Partners: USA-Serbia 2020

2020

USA - SERBIA

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CONTENT

EDITOR IN CHIEF: Ana Novčić a.novcic@aim.rs DESIGN: Jasmina Laković j.lakovic@aim.rs PHOTOS: Zoran Petrović

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CHANGE IS IN THE AIR

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IT REPRESENTS THE FOUNDATION OF ALL ECONOMIC BRANCHES, INCLUDING MEDICINE

H.E ANTHONY F GODFREY, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO SERBIA

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GREAT STEP TAKEN AS A REGION AND AS BILATERAL PARTNERS

MARKO ČADEŽ, PRESIDENT OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY OF SERBIA

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WE CAN ALWAYS DO BETTER

ZORAN PETROVIĆ PRESIDENT OF THE AMCHAM BOARD OF GOVERNORS

CASH IS EXPENSIVE AND RISKY

JELENA RISTIĆ, COUNTRY MANAGER, MASTERCARD

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MIKE DE LA ROSA, USAID MISSION DIRECTOR

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INNOVATION IS THE BEST DRIVER

ZORAN DALJEVIĆ, CEO OF THE ATLANTIC GRUPA REPRESENTATIVE OFFICE SERBIA

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PANDEMIC HALTING INVESTMENT

SCIENCE

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29 30 32

BE ADAPTABLE

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RECYCLING IS OUR CHANCE

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U.S. BEST COLLEGE RANKINGS FOR 2021

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NEW LEADER, NEW PROGRESS

DEVELOPMENT FINANCE CORPORATION (DFC)

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BUILD A FUTURE INSTEAD OF PREDICTING ONE

DRAGOLJUB CIBULIC, SENIOR PARTNER AT BDK ADVOKATI

NCR SERBIA SUCCESS STORY NCR

NEW APPROACH TO PROMOTING GROWTH

U.S. COLLEGE

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EDITORIAL MANAGER: Neda Lukić n.lukic@aim.rs

GENERAL MANAGER: Maja Vidaković m.vidakovic@aim.rs

44 ART

PUBLISHER: Ivan Novčić i.novcic@aim.rs

150 YEARS OF THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART

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

Segedinski put 72, Subotica PARTNER ROAD TO NEW PARTNERSHIP

ĐORĐE ĐOKIĆ, PARTNER, VUJINOVIĆ & ĐOKIĆ LAW OFFICE

VUJADIN ŠĆEKIĆ, DIRECTOR OF JUGOIMPEX D.O.O. NIŠ

OFFICE MANAGER: Svetlana Petrović s.petrovic@aim.rs

FINANCE: Dragana Skrobonja finance@aim.rs

DIANA GLIGORIJEVIĆ, CO-OWNER, TELEGROUP

IVAN STANOJEVIĆ, OWNER OF STANTECH D.O.O.

KSENIJA KARIĆ, CEO OF SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC SERBIA AND MONTENEGRO

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MAN, SCIENTIST, PATRIOT MIHAJLO PUPIN (1854 – 1935)

TELEGROUP CREATES THE FUTURE

TOTAL DEDICATION TO CLIENTS

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

MIROSLAV VRANEŠ, DELL TECHNOLOGIES, ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

HOW THE DFC WILL SUPPORT INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS IN SERBIA?

VLADIMIR POPOVIĆ, INGRAM MICRO MANAGING DIRECTOR FOR THE ADRIATIC REGION

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NATURAL BEAUTY

VLATKO SEKULOVIĆ, SEKULOVIĆ LAW OFFICE

19 WE REMAIN COMMITTED TO SERBIA’S PROGRESS

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10 BREATHTAKING U.S. CANYONS

Year: 2020 ISSN No. 2560-4465

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BIG TECH’S DOMINATION OF BUSINESS REACHES NEW HEIGHTS TECH

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

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COMMENT

Change Is In The Air The success of Serbia is not a partisan issue in the United States and our positive momentum will continue, regardless of the outcome of our November 3rd national election. We have much more work to do together, and I truly believe we are on the cusp of the greatest days yet for Serbia and the United States

H.E ANTHONY F GODFREY, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO SERBIA

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he longer nights and crisp days of fall are reminders for us to slow down, focus on the family and home, and indulge in a little bit of nostalgia. I remember crisp October afternoons playing football with friends, or taking my children to Halloween parties, back in the days when we only used masks as part of costumes, not for everyday activities.

I will not indulge in nostalgia here for the “normal” way of life we had before COVID, apart from expressing my sadness for the many people who are no longer with us today because of this terrible virus, including my father and the family members of several people from my Embassy team.

Despite the challenges of 2020, we have reasons for optimism. I am hopeful a vaccine will soon be with us – arriving in record time, thanks to the concerted efforts of our best scientists. Change is also in the air regarding relations between the United States and Serbia. One year ago, when my family and I arrived in Belgrade, we were greeted with traditional Serbian hospitality, but it was no secret that the relationship between our nations was not where it should be, nor where it could be.

Although our official relationship was cordial, professional, and, frankly, a bit stuck, the connections between businesses and citizens were stronger than ever. As I traveled Serbia during my first year, I met so many people who talked about their relatives and friends in Chicago, Los Angeles, or my home state of New York. And I was amazed to see the entrepreneurial energy here in Serbia and the growing business relationships.

I even started to notice more American tourists “discovering” the great food, culture, and scenery of Serbia. Luckily, there’s more than enough pljeskavica, ajvar, and rakija to share. In fact, through USAID, we’re even helping Serbian companies to sell ajvar abroad.

Washington and Belgrade also seemed to have gotten the message that the time was ripe for a change in our official

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relationship. Presidents Trump and Vučić understand the importance of making decisions and then moving on them without delay. That’s exactly what they did, focusing on something both countries can easily accept: the need for better business and investment conditions.

There are still many political questions to be addressed.

In the meantime, we can work together to improve the region’s economy. The United States wants a strong and united Europe and Serbia to be a full member of the European Union. We also see business and investment opportunities in the Western Balkans, especially if the region can tear down trade barriers and become a dynamic emerging economic center in Europe.

Neighbors don’t always get along, but it doesn’t make economic sense to turn your back on business opportunities next door.

Just look at the United States: our largest trading partners are not China, Germany, or Japan – but Mexico and Canada.

Serbia can be the powerhouse economy of the Western Balkans. I applaud President Vučić for recognizing this potential, and for listening to the entrepreneurs who are driving Serbia’s economic engine. He also understands the importance of slowing the brain drain, by giving Serbia’s best and brightest minds reasons to stay home and help build their nation. These businesses and young people understand the importance of not allowing politics to block prosperity.

The success of Serbia is not a partisan issue in the United States and our positive momentum will continue, regardless of the outcome of our November 3rd national election. I am very proud of the renewed respect and friendship between the United States and Serbia. We want nothing more than to see our old friend succeed. This will not change, no matter the season. We have much more work to do together, but I truly believe we are on the cusp of the greatest days yet for Serbia and the United States.

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INTERVIEW

We Can Always Do Better ZORAN PETROVIĆ

PRESIDENT OF THE AMCHAM BOARD OF GOVERNORS

National authorities have plenty of room to influence the economic and business environment even under the conditions of a global pandemic. We expect the new Government, as has been the case to date, to work together with us to build a good business environment, but for us to work together more intensively, faster and more efficiently •••

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his year certainly isn’t a regular year for businesses worldwide, and that also goes for AmCham member companies in Serbia. “People’s health is endangered, and we are witnessing that public health systems are extremely sensitive to such shocks, and that they are very quickly overburdened,” says Zoran Petrović, President of the AmCham Board of Governors. “That certainly doesn’t

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change the fact that, even in these challenging times, businesses must continue to operate under the new conditions.”

