stringent European standards envisaged by these projects, especially when taking into account the specific nature of the construction industry, and of course all with respect for agreed deadlines. As such, there was no lack of either satisfaction or praise among our partners – the German Federal Foreign Office, the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Belgrade, the German Federal Ministry of Construction and the German Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Culture.

Our motto also simultaneously describes the history of our company - the brand that we’ve created: “Satisfied partners are the key to our success”.

39

GERMANY 2021

BUSINESS

LJILJANA TOPIĆ, DIRECTOR, GALENIKA PHARMACIA

NURTURING IT’S OWN LEADERSHIP POSITION Galenika Pharmacia produces more than 50 different medical devices - sterile and non-sterile compresses, plaster strips, bandaid plasters, bandages and sanitary materials, vehicle first aid kits, cabinets and first aid packs - and last year it also supplied us with surgical masks when they were most important

T

our contribution to the struggle against the pandemic, which is unfortunately continuing. We also made 200,000 protective masks for children at our new plant in Petrovac na Mlavi, produced masks with silver nanoparticles for the Novak Đoković Foundation and protective masks with five protection filters.

Our surgical masks were initially distributed to the four largest clinical centres in Serbia - Belgrade, Kragujevac, Niš and Novi Sad, with the remainder sent to other health institutions. If we were able to produce millions of masks, we would have sold them, which is why I feel the need to emphasise the fact that not a single mask was sent abroad.

his renowned domestic company supplies all healthcare institutions in the country, from health centres, pharmacies and pharmaceutical facilities, via private and state hospitals and clinics, to large health centres Your company had stable production and the certain placement of its products of unquestionably high quality for years, and then came the pandemic. And everything changed overnight, right?

Yes, that’s right ... The Coronavirus changed everything. Until then, our factory had produced the complete range of sanitary consumables - compresses, gauzes, bandages, disinfectants, and then, practically overnight, surgical masks became the number one product. The pandemic also taught us how to react at lightening speed and how to switch to products that we’d previously only had as a supplement to our portfolio. We switched machines that hadn’t previously had that purpose to the function of producing masks 24 hours a day, and during that period, when things were at their toughest, our employees exerted superhuman effort. Drivers worked for 24 hours, all employees were on call 24 hours a day, in readiness to respond to every call. Work was done in three shifts, with invoicing and deliveries also carried out at night. We should also make special mention of the fact that the pandemic led to the establishing of excellent cooperation between competing companies, which wasn’t the case before, particularly not in this form or scope.

40

Galenika Pharmacia is a member of the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce, which is yet more confirmation for us and our work, because the German market only accepts goods of the best quality It wouldn’t be strange if the speed of production, changes to the production programme and work around the clock had led to a fall in quality, but that didn’t happen at your company...

Believe it or not, we managed to maintain quality, which is testified to by the fact that, for example, the “Beograd” Pharmaceutical Institution, as the country’s largest such institution, didn’t have a single complaint. We are very proud of

As we’re already on the subject of foreign trade, which are your traditional export markets? Do you stick to old partners or have you established new collaborations in recent years?

Galenika Pharmacia has for years been recording excellent export results with the B-H Federation, North Macedonia and Montenegro, while we also sell products to Nigeria and Iraq, and we’ve also been cooperating with Germany for the last two years. Our company has become a member of the GermanSerbian Chamber of Commerce, which is yet more confirmation for us and our work, because it is well-known that the German market is one of the world’s most demanding and that they only accept goods of the best quality. I’m proud of the fact that we managed to secure our market leadership position and to maintain it successfully.

Help is present in 21 countries, has 8.1 million beneficiaries, 636 employees and 83 projects with a volume in excess of 35 million euros. Its primary mission is emergency relief, followed by developmental assistance to create resilient communities and individuals

W

For 40 years, Help has been striving to create a world free of poverty and social injustice, in which everyone can live freely and with dignity, peace and security. What prevents us from collectively achieving that?

As our primary mission is emergency relief, followed by developmental assistance to create resilient communities and individuals, we respond to people’s needs, whether caused by nature or man.

Every action undertaken by Help contributes to the improvement of individuals’ and communities’ quality of living and supports them in moving towards self-reliance. In 2020 alone, we managed to touch the lives of, and empower, over 8.1 million people worldwide.

Sadly, human-induced climate change sends us a few steps back in our mission.

But that only compels us to regroup and respond in an agile manner to the everchanging world. Backed by the donor community, Help works in partnership with national and local stakeholders and communities to jointly bring and create synergies to secure sustainable and efficient collective growth.

The numbers testifying to your work are impressive. Has the pandemic led to any changes in your work?

Photo Credit: ©“Help - Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe”

e at Help share our expertise and work together with national and local partners, as well those in need, providing tools and assets to build regional networks and structures to empower people and secure a decent living - says Help interim MD Timo Stegelmann.

The German-funded socioeconomic empowerment of the Western Balkans is focused on job creation, building personal and professional skills and small-scale initiatives The pandemic led to many changes globally that impacted heavily on everyone and forced us to adapt swiftly to support those in need. Micro and small businesses shook under the unexpected burden. Many had stopped working by the end of 2020, and the Western Balkans is no exception. Every fourth person in this area is at risk of poverty.

Help responded rapidly on-site to support marginalised groups with food and hygiene, hospitals with the equipment required to treat COVID-19 patients, communication tools for school pupils, persons with disabilities, prison inmates

BUSINESS

STRIVING FOR A WORLD BEYOND POVERTY

GERMANY 2021

TIMO STEGELMANN, INTERIM MANAGING DIRECTOR OF HELP HILFE ZUR SELBSTHILFE – SUSTAINABLE AID WORLDWIDE

and the elderly. We provided face masks and disinfectants. And we continued supporting self-employment, employment and the building of skills and knowhow.

We have always taken care to ensure that our projects have the lowest possible eco-footprint, and we now do even more by encouraging innovative green ideas that will further contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. As an organisation, we constantly learn and improve internally and externally through responsible and transparent project management. On an equal basis, we endeavour to efficiently strengthen resilience and create a better tomorrow for all.

Your latest projects in this region are dedicated to the economic and social empowerment of the Western Balkans. Which areas demand special attention when it comes to empowering people?

We have many projects in this region and the German-funded socioeconomic empowerment of the Western Balkans is focused on job creation, building personal and professional skills and small-scale initiatives. The goal is to create mechanisms and networks for the empowerment of marginalised groups, including COVID-19 recovery measures and the facilitation of inclusion and social prosperity. We expect to have empowered 5,000 people by the end of this project.

That’s because we at Help share our expertise together with national and local partners, and with those in need, providing tools and assets to build regional networks and structures to empower people and secure them with a decent living.

41

GERMANY 2021

TOURISM

CRISTIAN SALLAI, DIRECTOR OF THE GERMAN NATIONAL TOURIST BOARD’S BELGRADE OFFICE, REGIONAL OFFICE OF BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA, BULGARIA, CROATIA, MONTENEGRO, ROMANIA AND SERBIA

THE DANUBE CONNECTS SERBIA AND GERMANY The Belgrade office of the German National Tourist Board (GNTB) will celebrate the tenth anniversary of its operations next year. Having advanced from 1.4 million trips in 2010 to 3.2 million in 2019, this region has seen above-average growth compared to Germany’s other source markets

ligence applications like chatbots, as our marketing tools.