It is up to governments around the world to show sensitivity and understanding for the given juncture to businesses that must be higher than ever, says Petrović. According to our interlocutor, the Government of Serbia responded fairly quickly, comprehensively and efficiently, helping companies, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, to overcome the first blow of the crisis, primarily in order to maintain relatively stable employment levels. “The rating for the business climate is moderately satisfactory, and that also goes for expectations for 2021, where we see crucial obstacles to an improved business climate in the continuation of the COVID-19 virus epidemic, inefficient public administration

(especially in the areas of taxes, customs, forex operations, property rights, labor and the predictability of legislative changes) and the availability of labor,” says the President of the AmCham Board of Governors.

Has COVID-19 caused changes to the business environment and, if so, how? Can we blame the pandemic for all the changes that have taken place?

- The viral pandemic has impacted greatly on the way almost all companies do business. Digitization processes that had already started were further accelerated, and we were compelled to reorganize almost all business processes to the extent and in a way that we continue to provide services and deliver our products to our customers. Some coped better, some handled it worse, but they all worked very hard and fast to transform their business models. The majority of AmCham member companies still have more than half of their employees working from home, and this model is so far yielding good results. The question of what the post-epidemic period will look like remains, as well as what long-term effects it will have on the way business is done. The last decade

because we must no longer allow ourselves to pass laws and regulations concerning the economy without first consulting the economy, or without enough time being set aside to provide quality inputs on the contents of regulations. We need, together with the Government, to create an environment with clear rules of the game, and an environment in which the rules of the game are the same for everyone. When we reach that level, we are left with real market competition and real competition for the benefit of citizens, the state, and undoubtedly business. We expect the new Government, as has been the case to date, to work together with us to build just such a business environment, but for us to work together more intensively, faster and more efficiently.

In which areas is it possible to progress, and what kind of progress can be made? Is that progress in the legislative domain or in the practical application of regulations?

- In the annual “Investor Satisfaction and Confidence” survey, AmCham member companies consistently point out the problems that torment them in doing business. Institutional reforms are increasingly in the focus of our members, from year to year. Improving the rule of law, the efficiency of the judiciary and the fight The opening of the Belgrade office of DFC, i.e. the American against corruption are increasingly menDevelopment Bank, will be a positive signal to future tioned as indispensable preconditions for investors planning investments in Serbia and the region, realizing the effects of any sector-specific but will also provide support to existing investors who plan reforms. The predictability of amendments to expand their business activities in this region to legislation is no less important, while their consistent implementation has been high on AmCham’s reform agenda for years. Combined can be dubbed the decade of accelerating and transforming progress in all of these areas will provide a positive incentive business models, and the epidemic only further accelerated for existing domestic and foreign investors, but also act as and forced a shift in those ill-suited changes. It is no less a magnet for attracting new investors. important that none of the changes implemented are - and mustn’t be - to the detriment of the health of employees.

What kinds of expectations do your members have: What results will they end this year with; and will they manage What are the business sector’s expectations of the new to retain all the workplaces that they provided prior to Serbian government? If we take the Fiat factory in Kragujethe pandemic? vac as an example, which repeatedly postponed and halted - According to research on the negative effects of the production due to the global situation, and not due to the pandemic that AmCham conducted on two occasions, our situation with the pandemic in Serbia, can we see that as members expect a 25% drop in profitability and a 30% proof that national governments have very little room to drop in investment, but most of them don’t expect to face influence the economic environment? liquidity problems. The biggest cause of the decline in busi- National authorities have plenty of room to influence the economic and business environment. Governments are the ness activity, for as many as 68% of respondents, is falling drivers of changes in the business environment, and without demand for products and services, which is particularly political will, and cooperation with the business sector, these evident in the sectors of tourism and hospitality, transport changes come very slowly, and often include cardinal errors. and real estate. Apart from the majority of companies that In other words, without public-private dialogue between the intend to maintain the same number of employees until the state and businesses there is no progress, and that is what end of the year (71%), the number of those that plan to hire AmCham has been principally committed to for many years. new workers (14%) and those expecting to make layoffs We must have a broad, thorough and timely public discourse, (15%) is relatively similar.

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years already, and domestic private investment, the level of Many companies accelerated their digital transformation which should be higher. This bank cooperates directly with processes and organized work from home during the previous the private sector, primarily in developing countries. The period. How well ordered is the area of work from home? sectors that are financed by this bank are usually relate to - The mass directing of employees to work from home the infrastructure, agriculture, health and energy sectors, happened because of the epidemic. This was nothing new but also new, advanced technologies. No less importantly, for many of our member companies, as employees had DFC pays special attention to the SME sector and the that opportunity before. What was new was that we were development of women’s entrepreneurship. And these are forced to reorganize our businesses so that we could diprograms that work in cooperation with commercial banks. rect most employees to work from home. At this moment, All of this is important for us, because our economy also large sections of employees are still working from home, has great potential in the sector of micro while we are trying – depending on the and small companies, and we mustn’t epidemiological situation – to return forget that it is just such companies that employees to offices bit by bit, following represent the backbone of the success the instructions of the Governmental of every economy. It should be noted that crisis task force. Our colleagues from European institutions, such as the Eurothe AmCham HR Forum discussed both the positive and negative effects of pean Investment Bank and the European working from home in great detail. They Bank for Reconstruction and Developare considering whether permanent ment, have also been present with their work from home could be a lasting offices in Belgrade for a long time and option for some jobs and some industhat they have helped, and continue to help, in the development of the private tries, and it is to be expected – due to and public sector, with significant funds. the new circumstances - that working from home will become more frequent than has been the case to date. On the Could the DFC’s arrival influence the deciother hand, there are challenges in the sions of private investors from America individual motivation of employees and to invest more in Serbia? monitoring their performance, but also - The opening of the DFC office in Belin preserving and building a team spirit, grade only serves to further confirm that nurturing the corporate culture and Belgrade is becoming the financial center hiring and introducing new colleagues. of the region and that some projects will There are also sectors in which frequent soon find themselves on the radar of supsocial interaction among employees is crucial, so in that sense the significance of According to research on the negative effects of the pandemic the team, communication and leadership that AmCham conducted on two occasions, our members is very important.

expect a 25% drop in profitability and a 30% drop in investment, while expectations vary regarding employment levels

What could the arrival of America’s Development Finance Corporation (DFC) mean for Serbia? How can we take advantage of the opportunities provided?

- The opening of the Belgrade office of DFC, i.e. the American Development Bank, will be a positive signal to future investors planning investments in Serbia and the region, but will also provide support to existing investors who plan to expand their business activities in this region. The arrival in Belgrade of such an important financial institution from the U.S. places our country on the list of desirable investment destinations and creates the possibility for us to strengthen both the inflow of foreign direct investment, which has contributed to a high share of GDP for several

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port thanks to the physical presence of the DFC. Alongside the implementation of the mini-Schengen initiative, this will provide a positive impetus to the economic development of the region, encouraging a faster flow of people, goods, services, and capital. Additionally, it is expected that in the future U.S. companies planning investments in Serbia or the region will turn to the DFC for information on the potential for investment on the ground, which will help them in making decisions. Of course, there are still a lot of tasks that we need to resolve, and AmCham member companies highlight the rule of law, corruption and predictability in the adopting of regulations that impact on doing business.

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INTERVIEW

We Remain Committed To Serbia’s Progress MIKE DE LA ROSA

USAID MISSION DIRECTOR We’re confident that the new Serbian government will remain committed to our shared priorities: Serbia’s EU accession and stimulating the economy. We’ll continue assisting government institutions to meet the public’s demand for improved accountability and responsiveness, as well as making Serbia a more attractive place to do business •••

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e spoke with Mike De La Rosa, USAID Mission Director, ahead of the finalization of the new USAID five-year strategy for Serbia. We also took the opportunity provided by this interview to briefly discuss USAID’s accomplishments over the course of almost two decades.

USAID has been in Serbia since 2001. How much assistance has USAID provided and what has changed during that time?

- You’re right, and next year we’ll actually be celebrating 20 years of our successful partnership with Serbia. So far, the U.S. has provided over $1 billion in assistance during this period, with nearly $840 million provided directly by USAID. Our focus has, from the start, been centered on supporting good governance and creating the right conditions for economic

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growth, but we’ve also provided emergency assistance over the years, to help Serbia with crises such as flooding and, more recently, COVID-19.

One of our biggest initial priorities was to help people to more directly participate in decision making and governance at the local level. We brought people together to discuss pressing needs and to decide which ones they wanted to partner on. Through just one of our programs, for example, we undertook more than 5,000 separate activities ranging from renovating health centers to supporting small businesses. Having garnered trust at the local level, we then began working with forward-looking partners at the national level, to help drive needed reforms. Most people who run for government, and work in government, really do want to be more responsive to the needs of citizens and businesses, but they often lack the right tools to do so. We provide those tools.

On the economic growth side, we’ve always approached the obstacles to doing business from both the supply and demand

sides. This means helping the Government to reform policies and regulations to bolster legitimate private sector development, while working with entrepreneurs on the demand side to help them better compete on the local, regional, and international markets. Wherever we work, we consult with our government and non-government counterparts to understand the challenges and to see how best to drive transformation and sustainable change. We then figure out what is doable with the resources we have, roll up our sleeves, and get to work.

What will be your priorities for cooperation with the new Serbian government that’s currently being formed?

- We’re not expecting major changes in how we partner with the Government. We’re confident it will remain committed to our shared priorities: Serbia’s EU accession and stimulating the economy. We’ll continue assisting government institutions to meet the public’s demand for improved accountability and responsiveness, as well as making Serbia a more attractive place to do business.

We’re currently in the process of finalizing a new fiveyear strategy that will build on the work we’ve already done, but we’ll also be looking to explore new opportunities. One

tries where we work, and hopefully our partnership with Serbia will evolve similarly.

The pandemic has actually served to illustrate how much progress Serbia has made on its Journey to Self-Reliance. As with most countries, the Serbian health system endured significant strain, and the economy suffered a big hit – but, overall, Serbia has displayed tremendous resilience. This isn’t a particularly easy time for any country, but the hard work of everyone here – from doctors to street cleaners – has been paying off. We’ve seen civil society organizations and companies, many of which are our partners, delivering food for the elderly or making masks for health workers. With winter coming, Serbia will need to continue to stand strong. Going forward, we’ll work with Serbia to mitigate the impact of this and future crises, and to continue along its path of economic and democratic development.

In addition to helping Serbia become more resilient in the face of future crises, how have you directly assisted Serbia in responding to the challenges of the pandemic during these last six months?

- We’ve actually provided quite a bit of assistance to battle the pandemic during these last several months. USAID funded and partnered with One of the overriding themes of our new five-year different UN agencies to help meet Serstrategy will be to help halt the brain-drain by driving bia’s most pressing needs, including the reforms that show youngsters that they can build provision of COVID test kits, oxygen contheir futures here in Serbia centrators, pulse oximeters, patient monitors, X-ray machines, and testing containers for health facilities. of the overriding themes will be to help halt the brain-drain We also worked through UNICEF and the Serbian Red Cross by driving reforms that show youngsters that they can build to provide food parcels, hygiene, sanitation, and educationtheir futures here in Serbia. We know that improving the environment for doing business will allow innovative companies al kits for thousands of vulnerable families. Ahead of the recent elections in June, we provided the Election Commission to create more and higher-paying jobs, but good jobs are only part of the equation. People also want to know that they with a COVID Risk Assessment and Mitigation Strategy and can enjoy the same rights and opportunities they would have helped them to inform voters about effective safety measures. abroad. Stimulating regional economic growth is a U.S. priorAnd we’re working right now with the regional COVID hospital ity, as reflected by this year’s efforts of Special Presidential in Pančevo to get its heating and hot water system working Envoy Richard Grenell. properly and efficiently. Meanwhile, other sections of the U.S. Government, like the Department of Defense, stepped up to Did your post-COVID strategic priorities change as a result send Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and other items of the pandemic? If so, in what sense? requested by the Serbian Government.

- We’ve certainly had to adjust the way we work, and while we may be exploring other sectors to work in, such as health, Based on the surveys you’ve conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, in which areas do businesses need assisour development priorities have not fundamentally changed. tance the most?

Wherever we work, our goal is to work ourselves out of a job.

- For small and medium-sized enterprises, which we commonTo do this, we work to help countries along what we call the ly refer to as SMEs, the short answer is financing and digitizaJourney to Self-Reliance. An excellent example of how this tion. This pandemic has required most businesses to pivot in works is one of our largest beneficiaries of U.S. assistance some significant way. While half of businesses were able to from years ago – South Korea. Today, the Korean equivalent transition some employees to telework, we also saw that 20 of USAID actually partners with us in some of the other coun-

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percent of respondents reduced business operations and near- I believe that when you create a strong business enabling enly 15 percent had to temporarily shut up shop. Overall, nearly vironment, you make investing in Serbia more attractive for 90 percent of companies expect revenues to drop this year. both domestic and international investors. For a country like We knew that having eCommerce capacities was imporSerbia, you need foreign investments to create jobs, but, of tant for SME growth even before the pandemic. USAID actucourse, you want to make sure these investments are benefially helped the Government of Serbia to produce its E-comcial for local communities and the country without hampering merce Development Program and Action Plan, which was adthe growth of viable businesses that already exist. opted several months before the pandemic hit Serbia. This Regarding our partner SMEs, we were working with them capacity for eCommerce has now become indispensable for even before the pandemic to introduce digital solutions and most businesses. The exponential growth in food deliveries diversify their markets. This has definitely helped them to this year shows how this works. Restaurants could keep makmitigate the impact. Online sales are here to stay, and domesing food and continue serving their customers. Brick and mortic online payments in Serbia have skyrocketed over the last tar shops also began dipping their toes into two years. We saw that once the pandemic online marketplaces, but this shift is still in hit, many SMEs quickly transitioned to selling more online, accelerating digital transits infancy. Buyers need to feel that shopping online is both convenient and safe. In formation and essentially mainstreaming order for this to happen, companies need it. Our partner, the Shopen.com platform, to invest in things like cybersecurity, which facilitated this transition free of charge in requires financing. order to help SMEs switch to online sales.

Speaking of financing, helping busiSMEs all over the country took advantage nesses to more easily access credit would and now more than 500 are actively using hugely spur Serbia’s economy. In this regard, the platform. Another great example is the USAID recently partnered with the Minisstartup Gajbica.rs. They pivoted from cortry of Agriculture to develop a $91 million porate to home food deliveries and experienced a 500% increase in orders and even loan guarantee for a wide range of SMEs hired more staff. Even in the post-COVID-19 operating in the agriculture sector. In just period, we expect that many of these drathe first year, the commercial banks with matic shifts in how businesses do their work which we’re working have already provided $20 million in loans, and they expect to will in fact continue, and we’ll work with our provide another $20 million in loans in the partner SMEs to transition into this brave next couple of months, as a result of our new world. loan guarantee. Given USAID’s tremendous success in the agricultural sector, USAID helped the Government of Serbia to produce the we’ll also be exploring sizable loan guarE-commerce Development Program and Action Plan, which antees in the media and energy sectors, was adopted several months before the pandemic hit Serbia. where an inability to access credit is alThis capacity for eCommerce so problematic.