G

ermany is full of hidden gems and treasures that can be found once you agree to stray from the beaten track. This was one of the elements that determined this year’s main topic: German Local Culture - showing the world a different side of Germany

Are the citizens of the six markets of the region that you cover acquainted with the offers of German tourism?

They certainly are! The German National Tourist Office in Belgrade is promoting Germany as a travel destination on six Balkan Markets: Serbia, 42

The GNTB is promoting German Local Culture with a focus on the road less travelled, beyond the standard checklist of tourist hotspots Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Montenegro and Romania. Our Belgrade Office promotes the diversity of Germany’s tourist products and we strive to be a pioneer when it comes to using immersive technologies (virtual, augmented and mixed reality), voice assistants and other conversational interfaces, as well as artificial intel-

Germany has been among the world’s most visited tourist destinations for decades. What deserves the credit for this fact?

With its 51 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Germany is among the countries with the highest density of natural and cultural treasures. The international recognition of Germany as the number 1 cultural travel destination in Europe also gains further impetus during this year, from the latest decisions of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee.

The Mathildenhöhe artists’ colony in Darmstadt is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site; the health resorts of BadenBaden, Bad Ems and 2 Bad Kissingen, along with eight other locations, have also been awarded the World Heritage title of “Major Spa Cities in Europe.”

We think that the diversity of the offer – from major cities to small villages, natural sites to spa and luxury travel – is the key to our success.

Which are the most popular German cities that have attracted the most tourists for years? Are trends changing?

It is really hard to single out one or two particular cities. There is basically something for everyone in Germany’s diverse selection of over 10,000 towns and cities. There are countless different sides to Germany and German cities. The vast spectrum of different architectural

Source: GNTB/Julia Nimke

styles and art forms have shaped the country and bestowed a distinctive character on every region. You can discover the museum scene, street art, medieval centres of small towns, maritime cities etc. A third of the world’s opera performances take place in Germany, at over 80 opera houses. There are castles, parks and gardens at the heart of the country’s cities, and much more.

So, as you see, before being able to single out any of the cities I would have to know if you prefer a small town or a metropolis, culture or nature, street art or museums. From Munich to Hamburg, via Berlin and Frankfurt, there is something for everyone.

Are there any lesser-known or completely unknown destinations, events or other places and manifestations in Germany that are worth seeing, visiting, touring...?

We would like to take our guests off the beaten track, beyond the standard checklist of tourist hotspots, to discover the unique atmosphere of Germany’s towns and cities, and to meet the people who live there. We’ll introduce them to traditional professions and the artisans who are redefining centuries-old handicrafts for the modern age. In short, we invite you to join us on a journey through a Germany that is sure to amaze.

Belgrade is a highlight for everyone in Europe. Everybody wants to come here and has heard of Belgrade Over previous years we’ve been promoting different aspects of the variety of German tourism: for example, Bauhaus, UNESCO, Nature etc.

Sustainability has become one of the most important topics that we’ve been highlighting recently. And the COVID-19 Pandemic has led to travellers around the world becoming even more concerned about sustainability. Unspoilt nature, the careful use of resources and a focus on wellbeing are gaining in importance. So, we are picking up on this trend and expanding the scope of our ‘Feel Good’ campaign in 2021. At the same time, during this year and next, GNTB is promoting German Local Culture with a focus on the road less travelled, beyond the standard checklist of tourist hotspots.

If you had to single out something that connects Serbia and Germany, what would that be?

The Danube is definitely the first thing to cross my mind. This river that is known as the “source of Europe” for a very good reason.

Serbia and Germany are attached to one another at all levels: naturally by the Danube, culturally and also economically.

So, it is also very hard to single out a single aspect that bonds our countries.

As a tourism expert, you would certainly know what Serbia could do to raise the profiles of other places to ensure their inclusion on the list of the region’s most popular destinations...

What tourism potentials are waiting for us to exploit?

Serbia has a lot of treasures to offer visitors. From nature to culture, from amazing rural areas to amazing cities and towns, from wines to amazing culinary experiences. I believe that these treasures that distinguish Serbia from its neighbours should be the ones to focus on.

But I would not underestimate the developments of previous years. I’ve now been living here for 10 years and I’ve witnessed huge developments. Belgrade is a highlight for everyone in Europe. Everybody wants to come here and has heard of Belgrade, but also Novi Sad and its surroundings, or the country’s festivals. But Serbia’s amazing nature has also started to be discovered by foreign visitors. There has been evident development of the tourism sector over the past 10 years, and a lot of projects are unfolding. And I think they are doing so in a very successful way!

I would say that sustainability should be one of the priorities. www.germany.travel 43

GERMANY 2021

GERMAN ELECTIONS

BY KARL MATHIESEN AND ZIA WEISE

CLIMATE IS THE KINGMAKER IN GERMAN COALITION-BUILDING The two parties crucial to forming a post-election government differ starkly on climate and energy policy

C

limate policy is one of the keys to forming a new German government.

But with the two smaller parties crucial to forming a post-election majority coalition having utterly different philosophies on how to reach

44

Germany’s climate goals, the issue will be a major faultline in upcoming talks.

The election of 25th September saw the Social Democratic Party (SPD) take a narrow win with 25.7 per cent over 24.1 per cent for the Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU). The Greens

came third with 14.8 per cent, while the liberal Free Democrats (FDP), according to preliminary official figures, were fourth with 11.5 per cent.

Now the Greens and FDP are planning a common approach to bargain more effectively with the two bigger groupings.

It won’t be easy. The Greens have more in common with the SPD, while the FDP and the CDU/CSU overlap on many issues.

“The next government must be a climate government,” said the Greens’ coleader, Annalena Baerbock. She added her party wants “massive investment” in infrastructure aimed at greening and modernising the country, and favours a higher level of government intervention in the economy.

The FDP believes the free market will deliver climate goals. “The election result makes one thing clear,” Volker Wissing, the party’s General Secretary, told the broadcaster ARD on the morning after the election, “People don’t want climate protection at the expense of prosperity, and people also don’t want prosperity at the expense of nature and the environment.

That’s why we need to bring these things together and work out a solution as to how we can reconcile climate protection and prosperity.”

Both the FDP and the Greens want the finance ministry in any coalition — currently occupied by SPD chancellor candidate Olaf Scholz. The Greens also want to create a climate ministry with the right to veto any other ministry’s decision to ensure all government policy is in line with the Paris Climate Agreement. The FDP has signalled it would be fine with a climate ministry, but without the veto rights.

The finance job will be “crucial for issues like public spending programmes, EU debt-and-budget questions and carbon pricing,” said Georg Zachmann, a senior fellow at the Brugel think tank. “That will be very important for moving from climate targets to actual climate policies.”

The climate affected the election through the catastrophic floods of July, but it wasn’t a clear factor in the election outcome. Almost half of voters polled beforehand said it was the most important issue for them, but fewer than a quarter actually based their vote on it.