Additionally, we assisted the Ministry of Finance in creating the new Alternative Investment Funds EU accession is by far the most important goal for Serbia.

Law, which is instrumental in supporting the private equity How do you plan to assist this process in the coming period? market. We helped develop the new law along with a novel - We obviously support Serbia’s decision to pursue EU membership – it’s our top priority as well. So, all our programming set of tax incentives to spur local equity investment. Adopted a year ago, this new law represents a cornerstone of the is aligned with Serbia’s efforts to move in that direction. Regardless of when Serbia enters the EU, the actual process of improved financial system in Serbia, since it helped with the adopting and executing the required reforms to legislation establishment of a local investment fund market and broadened the range of available equity financing options. to meet this goal ultimately benefits Serbia, and the country’s people. As such, we coordinate closely with our EU colSome people suggest that, under these new circumstances, leagues, especially in the areas of rule of law, media reform, Serbia needs to change its growth strategy by focusing on and anti-corruption, while our private sector assistance focuses on creating a functioning market economy to help Serdomestic companies. How well are the companies that were bia become increasingly more competitive. supported by USAID handling the challenges of the pandemic?

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NCR

CORPORATE

NCR Serbia Success Story U.S.-based NCR Corporation first launched its operations in Serbia in 2011, as a small customer support center with 300 employees. Nine years later, the number of employees has increased more than tenfold, with NCR Serbia today employing around 4,000 people who contribute significantly to NCR’s various development projects

S

haping the future for 135 years, NCR the priorities of NCR’s global strategy for the NCR’s talented and dedicated Serbia emCorporation is the world’s enterprise digitization of business processes. ployees provide proactive, remote, multilingual technology leader for restaurants, Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the support in 20 different languages, investing retailers and banks, and it stands NCR Corporation has over 34,000 employees their knowledge and creativity to simplify their at the forefront of transactions that run the in 160 countries, and NCR office in Serbia is customers’ operations. Their projects range world around us. The No.1 global POS software among the largest, boasting around 4,000 from software development and programming, provider for retail and hospitality, and the No.1 employees. via engineering and automation, to Robotic provider of multi-vendor ATM software, NCR NCR has come a long way in Serbia since Process Automation (RPA) design. creates software, hardware and services for its beginnings nine years ago, when around 300 Encouraged by the excellent customer its clients that run the enterprise from the employees were mostly providing customer dedication and business results of its Serback office to the front end, and everything service support to NCR’s clients across the bia employees, the company decided to in between. strengthen its presence in Serbia Long known for manufacturwith the construction of a new Encouraged by the excellent ing cash registers and ATMs, NCR state-of-the-art office: the Belcustomer dedication and business results is today a leading software- and grade campus. This 30,000 squareof its Serbian employees, the company services-led enterprise provider, ofmeter building is NCR’s biggest decided to strengthen its presence in fering its clients advanced software campus in Europe, and it reflects Serbia with the construction of a new solutions and digital connected the NCR culture as well as its role state-of-the-art office: the Belgrade campus services. From its early days as as a global technology leader. The the inventor of the paper receipt technologies and standards apand mechanical cash register, to its recent globe. NCR Serbia team was soon recognized plied in its construction are the first of their software solutions and services, NCR’s sucas efficient, professional and innovative, and kind in Serbia. The building holds the LEED cess has come as a result of changing the the number of employees has been increasing Gold certificate, confirming that is efficient, way things are done across the company. An every year. Business operations at the Serbia cost-effective and good for both occupants innovative and proactive approach to doing office have transformed over these nine years, and the environment. The construction of business enables NCR to always respond to with Serbia having become a strategic hub this world-class work environment will be customers’ demands quickly and efficiently. for NCR’s further business development and completed in the first half of 2021, when it In today’s digital world, digital connected innovation, especially in the area of digital will serve as a platform for further growth services and digital transformation are among connected services. and transformation of NCR’s Serbia team.

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INTERVIEW

Great Step Taken As A Region And As Bilateral Partners MARKO ČADEŽ,

PRESIDENT OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY OF SERBIA

America's active engagement, and a new, constructive, economic approach to solving complex and difficult topics representing the biggest obstacle to economic and political normalization in the region, have unblocked the cooperation process and introduced a new dimension to bilateral relations. I am deeply convinced that this will contribute to maximizing the potential to strengthen our economic ties ~ Marko Čadež

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C

hamber of Commerce & Industry of Serbia (CCIS) President Marko Čadež has no doubt that a new chapter of bilateral relations, and especially closer economic relations between the two countries, was opened at the highest level during recent talks in Washington. “The agreement reached in Washington, and the speed with which its implementation began with the international Development Finance Corporation (DFC) and the work on defining specific projects, are important for the normalization of economic relations between Belgrade and Priština, and for the growth and development of the entire region, but also for future economic and overall relations between Serbia and America”, says our interlocutor. Čadež believes that America’s active engagement, and a new, constructive, economic approach to solving complex and difficult topics that haven’t only burdened relations between Belgrade and Priština for year, but which also represent the biggest obstacle to economic and political normalization in the region, have unblocked the cooperation process. “At the same time”, he adds, “it also

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brought a turning point, a new dimension and new prospects to Serbian-American bilateral relations. I am deeply convinced that this will contribute to maximizing the potential to strengthen our economic ties. Not only because of the significant funds with which the U.S.’s state development bank and its partners will support projects, but also because the U.S. administration is thereby sending an excellent message to its own business community, and the international one, that Serbia and the region represent a place worthy of their investments”, says the CCIS president.

How important are the infrastructure projects that will be supported by the DFC at this time when the country is confronting the COVID-19 pandemic?

- Strengthening regional economic integration and cooperation, building a common Western Balkan space as soon as possible and ensuring the deeper inclusion of the region in the unified legal and economic system of the European Union are of crucial importance for the economies of the region to recover from the consequences

of the Coronavirus pandemic. Stronger regional connectivity and the faster recovery of the Western Balkan economies will also be supported by capital transport and energy infrastructure projects, the implementation of which will be supported by the DFC, but also investments in equipping industrial zones in terms of infrastructure will also be extremely important for attracting new investors. Projects like the construction of the Niš-Pristina Highway, the construction and modernization of the railway on the northern and eastern branches towards Priština, and their further connection with the port of Drač (Durres) on the Adriatic coast aren’t only important for Belgrade and Priština, but also for the economy of the entire region. These projects are important for the economy, because of all the benefits that infrastructure development brings as a prerequisite for better economic coopera-

building of a common regional market without barriers and the Western Balkans as a single investment destination represents a significant step forward in the realization of the Mini Schengen initiative. I believe that Montenegro and Bosnia-Herzegovina will recognize the interest of their business communities and will also join us very soon.

That’s because, let me remind you, that the construction of a common regional market will expand the operational space of domestic business people. It will reduce costs significantly, increase competitiveness, accelerate trade and enable growth in the trade exchange within the region and with the world. At the same time, it will make the Western Balkans more attractive for the international business community, for foreign companies that are already present and want to expand in the region, but also for future investors who will be able to count on a large regional market of 18 million consumers.