The absence of a real debate over climate change highlights a broad consensus on the issue; every likely coalition member backs reaching carbon neutrality by between 2040 and 2050.

But the question of how to achieve

that, an issue mostly too boring or complicated for stump speeches, divides Germany’s parties.

POLES APART A battle over the future of the car sector shows the distance between the FDP and the Greens on Germany’s largest industry, and is a crucial factor in hitting the country’s upcoming climate targets. The European Commission has proposed 2035 as an end date for the sale of polluting vehicles, a date the Greens want to move forward to 2030.

A battle over the future of the car sector shows the distance between the FDP and the Greens on Germany’s largest industry, and is a crucial factor in hitting the country’s upcoming climate targets. The European Commission has proposed 2035 as an end date for the sale of polluting vehicles, a date the Greens want to move forward to 2030 The FDP opposes any vehicle ban.

The Greens are critical of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia, of which the FDP is also sceptical. But he election also saw the Social Democrats overwhelmingly reelected in the state of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, where the

pipeline makes landfall, and whose SPD leader has been supportive of the project.

Another critical divide is how to cushion households from the impact of climate policies.

The Christian Democrats and FDP favour pricing carbon emissions and relying on market mechanisms to spur companies to slash their products’ carbon footprint.

In a speech in the Bundestag earlier in September, Baerbock criticised the FDP and CDU for their free-market approach to climate and social policy.

Relying on a high CO2 price alone “is deeply socially unjust,” she said. “The market won’t regulate the climate crisis, because the market does not care about people.”

The SPD also favours greater redistribution. But Baerbock repeatedly attacked Scholz for supporting Germany’s 2038 coal phaseout date even as he travelled to the flood-stricken areas in July. The Greens want to exit coal by 2030.

The division over carbon pricing could have major consequences for EU policy. The European Commission recently proposed extending its Emissions Trading System to cover fuels for road transport and heating — a system already in place in Germany, championed by the CDU in Brussels and supported by the FDP. But both the German Greens and SPD are wary of the idea.

Nevertheless, the reemergence of Social Democrats in Germany boosted the spirits - and potentially the political fortunes - of the EU’s Green Deal chief, Dutch Socialist Frans Timmermans, who tweeted: “Social justice, climate protection and the green transformation of our economy and society go hand in hand and the election result underscores this.”

“Ahead of the election, the parties liked to talk a lot about the climate,” said Ottmar Edenhofer, chief economist at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. “If they mean it, they have to get serious now no matter what coalition. All parties are facing the same challenge … Whoever procrastinates now is driving up the costs and risks to all people.”

45

GERMANY 2021

GERMAN COMPANIES AND NEARSHORING

AN EXAGGERATED TREND? In line with Germany’s historical competitiveness strategy, which focuses on quality and not cost when it comes to considering nearshoring, German companies prefer countries that have a reputation for being innovative and having an environment that fosters innovation. This is an important piece of information for Serbian policymakers who hope to attract more FDI by tapping into this trend

I

t is widely believed that the COVID-19 lockdowns disrupted global supply chains and pushed many to consider nearshoring.

Euler Hermes, a global leader in trade credit insurance, recently surveyed a sample of high-level executives in 1,181 companies in the U.S., the UK, France, Germany and Italy, covering a wide array of industries, from IT, tech and telecoms, machinery and equipment, chemicals, energy and utilities, to the automotive and agrifood sectors.

According to the results, between 13 and 18 per cent of French companies consider reshoring in the medium to long term, vs. three to six per cent

46

In the recent survey, German companies stated that they might consider nearshoring and that the Western Balkans might benefit from this, but that this remains unclear in Italy and six to 10 per cent in Germany. This is the result of the survey sample showing that 76 per cent of German companies report that less than half of their suppliers are located outside the country, as opposed to an average of 65 per cent for other countries.

German companies said that they’d rather move their production to, or find new suppliers in, Austria, which is likely because a third of German companies’ suppliers are already in Austria. In choosing other countries where they would move their production, about 30 per cent stated that the (selected) country has to have a reputation for being innovative and having an environment that fosters innovation”. This reason shows up among the top three reasons, behind choosing supplier locations. In comparison, only an average of 20 per cent chose the same answer.

Marcus How, head of Research & Analysis at ViennEast Consult-

ing, a Vienna-based investment risk advisory company specialising in the CESEE regions, recently wrote an opinion piece for SEE News in which he claims that “Central Eastern and Southeast Europe (CESEE) is in pole position to benefit from industrial nearshoring in particular, given its safe haven status, the skillset of its workforce relative to its cost, legal protections and access to Western European hubs”.

Yet, as noted previously, instances of nearshoring are relatively rare.

Eurofound recorded only 15 instances of reshoring in EU member states in CESEE between 2014 and 2018, of a total of 250 in the wider bloc.

In comparison, there were 25,000 cross-border investments during the observed period.

Such modest numbers are the result of two major trends: first, the process is slow and expensive for companies; and second, CESEE countries differ strongly in terms of being fit for such a process. How believes that industrial capacity and infrastructure quality are key to attracting companies that are considering nearshoring.

He outlines Serbia and North Macedonia as having developed limited manufacturing that is systematically integrated into GVCs. But this is not enough. Neither low labour costs and taxes, nor deeper integration into GVCs on account of increasing trade and convergence with the rest of the EU, will be sufficient, claims How. According to him, “governments will need to be strategic in courting these investments, where currently they are blandly managerial, even under populist or otherwise authoritarian elites. This can partly be done through improvements to the business environment, including through institutional reform, an area in which most countries in the region are badly lagging. In this sense, the same old lessons still apply”.

How prizes Serbia as a possible viable alternative for companies seeking nearshoring options, as the country combines tax relief measures with customs waivers on machinery, and cash grants to subsidise investment in

its manufacturing sector, while maintaining an effective system of technical education for its labour force. “It has emerged as a leading destination for greenfield FDI, partly as a result of this, and partly because of other unique advantages – and all in spite of its institutional regression,” writes How. The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies offers a

While some experts praise Serbia for combining tax relief measures with customs waivers on machinery, and cash grants to subsidise investment in its manufacturing sector, as attractive points for companies considering nearshoring, German companies already operating in the Western Balkans give more weight to the quality of the workforce and institutions slightly more nuanced and optimistic view on nearshoring in the Western Balkan countries. In a survey conducted in November and December 2020 by the Chamber Partnership

Western Balkans, the Delegation of German Economic Affairs in BosniaHerzegovina, the Delegation of German Industry and Commerce in North Macedonia, the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce and Germany Trade and Invest, companies stated three main reasons for investing abroad: relatively lower labour costs (32%), entering new markets (21%)

and finding workers who cannot be easily found at home (18%).

WIIW found that the quality and availability of labour is the main reason for investing abroad. Contrary to How’s claims, this survey showed that lower taxes abroad are of minor importance, as well as incentive schemes that governments provide to foreign investors. Instead, stability, governance and institutions of the country were rated as the second most important reason to invest. Interestingly, relocation due to the pandemic was rarely mentioned, at least among companies included in the survey.