The transformation of the Western Balkans into a single investment destination, which is now being joined by Priština, according to the Washington Agreement, represents a significant step forward in implementing the Mini Schengen initiative tion, greater competitiveness and doing business more efficiently.

They will also ease the implementation of the “Mini Schengen”, as the zone of a common regional market and the free movement of people, goods, services and capital.

It is equally important for our economies that support be provided to the SME sector, through a guarantee scheme and a special credit line, as well as support for private sector investment projects, companies in the areas of manufacturing and services - from energy and security, via the food industry and logistics, to IT and high technology.

Could it be said that the Mini Schengen idea has now gained momentum and significance?

- The fact that, according to the agreement from Washington, Priština is joining Serbia, North Macedonia and Albania in the

Is there positive energy from all sides when it comes to strengthening economic cooperation between Belgrade and Priština, and the Western Balkans as a whole?

- The start of the implementation of the Washington Agreement within a period shorter than three weeks after it was signed is the best proof of that positive energy, and the interest of the business communities is the best incentive for those agreements and deals to be realized. It is up to us to make the best use of the opportunities creates by this agreement, to prepare and implement projects as quickly as possible, so that the economy and citizens feel progress as soon as possible.

The projects envisioned by the Washington Agreement that will be supported by the DFC are important for our member companies, but also for the development of the entire region, and for stronger regional economic connections, which the Chamber of Commerce & Industry of Serbia and the Kosovo Chamber of Commerce advocate for and are already working on together.

The formation of a joint team to support more efficient project implementation provides an additional contribution to the imple-

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mentation of the Agreement, economic normalization, connecting our business people and regional cooperation, which we have been advocating for years and which we are working on together with other members of the Chamber Investment Forum.

What, if anything, are the challenges?

- Since the agreement was reached in Washington, I’ve been asked often what the guarantees are that the deals signed will be respected and the agreement will be implemented. The Washington Agreement is a framework that obliges politicians to implement specific projects. In addition to this, I see no reason not to fulfill the obligations undertaken, especially since this is one of those agreements that ensure no one loses anything and we all win together.

It provides us with a great opportunity to make the best use of opportunities that open the way to a better life for the people who live in this area and the more successful operations of businesses.

Business people support the agreement, because they recognize the benefits, as it will make their operations easier and enable them to earn money, hire people, and maintain their businesses.

This also applies to the deals reached and agreements signed within the scope of the Mini Schengen initiative. Their consistent and urgent application has been requested by the joint regional chamber of the Western Balkan six to all governments in the region.

Following the recent establishment of the Business Council, as the advisory body of the Chamber Investment Forum, the Forum will monitor progress on removing mutual obstacles to more successful business on the ground on a daily basis, and will regularly inform the governments of the region about that, proposing measures to ensure the free movement of people, goods, services and capital, thus making it easier for entrepreneurs to do business and reduce costs.

How is the current structure of the trade exchange between Serbia and America, and what would you like to see in this regard?

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- Economic cooperation between the two countries was primarily marked by the investments of American companies in Serbia during the previous period. There are ever more American investors in Serbia every year, and their contribution - through production, exports and employment - is increasing constantly. According to American sources, the total investments of U.S. companies in Serbia, including investments from their European branches and through global acquisitions, amount to about four billion dollars. I believe that the engagement of the DFC and other U.S. government agencies in Serbia and the region, as well as the new opportunities created for potential investors with the construction of a common Western Balkan market, are also excellent signals for U.S. private capital.

When it comes to mutual trade between Serbia and America, despite significant proportional growth over the past two years, the level of exchange achieved - 854.4 million dollars, including Serbian exports worth 303 million dollars - is far below the realistic possibilities. The potential for the growth of trade and greater utilization of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) is really large. The capacity to increase exports to the U.S. market and strengthen cooperation can be found in the agri-food sector, the metal (auto parts and metal processing), textiles, special-purpose and furniture industries, and in energy (wind farms, solar farms).

The exchange of services has become increasingly important in the total exchange of the two countries in recent years. Last year, along with the growth of both exports and imports by a third, the value of these services exceeded 800 million dollars. Unlike the trade exchange, which is burdened by a deficit, in the exchange of services Serbia, with exports last year worth 596 million dollars, has a surplus that exceeds the value of exported goods to America. Special potential to further increase the exchange of services lies with the fast-growing Serbian ITC sector, which the world and American media have dubbed the Silicon Valley of the Western Balkans, and which has innovative products that are already being used by American companies and institutions. This is particularly important for us, given that America holds a third of the world IT services market, is among the most innovative countries in the world and is the home of the largest multinational technology companies.

I discussed this at the beginning of the year, during my stay in America, with the leaders of the Council for the Information Technology Industry (ITI), from whom we received support for the initiative of CCIS and its members to open a Serbian house in Silicon Valley, which would host entrepreneurs and experts in technologies from Serbia and the Western Balkans and strengthen ties with this global technology hub. I believe that the COVID-19 pandemic has only temporarily postponed the agreements we reached at the time with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce regarding the visit of an American business delegation to Serbia and one of business leaders from Serbia and the region to America.

JELENA RISTIĆ, COUNTRY MANAGER, MASTERCARD

CORPORATE

Cash Is Expensive And Risky Mastercard is a company that stays on top of payment trends by carefully monitoring consumer needs, while its combination of safe and flexible technologies, data insights and partnerships ensure that Mastercard can accelerate the digital shift in a meaningful way

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crisis can be a generator of thinking that’s out-of-the-box, and considerations that innovations should be market-relevant and tailored to actual needs. People are now increasingly relying on the practicality, safety and speed of electronic payments, but it remains to be seen how they will use them

actually tried Ecommerce for the first time during the lockdown. What we need to bear in mind is that today’s changes are pioneering tomorrow’s innovations.

Given that Serbia has been a predominantly cash market, do we need additional education on how to use modern technologies? What role does Mastercard play in this?

- The cash economy is still massive and what we need to understand as a society is that cash is an expensive and risky burden for future growth, and that technology actually helps make markets more resilient and sustainable.

Only when parties understand how technolo-

support. We are strongly aligned to partners throughout the ecosystem and some of our most recent educational initiatives include the Guide for Safe and Secure Online Shopping with USAID, SurfShop intensive workshops with the Association of young businessmen of Serbia, the eCommerce Association Academy, on-boarding support for existing and new online shops in partnership with OTP Bank, etc.

We’ll continue with education and relevant launches to ensure that each party maximizes the potential that digital technologies have to offer.

The pandemic brought some new trends.

Would we be right in saying that some innovations planned for next year were introduced in a few months of this year?

- If there is something positive in the pandemic, it is the openness with which consumers Are you ready for the dynamic growth of embraced new payment methods users among both consumers and and the readiness of retailers and retailers?

Only when parties understand how financial institutions to cater to - The on-going digital evolution technologies and concrete solutions work the continuing shift in consumer will only accelerate further and will they be willing to try habits. The growth of cashless, businesses that bravely embrace contactless and online payments innovations will have the highest are such examples – the recommendations gies and concrete solutions work will they be chances of achieving sustainable growth. The of the WHO promoting card usage drove willing to try them out, and then practice builds digital economy is needed more than ever people away from excessive amounts of cash habit and usage. before and we mustn’t forget that it implies and ATMs. We’re seeing a strong push among Focusing on Ecommerce, there is a need a global scale. Mastercard’s forte is our global retailers for contactless payments, which to continue educating cardholders on how to network, which processes more than 87 billion consumers strongly support, so in this light navigate online shopping. At the same time, transactions per year and enables us to easily we increased the limit for PIN-less contactless retailers need to be online in order to avoid scale upstream and downstream demand, while payments from 3,000 to 4,000 dinars, as an falling off shoppers’ radars, as well as to excel our unique position within the payment ecoadditional element promoting peace-of-mind at end-to-end customer service. Financial and system ensures that we can provide relevant when people shop in-store. But it’s online payregulatory sectors must facilitate the growsupport to all stakeholders in their efforts to ments that have become the new first choice ing demand, and the best way to do that is to expand. We are looking forward to this dynamic for consumers, with our latest MasterIndex adapt global success stories. All these can be growth, because it will confirm that the market Serbia study showing that 10% of people achieved with proper, timely and educated is safely headed along the digitization route.

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CORPORATE

DRAGOLJUB CIBULIC, SENIOR PARTNER AT BDK ADVOKATI

How Will The DFC Support Infrastructure Projects In Serbia?

Over a month has passed since DFC's representatives visited Belgrade, and now might be a good time to highlight a couple of points related to the announced arrival of the DFC in the region

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and how many additional major infrastructerms of the potential to ease tensions t the outset, it is worth recalling ture projects the treasury can sustain. PPP between Serbs and Albanians and achieve that the Development Finance and concession structures are also more long-term stability.

Corporation (DFC) is already desirable from the perspective of competiThe DFC approach to developing infrapresent in the region. This newly tiveness and transparency of the approval structure differs from the approach of other created U.S. development bank is the process. Their downside, however, is in the development banks, in that DFC does not successor to OPIC, which was involved fact that they are more time consuming lend directly to governments but instead in a number of projects in Serbia and the and, at the end of the day, may still require a supports private investments in such proregion, primarily in issuing guarantees for certain level of governmental support if the jects through public-private partnerships sector-specific lending programs carried development of the relevant infrastructure and concession structures. In order to utilize out by local banks. is not bankable on its own. the DFC’s funds in the development of vital What’s new is that the DFC has an inSerbia is currently showered with offers infrastructure projects, Serbia will have creased lending capacity of $60 billion of significant development funds from the to adjust its preferred structure for the (twice that of OPIC) and an expanded remit world’s three superstates – the allowing it to invest in equity and U.S., EU and China. Some of these project pre-development studies.

In order to utilize the DFC’s funds investment offers overlap. The However, the most important for the development of vital infrastructure Serbian Government has so far change is its mission, which is shown readiness to go beyond to advance U.S. foreign policy projects, Serbia will have to adjust its the usual and even split a proand offer “a robust alternative to preferred structure for the development ject between interested parties state-directed investment that of infrastructure, which has been to (with the Belgrade Metro, for often leaves countries saddled take out a sovereign loan from example). However, it will not be with debt”. Obviously, the DFC’s a development bank to finance easy to maintain that approach, mission is to counter the Belt works carried out by a contractor given that different actors have and Road initiative and provide conflicting interests. The Serbian an alternative source for develGovernment should choose the appropriate development of infrastructure, which has oping countries to finance infrastructure structure for specific investments carebeen to take out a sovereign loan from a development. fully, and the optimal source of financing development bank to finance works carried It is therefore not surprising that the for them. Most importantly, the selection out by a contractor. A different approach flagship projects featured during meetings of projects should be based on a national could be beneficial for the national budget, between the DFC and Serbian officials investment strategy that’s coherent and which has taken a major beating from the are two transport infrastructure projects publicly scrutinized. ongoing pandemic. It is questionable whether that are of major political significance in

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CORPORATE

VLADIMIR POPOVIĆ, INGRAM MICRO MANAGING DIRECTOR FOR THE ADRIATIC REGION

New Leader, New Progress Ingram Micro is a company that continues to build good relations with its partners and vendors. To date it has done so in the Non-EU region, but also in Croatia and Slovenia, while the goal of the new managing director for the Adriatic region is to continue with its successful trend on new markets

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ork from home represented a new opportunity for the IT industry, because it was necessary to create a safe environment in which employees within a single organization will be able to exchange all information in a secure way, explains Vladimir Popović, Ingram Micro’s new MD for the Adriatic Region.

Your impressive career has also included executive positions at companies SAP and New Frontier. You’ve been with Ingram Micro for the last three years and recently took charge of the entire region.

How much more work and responsibility does that entail?

- From the start of my career, I’ve approached every obligation extremely seriously and responsibly, striving to give my all, and to do everything in my power to improve the operations of the company at which I was working. This new position also brings with it new challenges, but I will also approach them in an extremely professional and dedicated way. The responsibility is greater because, in addition to the territories I’ve managed to date, I now also manage two developed EU markets that need to be further developed.

The IT market is growing despite global difficulties, but Ingram Micro is also expanding its competencies and field of

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work. What are the company’s dominant areas of focus in our region?

- As has been the case to date, the main focus of Ingram Micro is on continuing to build good relations with its partners, on the one hand, and with vendors, on the other.

We endeavor to support our partners in responding to market demands and challenges in the best possible way. We’ve so far done that successfully in the Non-EU region, and we’ve also done it in Croatia and Slovenia. My goal is to develop even more competencies and knowhow in order to continue the successful trend in the Adriatic region.

How much has the global situation caused changes to the market situation? Has the introduction of work from home changed infrastructure and solutions?

- The global pandemic has confronted all of humanity with the kind of challenge that no one has previously experienced.

Changes have occurred in all walks of life, so our industry has also sustained huge changes. The new reality opened our eyes and showed us what employees really need in order to do their jobs efficiently. Although it was thought that working from home, at a distance, would have an adverse impact on team atmosphere, this didn’t happen in our case.

Interestingly, one of the biggest challenges of working from home is security,

which many companies only started thinking about with the outbreak of the pandemic.

Our product range includes a whole range of excellent security solutions for every situation and challenge that can confront our partners’ clients.

How did you organize training under the new conditions? Have all the advantages of cloud infrastructure now been demonstrated?

- Part of the training has been transferred online, but there are still educational activities that are performed at our training center, with all preventive measures.

We’ve also established a partnership with Pearson VUE, thereby making available to our partners and end users a large number of certificates and tests according to the highest world standards.

It was expected that expansion of cloud infrastructure and cloud-based operations would come, because there are countless advantages in the fact that something exists virtually, with everyone able access it wherever it is located.

Is it difficult to be a high-ranking manager during such times of change? What are your personal motives and driving force?

- There are many possible answers to this question, but here I would like to be short and sharp: Every success of my team gives me new energy to deal with all challenges.

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CORPORATE

KSENIJA KARIĆ, CEO OF SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC SERBIA AND MONTENEGRO

Build A Future Instead Of Predicting One Schneider Electric is recognized worldwide as an essential business that provides service continuity to critical infrastructure, such as hospitals, data centers, IT networks, temperature-controlled food supply chains, energy, transportation, and water cycle management