Asked how COVID-19 has affected their plans to invest in the Western Balkans, most companies stated that they were not affected (60%), while about a fifth said that they postponed their plans until after the pandemic, while 6% say they cancelled their investment plans completely.

47

GERMANY 2021

ARCHITECTURE

MODERN ARCHITECTURE IN GERMANY German architects are very conservative when they are designing new buildings, however in some places where the surrounding area allows them (and, of course, the authorities) they build modern buildings, which is something that is welcome by some and rejected by others. In this article you will see some interesting new buildings from Germany that you will surely like

CONGRESS HALL IN BERLIN

48

ADIDAS LACES

GERMAN MINING MUSEUM

MERCEDES BENZ MUSEUM

BBI INFO TOWER

LUNEBURG UNIVERSITY’S LIBESKIND BUILDING

GREEN CLIMATE FUND HEADQUARTERS

CENTRE FOR VIRTUAL ENGINEERING

49

GERMANY 2021

SOCIETY

BY JOE BAUR

ORDNUNG MUSS SEIN For centuries, Germany has been synonymous with order. So how can a rule-abiding nation also have an anything-goes spirit?

O

n the high-speed train gliding smoothly from Berlin to Düsseldorf, a young man started chatting to me. He eventually asked, “What are some of the cultural differences you’ve noticed between Germans and Americans?”

As if on cue, a middle-aged woman hovered over us and gave a harsh, “Shh!” with her finger pressed against her lips. She pointed to a sign of a mobile phone with a cross through it, indicating that we were in the Ruhebereich, the quiet carriage of the train.

“You must be quiet,” she said, before returning to her seat.

“That,” I said to the man sitting next to me. “That’s different.”

50

In the nearly four years I’ve lived in Germany, that woman’s reprimand was just one of many examples I’ve experienced of Germans strictly adhering to the rules in the name of preserving Ordnung (order). Because in Germany, as the famous expression goes, “Ordnung muss sein” (“there must be order”). In fact, this proverbial saying is so well-ingrained in the German psyche that it’s become a cultural cliché for Germans around the world, and a way of life for them at home.

In Germany, your brown bottles must be recycled separately from your clear ones. You must be quiet after 10pm. You must always obey

the red man at a crossing, even if no cars are coming. And if you want to get anything done in this country, you need to print and fill out the proper forms, make an appointment, take your number and wait to be called to find out if you followed the rules or missed something in the fine print – which you probably did.

On the surface, “Ordnung muss sein” seems to be the foundation of German personal and social conduct.

But, stereotypes aside, is Germany really “orderly”?

As with many things “German”, the answer may go back to Martin Luther.

In addition to forever changing how Germany (and the world) worships,

many of the humble Reformationist’s personal preferences (from a love of beer to books to severe Bauhausinspiring design) have continued to shape German culture for the last 500 years. In fact, according to volume 67 of his Sämmtliche Werke text, it was the jowly monk himself who appears to have first written the earliest iteration of the expression.

Luther wrote, “Ordnung muss sein unter den Leuten” (literally: “There must be order among the people”).

But Dr Wolfram Pyta, director of the Department of Modern History at the University of Stuttgart, contends that Luther wasn’t referring to the virtue highlighted in the contemporary use of “Ordnung muss sein”.

“Luther called for obedience to authority in his theological writings,” said Pyta. “But this isn’t identical with … the expression ‘Ordnung muss sein’, which isn’t necessarily aimed at state order, but rather at order in one’s private life.”

While there’s not much documentation of the phrase in the centuries after Luther, a 1930 article published in The New York Times claimed that Paul von Hindenburg, the last president of the Weimar Republic, had made the phrase “world famous”.

The expression became further tied to German culture when Hindenburg graced the cover of TIME magazine in 1934 with the exclamation “Ordnung muss sein!” printed underneath his photo. The cover story, “Germany: Crux of Crisis”, quotes Hindenburg shouting his “useful aphorism which serves him on all occasions” at Adolf Hitler while discussing politics.

“Order is considered to be a Prussian value on equal standing with fulfilling obligations, punctuality, hard work and honesty,” said Christina Röttgers, a German culture expert who helps international companies understand the German mindset to work with them effectively.

Whatever the expression’s true origins, “Ordnung muss sein” is certainly embedded within the fabric of German society. But interestingly, Germans don’t discuss it, because according to Röttgers, the values and

rules associated with it have already been internalised. Nobody needs to talk about the rules because it’s assumed everyone already knows them.

“Ordnung is in the water supply,” quipped Joachim Krüger, a German professor of psychology at Brown University. “Every child learns this saying in the context of cleaning their room,” added Röttgers. “For Germans themselves, it’s part of their everyday lives, but they don’t think about it any more than someone thinks about grammar while they’re speaking.”

Verena Netscher, a personnel consultant from Cologne, agreed. “I think

Around the country, every German I asked agreed with Netscher’s sentiments. “There’s order and that’s a good thing,” Lukas Pietrek, a law student in Düsseldorf, wrote to me.

“But a lot of people are nevertheless too orderly and stuffy.”

Needless to say, Ordnung has slipped into everyday German vocabulary. If you seem distraught, a passerby might ask, “Alles in Ordnung?”. In English, that’s, “Are you OK?”, but literally, they’re asking, “Is everything in order?”. If everything is as it should be, then you’re “in Ordnung”.

WAREHOUSE DISTRICT IN HAMBURG

In Germany, your brown bottles must be recycled separately from your clear ones. You must be quiet after 10pm. You must always obey the red man at a crossing, even if no cars are coming. And if you want to get anything done in this country, you need to print and fill out the proper forms it’s something that exists in the minds of people in Germany,” she said. “But I don’t think anyone is especially striving to achieve this ideal.”

It’s also stitched on uniforms of the men and women who work for the Ordnungsamt (Germany’s Public Order Office). This is essentially a special police force that focuses on misdemeanours, which in Germany includes playing loud music during quiet hours, parking violations and enforcing when and how long your dog is allowed to bark (10 minutes at a time and no more than 30 minutes a day outside of quiet hours, according to a court decision). If you’re caught on the wrong side of the Ordnungsamt, you’ll get an Ordnungswidrigkeit – a misdemeanour.

Yet, whenever you mention “Ordnung muss sein”, Germans are quick 51

GERMANY 2021

SOCIETY

to mention another expression, “Ordnung ist das halbe Leben” (“Order is half of life”). And when they tack on the rest of the expression, it turns Germans’ trademark tidiness on its head: “Unordnung die andere Hälfte” (“And disorder the other half”).

Nobody will deny that there are splashes of disorder in Germany.

Commuters across the country burst onto trains before people have a chance to get out; people routinely vandalise rubbish bins bearing the word, “Ordnung!” on them; and the nation’s “newest” airport is finally set for take off in October after a nine-year delay due to design flaws, scandals and general chaos.

In fact, for more than 100 years – from the hedonistic parties of the Weimar Republic to the boho-squat raves before unification to the techno temples of today – my home of Berlin has been renowned around the world as an anything-goes lab of cultural experimentation. Nearly 20 years

FRANKFURT SKYLINE 52

after the city’s former mayor called it “poor but sexy”, people from around the world still move here precisely to free themselves of rigid life plans and to be whoever and whatever they want without a judgmental glance.