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waste reduction, and energy efficiency. power supply reliability is essential. n the future, digitized energy systems “Our company has developed solu“Uncertain situations and crises highmay be able to identify who needs energy and deliver it at the right tions that help customers achieve the light the importance of using emerging time, in the right place and at the norms of the industry of the future. To technologies and innovations in healthlowest cost. But getting everything right achieve the promised benefits of the care systems. To ensure best-in-class will not be easy. Overall, the year 2020 next generation industrial environment, patient care at all times, it’s mandatory marked the culmination of the decade underlying technology infrastructure for healthcare facilities to have a resilient, of digital transformation, while 2021 will designs will need to incorporate and sustainable and future-ready ecosystem”, define the beginning of the decade of support industrial stakeholders who says Karić. smart transformation and intelligent prioritize investments leading to innovaSchneider Electric has curated inautomation, with AI-based solutions tive software and services that enable sights from experts and the finest minds already progressively permeating all the gathering and analysis of data, rather in the healthcare industry to develop a industries. than to traditional hardware”, adds Karić. complete solution for hospitals – the “This year we’ve been challenged to On the other hand, our new reality and EcoStruxure for Healthcare platform, do things differently, to think in a disrupthe continuing coronavirus crisis has also which provides consistent energy for hospital equipment. The main tive way, and to find solutions characteristic of this system is to issues never previously adSchneider Electric has curated insights that you make data-based decidressed. The new reality has from experts and the finest minds in also imposed different patterns sions and optimize resource the healthcare industry to develop a of behavior on us all. And IT is availability in all healthcare taking over industrial operainfrastructure—power districomplete solution for hospitals – the tions”, says Ksenija Karić, CEO bution, IT, and HVAC. EcoStruxure for Healthcare platform, which of Schneider Electric Serbia “We plan to dedicate ourprovides consistent energy for hospital and Montenegro, adding that selves to this business segment equipment. The main characteristic of the architecture of industrial in the coming period, and will be this system is that you make data-based automation has done a good job happy to join any initiative that decisions and optimize resource availability of advancing industry to where aims to increase the efficiency in all healthcare infrastructure—power we are today. of hospital systems”, says Karić, distribution, IT, and HVAC Her advice for industrial noting that Schneider Electric facilities is for them to build a together with the Development competitive advantage by focusing on the Center for ADMS in Novi Sad - is one the prompted Schneider Electric to focus implementing of digital solutions if they biggest IT companies in Serbia, as well as more on the solutions used in medical want to experience the benefits of such a being a leading company in the digitizafacilities. The application of IoT solutions transformation in terms of higher speed, in hospitals is of great importance, while tion and automation of energy solutions.

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MIROSLAV VRANEŠ, DELL TECHNOLOGIES, ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

CORPORATE

IT Represents The Foundation Of All Economic Branches, Including Medicine The current year differs completely from all previous years, in terms of being challenging, demanding and unpredictable. Clients are demanding the fast and efficient transformation of their own operations, and Dell EMC – as a technology leader and one of the world's largest companies - helps with digital transformation in order to adapt operations to the new situation as easily as possible.

We are witnessing the great responsibility and high level of awareness of our users, as well as a swift change of priorities in the implementation of projects adapted to existing challenges

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pandemic and to what extent did those channels impact on traditional business models?

- We use all communication channels and platforms that are already generally accepted, such as Zoom,Teams and Skype, for daily communication, both internal between employees and for external communication with our partners and users. They are very easy to use How can the positive aspects of work from and exchange all digital materials. home be preserved even when the On the other hand, the number of threat of the pandemic abates?

By using virtual communication channels “virtual” meetings has increased - Dell Technology switched to fully we gain additional opportunities in the significantly, which requires better working from home about ten days form of fast exchanges of digital materials, personal organization of time and before the state of emergency recording contents, easier follow-up, easy priorities. was declared. “Workforce Transsearches and returning to a desired formation”, as one of the biggest part. Likewise, it is much easier for all The owners of your company, initiatives of our company, enabled participants to stay on topic Michael and Susan Dell, donated us to instantly switch to adapting more than $100 million for the to work in a virtual office. audio and video content and participate in the struggle against COVID-19?

The pandemic merely accelerated the actual conversation, while for others you’re - That’s right... Through their foundation, the transformation of human resources and aware of whether they are even actaully Dells invested large sums of money for the showed us the direction in which we need to present, whether they are listening to you testing and development of a medicine for develop further and what to strive towards. and whether they contribute to the discussion COVID-19. Being a technology leader also There are numerous advantages of working in any way. Naturally, in a real “face to face” requires corporate social responsibility. IT from home, while no time is lost travelling environment that looks completely different. has entered all aspects of all branches of to and from work, going to meetings, etc. the economy, including medicine, so in this On the other hand, it brings great personal Which new channels of communication did respect IT will only serve to accelerate the responsibility, with employees unable to companies establish during the COVID-19 inventing of a medicine or vaccine. “relax” too much in their daily responsibilities,

ll praise for active work and quick adjustment should go to the Serbian Government’s Office for IT, which “launches” online services for the simpler, faster and safer functioning of various economic processes on a weekly basis.

given that they are working from their “safe” locations, i.e. from their homes.

Technology is completely ready to move the virtual environment closer to the real one, though some human adaptation and changes in habits are also required. In one virtual panel discussion, with dozens of people present, it can happen that only a few individuals “share”

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CORPORATE

ZORAN DALJEVIĆ, CEO OF THE ATLANTIC GRUPA REPRESENTATIVE OFFICE SERBIA

Innovation Is The Best Driver Thanks to a conglomerate of renowned brands and excellent diversification of production capacities in the region, Atlantic Grupa has managed to achieve sales revenue growth and maintain its market leader position even under the conditions of the global pandemic

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e will focus on the further development and strengthening of key categories in the food and beverage segment, strengthening distribution capacities and digital transformation, while also adapting to current business conditions, as is now the case with the pandemic, announces Mr. Daljević

ground, and also enabled us to achieve business results with minimal negative consequences.

We are especially proud of the fact that, with all the measures to protect our employees, we maintained a good epidemiological situation in the company, despite production operations having worked continuously.

Thanks to a stable financial position, we were able to help the community with a donation of 4.6 million euros to fight the pandemic in all key markets.

development and market research, to communication with our customers and investing in people as a key factor of our success.

Our focus is on being regional leaders in the categories in which we have renowned brands, which provides a good foundation for further internationalization. One example is “Smoki”, which is a leader in the corn flips category in the region and represents one of the main pillars of the company. The essence is that, in relation to the further development of brands and an ambitious approach, we act with maximum rationality and social responsibility on every market.

You recorded sales revenue growth of 6.6 percent, at almost 169 million euros, in the first quarter of this year. Isn’t that a huge success considering all the restrictive measures and Atlantic Grupa today operates in all countries restrictions caused by the global pandemic? of the region and has some of the most recog- It is indeed a great success, because in the context of the overall economic What are the strategic priorities Thanks to a stable financial position, we disruption caused by the COVID-19 of Atlantic Grupa and how difficult were able to help the community with a pandemic, the strategy and operais it at present to develop a busidonation of 4.6 million euros to fight the tions of Atlantic Grupa showed a ness plan for 2021 and the years pandemic in all key markets high level of stability during the first to come? six months of this year. In the first - We will continue investing in our quarter we recorded an increase in revenue, and nised brands, and you’ve manage to maintain people, core brands and business practices, in the first half of the year - with sales revenues stable operations despite the crisis. How would and our goal is to raise the efficiency of internal exceeding 327 million euros - we recorded a you interpret your successes? business processes, transparency and the minimal decline of just 0.9%.

- It is precisely this conglomeration of renowned timeliness of market feedback, as well as to It has been shown that the Atlantic Grupa, brands and excellent diversification of producestablish best business practices at the level thanks to its diversified portfolio of strong tion capacities in the region, along with our own of the entire company. Consumers remain in brands, was highly resilient to the crisis caused distribution system, that represent the key to our focus, and our plan is to offer them new by the pandemic. The optimization of business our success. Apart from that, our business sysproducts of an even better quality, to expand our processes, a stable financial position and hightem’s driver is the philosophy of innovation and position on the markets where we are already quality strategic management enabled us to the continuous improvement of all processes, present, but also to conquer new ones. All of maintain job security even under the conditions which implies investing in every segment of this also implies openness to new acquisitions, of teleworking and challenging work on the operations – from production, procurement, provided the right opportunity arises.