But even in a city legendary for its libertine tolerance and anarchistic spirit, there are still strict, unwritten rules. Want to grab spray paint and tag part of the Berlin Wall? There’s a designated section of Mauerpark

As with many things “German”, the answer may go back to Martin Luther. In addition to forever changing how Germany (and the world) worships, many of the humble Reformationist’s personal preferences have continued to shape German culture for the last 500 years

where you can do that. Want to go au natural? There are unmarked swaths of the city’s central Tiergarten park and surrounding lakes where clothing is severely frowned upon. And want to do drugs and have sex with strangers? No-one will bat an eye at most Berlin clubs – so long as you do your business in the right room.

Berlin may be a special beast, but the deeper you dive, the more you’ll see this carefree cultural attitude across Germany. Frankfurt has its growing Bahnhofsviertel neighbourhood full of brothels and clubs. Hamburg’s St Pauli area is one of Europe’s most raucous red-light districts. Even the most conservative corners of Bavaria and the former East Germany embrace the Freikörperkultur (free-body culture) of relaxing in the buff at certain campsites, beaches and resorts.

Of course, each of these examples still fits neatly within Germany’s specific sense of order: it’s less about

banning certain things and more about making sure you’re doing them in the proper, assigned place. Chat softly on the quiet carriage of a train and you’re likely to get scolded. But drink a beer on Berlin’s subway and no-one will say a word because of another unwritten rule that public drinking – and even public transit drinking – is generally deemed acceptable.

“Most hold themselves to the rules because they’ve learned that the rules are reasonable,” explained Röttgers.

“But everyone has their own interpretation of the rules because people are individuals.”

Of course, if you run afoul of someone’s interpretation of the rules, many strangers may gladly let you know

But even in a city legendary for its libertine tolerance and anarchistic spirit, there are still strict, unwritten rules. Want to grab spray paint and tag part of the Berlin Wall? There’s a designated section of Mauerpark where you can do that. Want to go au natural? There are unmarked swaths of the city’s central Tiergarten Park and surrounding lakes where clothing is severely frowned upon that you’ve disrupted their Ordnung.

“Germans aren’t shy about pointing out when others break the rules,” said Röttgers. “Strangers will rebuke you because there’s an expectation that everyone will follow the rules.”

That explains why a neighbour of mine shared a video of how to properly deconstruct a cardboard box for the recycling bin in my apartment building’s WhatsApp chat. “In five seconds, a box is made small. If I can do it, you all can, too.” The message was signed with a kissy-face emoji.

But on the whole, German order is rather pragmatic. “Ordnung muss

MARTIN LUTHER STATUE, DRESDEN 53

GERMANY 2021

SOCIETY

PALACE OF JUSTICE, MUNIC

sein” doesn’t mean building a false reality. It means Germans demand that systems are in place to prevent the worst from happening, like Kurzarbeit (short work) – a programme that allows businesses to decrease the hours of their employees during times of crisis (like the 2008 financial crash and the ongoing coronavirus pandemic) and the government will pay 60% of the remaining salary to avoid mass unemployment.

Having travelled extensively through all of Germany’s 16 states, I have seen Ordnung operate swiftly and smoothly, from the Black Forest to the Baltic Sea. But I’ve also seen Germans throwing this order overboard at “acceptable” times – be it embracing their carnal core at Carnival, screaming at hordes of armoured guards at football matches or launching fireworks from crowded streets and balconies on New Year’s Eve. 54

THE BERLIN WALL

In the end, Germany – like any country – is more than just one phrase.

“There are a lot of expressions that, when put together, build a picture of a culture,” Röttgers said. “‘Ordnung

muss sein’ is just an excerpt.”

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some cardboard boxes to “make small” and ensure my dog isn’t barking more than his daily allotted limit.

“Most revizija was founded in Belgrade by two licensed auditors in 2019.

We provide clients in Serbia and abroad with a wide range of services, which include audits of annual and interim financial statements, accounting and tax consulting, bookkeeping and other accounting services, such as the preparation of financial statements according to the local reporting framework, as well as their transformation to IFRS, German or Austrian GAAP. One line of services that we specialise in are audits and consulting in the film industry, which has been on the rise in Serbia since the introduction of the government incentive programme five years ago.”

Nebojša Stanković, partner

Most revizija d.o.o Beograd Office address: Beograd, Terazije 31, 2nd floor Tel: 011/3515-443 Mob: 069/211-2606 email: office@mostrevizija.com www.mostrevizija.com

55

GERMANY 2021

GERMAN BRANDS

BY BRIAN JONES

GERMAN CAR BRANDS ENGINEERED

TO PERFECTION

German car brands are known for manufacturing high-class vehicles that consistently exceed driver expectations as far as performance and appearance are concerned. This reputation makes these brands the leaders in automotive production worldwide, with many of their marks ranking higher than similar American, Japanese, and Korean car brands

A

nd German car brands also feature a long history of innovative technologies and cutting-edge engineering — advances which were subsequently adopted by other European car companies. Plus, many of these vehicles just look stellar. From supercars to SUVs, 56

these manufacturers have made some of the models that serious gearheads covet.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF GERMAN CAR BRANDS German car history began in 1870 when Nikolaus Otto and Karl Benz invented the 4-stroke internal combustion engine.

These two mechanical engineers helped Germany launch into the automotive production business. By 1901, about 900 cars were being produced annually in Germany.

Today, Germany has one of the largest automotive workforces in the world.

According to Worldometers, Germany is

the third-largest auto manufacturing country after China and Japan. And these brands aren’t just about quantity, as they also routinely claim top-marks for quality too.

In 2021, German car brands claimed three World Car Awards, including the World Car of the Year (Volkswagen ID.4), the World Luxury Car (Mercedes-Benz S-Class), and the World Performance Car (Porsche 911 Turbo).

TOP GERMAN CAR BRANDS: THE TITANS, SLEEPERS, AND HAS-BEENS When most people think of German car brands, companies such as Audi, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz obviously come to mind. While these are a few of the most well-known German car brands, there are several other manufacturers that you might not have heard of. We’ve rounded up some of the top German car brands currently in operation and a few that have, sadly, ceased production.

AUDI Audi began production in 1909. Currently headquartered in Ingolstadt, Germany, the company received its name, which means “listen” in German, from its founder, August Horch. In 1932, Audi merged with Horch, Wanderer, and DKW to form Auto Union UG. The four linked rings in the Audi logo come from these four companies. Then, in 1966, Audi became part of the German automobile giant: the Volkswagen Group.

In the United States, Audi continues to become more popular each year. They offer a wide variety of vehicles in the American market. Sedans and sportbacks include the A3, A4, A5, A6, A7, A8, RS 3, RS 7, S3, S4, S5, S6, and S7.

They also sell numerous crossovers and SUVs including the Q3, Q5, Q7, Q8, and e-Tron. As far as their coupes and convertibles, they are known for

creating sporty, performance vehicles including the TT and R8 with special runs like the Panther Edition R8 aimed at Audi enthusiasts.

MERCEDES-BENZ Mercedes-Benz has been in business since 1926. The car manufacturer operates out of Stuttgart, Germany and was founded by Gottlieb Daimler who also worked with Karl Benz. Since its inception, Mercedes-Benz has had a reputation of being a manufacturer of luxury cars.

The Mercedes-Benz logo has become synonymous with quality, emblazoning some of the best cars in the industry.

Over the years they’ve produced numerous types of vehicles including trucks, limousines, vans, and buses.

In fact, the Mercedes-Benz 600 was a luxury vehicle that became a popular limousine model that was produced from 1964 through 1972.

Mercedes offers some unique car models.

Their sedan lineup includes the A, C, E, and S-Class as well as the Maybach.

Coupes also include some from the C, E, and S-Class plus the AMG-GT. Their SUV lineup has also grown to include the GLA, GLC, GLE, and GLS. Several of their vehicles are also produced as convertibles. These include the C-Class, E-Class, AGT-GT, plus the SL Roadster.

BMW BMW has been around since 1916 and is headquartered in Munich, Bavaria.

Founded by Franz Josef Popp, BMW stands for Bayerische Motoren Werke (Bavarian Motor Works) and is often recognized instantly by its iconic blue and white roundel logo.

Their greatest successes over the years have come in the realm of handling, horsepower, and performance, solidifying their place amount the best German car brands in the world.

Since its inception, BMW has released many luxury passenger cars, sports cars, and SUVs. BMW USA offers a wide variety of luxury vehicles. They range from the X1-X7, 2-Series to 8-Series, Z4, M Models, i3, i4, and i8.

From comfy daily drivers to modified track-day beasts, the various iterations of BMWs lineup have found a faithful following in both casual drivers and motorsport enthusiasts around the world.

VOLKSWAGEN Volkswagen has been one of the most popular German car brands since 1937 when Ferdinand Porsche started the company. This automotive giant is currently headquartered in Wolfsburg, Germany.

Over the years, Volkswagen went on to acquire other iconic brands such as Bentley, Rolls-Royce, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Skoda, and SEAT. Though not as flashy or luxurious as some of the other German car brands, Volkswagen has created some wellknown vehicles including the Beetle and the Vanagon. They don’t have as many models as some of the other German car brands, but buyers still have a decent selection of reliable vehicles to choose from.

Volkwagen’s sedans include the Arteon, Passat, Jetta, and Jetta GLI. They also make the Tiguan, Taos, and Atlas SUV models; or if you’re looking for an EV, check out the ID.4, winner of the 2021 Car of the Year. Hot hatch enthusiasts can opt for the Golf or the souped-up Golf GTI. 57

GERMANY 2021

GERMAN BRANDS

PORSCHE Porsche is another well-known German automaker. Founded in 1931 by Ferdinand Porsche, its current headquarters are in Stuttgart, Germany.

Porsche mainly specializes in highperformance sports cars and has gained a lot of its reputation from its factoryracing team. Many older Porsches are worth a good deal of money today. The Porsche 911 has been a mainstay in the sports car world for years.

Current sports car models include the 718 Cayman, GTS, Boxster, and Spyder as well as the 911 Carrera, Targa, Turbo, and GT3. Across the board, you have your pick of high-end trim packages and can even opt for a cabriolet (convertible). Porsche also produces a Panamera sedan plus the Macan and Cayenne SUVs as well as its debut play in the EV market, the Taycan.

OPEL You might not be familiar with this German car brand as Opel currently does not sell any models in the U.S. However, the brand, also known as Adam Opel AG, is popular in Germany with its headquarters in Rüsselsheim.

Founded in 1862 by Adam Opel, the company began by manufacturing bicycles but quickly branched out to release the first vehicle in 1899. Opel grew in popularity from there. At present, the company and its parent brand, Vauxhall, are currently owned by PSA Groupe.

Opel came to the States branded as Buicks. It’s possible you’ve seen some Opel cars in old gangster movies. And 58

you’ve likely spotted the 1969 Opel GT in “Starsky and Hutch” to the 1970 Opel GT in “Criminal Minds.”

At present, the brand makes a solid lineup of cars, SUVs, and even a van.

The European market has a choice of the Astra, Corsa, Crossland X, Grandland X, Insignia, and Zafira.

ALPINA Alpina has been around since 1965 and is currently owned by BMW, with its headquarters in Buchloe, Germany.

Though you might not know about this brand, you’ve possibly seen the badging on a BMW. Alpina works closely with BMW to produce high-performance versions of BMW and Mini cars.

The brand is recognized as an automotive manufacturer as opposed to an aftermarket tuner as each Alpina vehicle leaves the assembly line with a unique serial number that differentiates it from its Bimmer counterpart.

Self-branded as “cars for automotive gourmets,” Alpina isn’t one to churn out a huge quantity of models, but if you do spot one in the wild, it’s sure to turn heads with its bespoke touches — namely their 20-spoke alloy wheels, Alpina Blue metallic paint, the thin, pinstripe styling, and, of course, the Alpina badging.

Alpina currently crafts seven sedans (D3 S, B3, XD4, D5 S, B5, B7, and B8) and two SUVs (XB7 and XD3) all finished out with posh touches inside and out.

GUMPERT AIWAYS Founded in 2004 by Roland Gumpert, Gumpert was originally based in Denkendorf. This niche German car brand had a unique mission from the get-go — to usher in the new generation of sports cars.

Though seemingly ambitious, Gumpert did just that with the Apollo, a streetlegal car that drew praise for its speed and driving feel. Unfortunately, Gumpert never branched out into mass production of the Apollo.

The company filed for bankruptcy in 2013, which ended the production of the Apollo. But 2020 saw the resurgence of the Roland Gumpert name with the Nathalie, which holds the distinction of being the first hydrogen super sports car with a methanol power cell.

This eye-catching EV, coming out of Ingolstadt, has a similar cutting edge vision: “To develop the world’s first electrically-driven super sports car with racing performance and intelligent energy technology.”

ISDERA This privately-owned German car brand began in 1969 under the direction of Eberhard Schulz. Based in Hildesheim, Germany, the company is also known as “Ingenieurbüro für Styling, Design und Racin” which means “engineering company for styling, design, and racing.”

Their main focus is on manufacturing sports cars, but not in the same way most automakers do. Instead, they utilize a small team of automotive craftsmen to build each car. This has led to a fleet of some of the most unique (and rare) cars you can find on the road, including the legendary Isdera Commendatore 112i built in 1993.

At present, the company has shifted its focus to 100% EV with the eye-cathing Commendatore GT as the most recent example of their handiwork.

GERMAN CAR BRANDS: GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN In addition to the current German car brands, a few brands are longer in production but are still worth reminiscing about. Consider yourself lucky if you spot one of these classics on the road.

ADLER Adler was a German car brand that also produced motorcycles and, before World War II, typewriters. The word Adler means “eagle” in German, and the brand produced vehicles from 1900 to 1957. In their cars, they utilized De Dion 2 and 4-cylinder engines ranging from 1032 to 9081 cc.

In fact, in 1930, Adler created a lightweight VW prototype featuring a tubular chassis, independent wheel suspension, and a mid-mounted engine. After WWII, they did not resume production of cars but went on to make motorcycles for eight more years. The Adler motorcycle designs were eventually given to Britain and became associated with Triumph.

AUTO UNION AG Auto Union AG vehicles were in production from 1932 through 1966. The brand later became Audi. Prior to that, Volkswagen owned them for a short time.

In the original vehicles, the company focused heavily on two-stroke engines which became less popular during the 1960s. As customers began looking for four-stroke engines, Auto Union AG started selling off shares of the company with help from the West German government.

DKW You might recognize DKW as one of the German car brands that merged with Auto Union AG. Known as the “steam-

powered car” or “the little wonder, these vehicles were built from 1916 through 1966. Originally founded by a Danish engineer, DKW’s last car was the F102.

Audi then built the four-stroke F103, its successor. The trademark for the company is still owned by Auto Union GmbH, which is part of Audi AG.

BORGWARD The Borgward car company was based in Bremen and founded by Carl Borgward. The automaker produced vehicles from 1929 through 1961 and had four brands: Borgward, Goliath, Lloyd, and Hansa. All were sold to international customers.

The Borgward Isabella was a popular premium model during the 1950s, often driven by the working-class. In 1961, some controversial insolvency proceedings brought the company to an end.

The brand saw a revival during the 21st century through the Borgward Group AG, with manufacturing and design in China instead of Germany.

EISENACHER MOTORENWERK (EMW) Eisenacher Motorenwerk was a shortlived German car brand, only existing from 1945 through 1956. Most people knew the company, which was based in Eisenach, as EMW. They produced sports cars plus some Formula One cars during the 1950s.

EMW was one of the Formula One car

builders in 1952, but they didn’t race in more than one event. The vehicle only made 12 laps before ending the race due to exhaust trouble.

Prior to WWII, the EMW plant was a BMW factory. After the war ended, the Soviets took over the location. They attempted to continue under the BMW brand but were sued and forced to change the name to EMW. In the end, they closed down due to bankruptcy.

KEINATH Founded by Horst Keinath in 1983, Keinath was once headquartered in Reutlingen. With a special focus on building race cars, they received some attention while in production for creating a variant of the Opel Monza. They also created a GTR that was stylish, powerful, and sporty for which the boutique automaker was best and last known for.

THE NUMBERS DON’T LIE: DRIVERS LOVE GERMAN ENGINEERING AND PERFORMANCE If you take a look at current and recent global car sales numbers, it’s clear that the German car brands aren’t going anywhere in Germany or in the United States. And for good reason, as these German car brands are known for producing high-performance automobiles loved by the general public. They also tend to rank high on reliability and often are leading the field in innovative features. So next time you’re out shopping for a new car, don’t forget to book a test drive with the Germans.

59

GERMANY 2021

ACTIVITIES

GERMAN-SERBIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE / AHK SERBIA, ACTIVITIES

RELIABLE PARTNER TO THE SERBIAN ECONOMY FOR 20 YEARS Germany has been one of Serbia’s largest investment partners for years, and this year has special importance – as it marks the 20th anniversary of the establishing of the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce. Approximately 400 companies with German capital currently operate in Serbia.

They have created more than 70,000 jobs and contribute to modernisation and the introduction of European norms and international standards on a daily basis

T

he German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce (AHK Serbia) is part of the system of German foreign trade and industrial chambers, which has 140 offices in 92 countries worldwide. AHK Serbia represents the interests of its member companies, providing them with informational support for their operations and striving to develop and improve German-Serbian trade and cooperation in all aspects of the economy.

JUBILEE OF THE GERMAN-SERBIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE With the long tradition of its presence and sustainable operations, the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce is a stable partner of Serbia that has and will always focus on improving bilateral economic relations between Serbia and Germany, through the constant intensification of cooperation in the economic, cultural and educational-technical spheres.

Testifying to the quality of this cooperation is the fact that the volume of bilateral trade has increased by 250% over the last eight years, reaching a new maximum of more than five billion euros in 2019, and that level of €5 billion of bilateral trade was maintained in 2020, despite the year having been

60

marked by the Coronavirus pandemic. In the aspects of educational and technical cooperation, the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce has played a decisive role, together with other partners, in introducing a system of dual education to secondary schools in Serbia.

AHK Serbia identified three main strategic directions for this year that are already well into the process of being implemented: green business, digitalisation/innovation and vocational education – life-long learning.

AHK ROAD SHOW To commemorate this year’s significant jubilee for the association, AHK Serbia has been working in cooperation with the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Belgrade and organisation Germany Trade & Invest (GTAI) to organise the special “AHK Road Show” event, which aims to further bilateral economic cooperation through promotions in four Serbian cities. Within the scope of the AHK Road Show project, gatherings of business leaders and institutional partners of the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce were held in Subotica (14th May), Novi Sad (20th May), Čačak (1st June) and Niš (3rd June).

AHK CSR ACTION “TREE FOR BELGRADE” Representatives of GSCC member companies, with Belgrade Mayor Zoran Radojičić in attendance, planted 329 trees on the right bank of the Sava beside the Belgrade Fair, as part of the “Tree for Belgrade” action. Thanks to the responses of 37 member companies, an area of 10,000 square metres of land situated alongside the Belgrade Fair has been greened. Within the framework of this action, the largest number of seedlings was planted through the “Tree for Belgrade” challenge.

Representatives of these German organisations exchanged experiences on important topics and issues arising within the framework of bilateral economic cooperation, while presentations covered the work of the Chamber, types of support available, potential opportunities for cooperation and entry to the German market, leading trade fairs in Germany and many other significant projects. Comprising the German delegation were Frank Aletter, managing director of the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce, Anne-Kristin Piplica, head of the Economic Department of the German Embassy in Belgrade, and Martin Gaber, Germany Trade and Invest correspondent for the Western Balkans. Business gatherings were attended by municipal presidents/mayors, local government representatives, representatives of regional and local chambers of commerce, representatives of AHK Serbia member companies and numerous local business leaders. According to the accounts of participants, the events held within the scope of this AHK tour symbolise the very close relations between Serbia and Germany that lead to the opening of new topics and opportunities to further improve foreign trade cooperation to the benefit of both countries. Assistance in the organising of the event was provided by companies DHL Serbia, JugoImpex, Tehno-Coop, ComData, MerkurXTip, Siemens and the Stanković Law Office.

The GSCC would like to thank the following member companies for their participation and donations in the “Tree for Belgrade” action: Lawyer Damir Petrović, B. Braun Adria RSRB d.o.o. Belgrade, Brose d.o.o., Delta Motors d.o.o., DHL, Health Centre “Vizim”, Eldisy Serbia d.o.o., Gebrüder Weiss d.o.o., GP Građevinar d.o.o., Hemofarm AD, Henkel Serbia, HÖDLMAYR Zastava d.o.o., Holleman, IB Interbilanz Consulting & Audit d.o.o. Belgrade, Klett publishing house d.o.o., Knauf Insulation d.o.o. Belgrade, LIDL Serbia KD, Linde Viljuškari d.o.o., Messer Tehnogas, Nes Communications, Phoenix Pharma, ProCredit Bank, Profine d.o.o., Quadra Graphic, Radisson Collection Hotel, Old Mill Belgrade, Unija Smart Accounting d.o.o. BG, Robert Bosch d.o.o., Schmitz Cargobull d.o.o., Siemens Serbia, Star Import (Mercedes Benz), Structura Concept d.o.o., TNation d.o.o., TPA Serbia d.o.o., Vorwerk Autotec Serbia d.o.o., Vorwerk Drivetec Serbia d.o.o., Vossloh – Schwabe Serbia d.o.o. and ZF Serbia d.o.o.

YOUNG ENERGY EUROPE 2.0 - ENERGY SCOUTS IN SERBIAN COMPANIES – THE BUSINESS SECTOR IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION MISSION During the 2021-2024 period, the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce – under the patronage of the German Federal Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conversation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) – will implement the project Young Energy Europe 2.0, which will enable professionals in Serbia to make improvements in the areas of energy ef61

GERMANY 2021

ACTIVITIES

ficiency and the optimisation of resources, thereby providing a great contribution to advancing both the economy and the environment.

The project’s aim is for future energy scouts to recognise and utilise the potential to make energy savings and optimise the use of resources within their companies. Within the scope of training each year, participants will acquire basic knowledge on the topic of energy – from its production and importance to environmental protection, to its efficient use. They will apply their newly acquired knowledge within their companies, thereby providing a great contribution to both companies and environmental protection. The training courses will help companies become more energy efficient and reduce their CO2 emissions. Adapted to suit companies, the YEE programme serves to strengthen climate protection and reduce companies’ climate costs, thus showing that economic activities and climate protection can go hand-in-hand. The Young Energy Europe project is being implemented in Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece, Croatia, Poland, Slovakia, Czechia and Hungary.

The project is funded under the auspices of the European Climate Initiative (EUKI) of the German Federal Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU). Participation in training courses is free. The German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce invites all interested companies to participate in the project and thus receive numerous benefits for their operations while contributing to the strengthening of environmental awareness and environmental protection.

2021 BUSINESS CONDITIONS IN SERBIA SURVEY The German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce conducted its 16th annual survey of the economic environment in Serbia among AHK Serbia member companies. The results of the survey were presented at a press conference by GSCC President Udo Eichlinger and Managing Director Frank Aletter, but were also analysed by State Secretary at the Serbian Ministry of Economy Milan Ljušić, German Ambassador Thomas Schieb and Director of Strategic Analysis, Services and Internationalisation of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce & Industry Mihailo Vesović.

62

GSCC members companies gave a positive assessment of the economic climate in Serbia and expressed positive expectations within the scope of their own operations. Moreover, despite the year of the pandemic, 90 per cent of participating companies said that they would invest in Serbia again. Pointing out the greatest threats and risks to the development of their companies over the next twelve months, respondent business leaders cited falling demand, the economic framework and legal security, as well as the labour shortage. The GSCC worked in cooperation with member companies to prepare a Position paper with proposals for eliminating these threats, which it submitted to the competent institutions.

DUAL EDUCATION The GSCC provides its member companies with an opportunity to join the group for dual vocational education, dual studies and professional qualifications, and to play an active role in working to improving related topics. The first meeting of the AHK Serbia “Dual Education” working group was held in June 2021.

The aim of the first meeting was to identify the main challenges confronting companies in dual vocational education, dual studies and qualifications, as well as to provide tangible suggestions for their improvement. Discussions among participants and representatives of various economic activities led to the identifying of three topics for which a real need for further discussion exists. These include the lack of a skilled workforce for industry, insufficient interest among students

in dual education and increasing the number of hours they spend learning through practical working engagements in companies. In accordance with this, AHK Serbia will thematically adapt the upcoming meetings of the “Dual Education” working group.

WESTERN BALKAN PURCHASING INITIATIVE As the seventh consecutive event co-organised by the German Federal Association of Materials Management, Purchasing and Logistics (BME e.V.) and representative offices of the German economy in the Western Balkans (AHK), under the patronage of Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi), the Western Balkan Purchasing Initiative will take place from 28th September to 15th October 2021.

The goal of the event is to promote the Reverse-Procurement concept (B2B matchmaking), enabling German customers to meet with selected suppliers from the Western Balkan region: Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Slovenia, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Albania. This event will focus on the metals industry, cast and forged parts and other direct groups of materials.

ONLINE CONFERENCE “ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN BUILDINGS INCLUDING GEOTHERMAL” The GSCC, under the patronage of Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, and in partnership with German consulting and service company energiewaechter GmbH, held an online conference on the topic “Energy efficiency in buildings including geothermal”. Conference participants received relevant information on the financing of projects in the field of energy efficiency for buildings in Serbia and Montenegro, the potential and use of geothermal energy and energy efficient buildings in Germany and Eastern Europe. The event was also attended by representatives of German companies, who presented their range of products and services in the area of energy efficiency.

AHK BOARD TALKS The AHK Board Talks represent a new format of online AHK Serbia events at which participants discuss current topics with experts from the Management Board of the GermanSerbian Chamber of Commerce. Two panel discussions have so far been held on the topics of digitalisation and transport & logistics. The panel on the topic of digitalisation was hosted

by GSCC President Udo Eichlinger, while the host of the

event addressing the topic of transport & logistics was GSCC Management Board member Dragan Simović.

SPEED BUSINESS MEETING The Radisson Collection Old Mill Belgrade hotel provided the venue for a meeting that included more than 60 representatives of the member companies of three bilateral chambers: the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce, the French-Serbian Chamber of Commerce and the Chamber of Italian-Serbian Businessmen. After a break of more than a year, and with all applicable epidemiological measures respected, the participants had a opportunity to meet in-person and initiate potential business cooperation. The event was held under the patronage of the Radisson Collection Old Mill Belgrade and companies Messer Tehnogas, Sky Express, Gebrüder Weiss and Rhenus Logistics.

SERBIAN VISIONS The sixth consecutive Serbian Visions Multicongress, this year held in an online format, took place from 1st to 5th February 2021. Under the new format, the multicongress ran for five days and included six manifestations per day. Help in the organising of the event was provided by companies Tahograf and Messer Tehnogas.

- 30 online events within the scope of the multicongress - 30 participants and event organisers: NGOs, institutes, guilds, associations, universities, faculties, professional associations, companies etc.

- 30 different forms of presentation: discussions, forums, presentations, online workshops, webinars, film screenings etc.

- 30 interesting topics covering the fields of human rights, economics, education, culture, innovation, healthcare, security, environmental protection and animal welfare, EU integration etc.

WEBINARS, DIALOGUES AND ONLINE PANEL DISCUSSIONS The German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce, in cooperation with its member companies and partners, organises numerous online events that address current topics. AHK Serbia has closely monitored developments and the changing needs of members since last year, organising a large number of webinars in cooperation with member companies, experts, GSCC partners, competent institutions and other bilateral chambers both in the country and abroad.

63

64