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VLATKO SEKULOVIĆ, SEKULOVIĆ LAW OFFICE

CORPORATE

Pandemic Halting Investment Over the course of less than three decades, the Sekulović Law Office has become one of the leading players in the field of commercial law. And in recent years it has focused on developing strategies for attracting foreign investors

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ccording to Vlatko Sekulović, investments that are realized through financial transactions are less sensitive to restrictions on freedom of movement, while those that imply the building of new facilities are more susceptible to the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

What do your operations look like under the conditions of the global pandemic caused by the COVID-19 virus?

- The fears and anxiety of people worldwide have increased due to the pandemic, so flows of people, and thus capital, are limited by the measures taken by countries to prevent the spread of the virus.This certainly doesn’t favor new cross-border investments anywhere in the world. As the situation improves, the greater mobility of people will lead to a revival of investment. This relates in particular to those types of investments that imply the locating of production capacities in Serbia, and which thus require the personal experience of a foreign investor regarding the conditions under which he can conceive his investment.

However, regardless of the pandemic, every government can improve the general

legal framework for doing business, and in that area – at least when it comes to the economy – the application of laws remains the main challenge. It is essential for the efficiency of courts to increase, especially higher ones, as well as to have uniformity of court practices, because we face a situation where two different chambers of the same appeal court have contrasting stances regarding cases that are exactly the same in terms of facts and legality. When it comes to tangible changes to the legal framework, it is essential to harmonise or replace various bylaws, e.g. regulations governing certain technical aspects that haven’t been amended since the 1970s.

• 30 years of international experience, 20 years in the Western Balkans - based in Serbia since 2010 • 300+ successful renewable energy and energy efficiency projects for commercial, industrial, agricultural, and municipal enterprises in the Western Balkan region • Working with financial partners to scale up investments to achieve a low carbon, resilient future • Leading the Sustainable Land, Livelihoods, and Energy Initiative-Serbia, in partnership with Vojvodina Province and major domestic and international organizations to: • Restore Serbia’s degraded and abandoned agricultural land through investments in short rotation biomass coppices and other renewable resources.

• Ensure the highest technology level and standards to expand financing for green investment and job creation • Advance Serbia’s Green Economy, Climate and Sustainable Development Goals through innovation

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CORPORATE

DIANA GLIGORIJEVIĆ, CO-FOUNDER , TELEGROUP

TeleGroup Creates The Future The TeleGroup system currently covers the markets of Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, Slovenia and Germany, while it is also linked to the markets of the Middle East and Africa via partner companies.

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part from its core business areas of IT, telecommunications and energy, TeleGroup has also in a big way conquered e-health, solutions and applications for improving health systems, ITS systems for the modernization of traffic & transport, as well as the agritech industry, which will be one of the backbones of TeleGroup’s future development, explains TeleGroup co-owner Diana Gligorijević.

TeleGroup Belgrade was founded in April 2001 and today has been operating successfully on the market of our region for almost 20 years. What did the beginning look like?

- We started by identifying the needs of our clients, and not what we want to sell to them, and that was a turning point. TeleGroup was indeed created on April 1st 2001, but we are no April Fool’s joke, because over this period of almost 20 years we’ve developed, transformed and positioned ourselves extremely well on the market of the region. We’ve been operating successfully for the past two decades, and we are even doing well under these extraordinary conditions.

Our system is now divided into companies in technological terms, so the part of TeleGroup that was mostly dealing with design and infrastructure construction is now organized in one company, while those who were more involved in IT are in another company, and experts in cyber security and technical security are also specialized in separate companies.

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In which industries are you present?

- Alongside the basic IT industry and telecommunications, where we predominantly operate, we have entered the healthcare industry in a big way, especially in the form of various e-health solutions and applications. We are present in the clinical centers of our country, and in Bosnia-Herzegovina, but also in the Clinical Center in Podgorica. I think we made a good decision when we stated five years ago that we would move from health food to a healthy person, as if we had felt that IT, in and of itself, would become an industry that penetrates many other branches of industry. We are also present in the energy sector, which is a sector in which many changes are taking place, and have yet to take place, in terms of new energy sources. We acquired the Greensoft startup from Novi Sad six years ago, which deals with IT in agriculture. This is one of the backbones of our future development when it comes to software engineering.

Digital technologies are the main driver of innovation, but they simultaneously contribute to the collapse of some traditional industries. How much have we been changed by digital technologies?

- Many technological discoveries are still ahead of us, from infrastructure that serves to exchange information around the world, via machines that communicate with each other independently of people, to solutions based

on the concepts of artificial intelligence and advanced analytics that should provide us with a more relaxed future in terms of technology and quality of life...

TeleGroup deals seriously with projects that are based on the technologies of the future. We offer a great deal of them to the market, because our innovative offers have been recognized and supported by Horizon 2020 programme, GIZ and UNDP, which provided us with financing for the development of our ideas. Thanks to all this, TeleGroup can approach the global market, and not just the regional or local markets.

You offer customers optimal solutions for connecting, digitizing, automating and protecting all segments of their business. Has that now become particularly prevalent during this time of the pandemic?

- Much of what TeleGroup does at this moment will help in the future, because pressure on health facilities will force healthcare workers to rely more on artificial intelligence and robotics. The absolute imperative of today’s business, and future business, is a safe and healthy working environment. Also heading in that direction is our cooperation with American company Steril-Aire, which is the absolute leader in the development of high performance germicidal UVC solutions for the decontamination of air and solid indoor surfaces.

IVAN STANOJEVIĆ, OWNER OF STANTECH D.O.O.

CORPORATE

Total Dedication To Clients StanTech is a company that deals with the design and production of machines and systems intended for automation in production. Hailing from and headquartered in Belgrade, it covers more than 20 EU countries and the U.S. They export and successfully implement their high-tech solutions in production plants around the world

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tan Tech records its most significant results in industries that produce milk, meat, coffee, frozen fruits and vegetables and the confectionery industry. It primarily works with clients whose production has reached an advanced stage of development.

inspired today by the fact that high-tech solutions created with domestic smarts are exported and successfully implemented in production facilities worldwide.

How important is it in your business to follow trends and apply the latest technological solutions? Is that why you hire young professionals with innovative ideas?

- We live in a time when information is gener-

nity to develop professionally in their own country. With the help of new technologies and a healthy team spirit, we encourage their development and a level of innovation that’s essential to achieve the kind of top results that we are strategically committed to as a company.

Can you tell us a little more about your What makes you so competitive on very company and what inspired you to start demanding foreign markets? this work?

- Your statement is supported - StanTech designs and manuby the fact that we export more We primarily hire young engineers because factures individual machines than 70 percent of our projects we want to offer them the opportunity to and multi-machine systems that to the U.S., which is one of the develop professionally in their own country perform different tasks when it most demanding markets when comes to product packaging. Such it comes to customer expectaally available, which enables our clients to gain tions, but also to very strong competition. systems are implemented in the last phase an insight into the most modern methods I would say that this is primarily influenced of production, better known as “End of line”, used in production. In our clients’ desire not by our total dedication to our clients and and relate to the automatic packaging of one to lag behind one another, their requirements their needs, but also our ability to offer them product or a group of products in a box, as become increasingly complex and, as such, solutions that are on a par with the world’s well as automatic palletizing. Due to the lack imply the applying of the most modern largest manufacturers in terms of the level of adequate manpower, the demand for this technical and technological solutions. When of innovation and quality. Our clients have type of automation is increasing year on year. we take this into account, I consider the the opportunity to see for themselves I expressed a need for innovative problem solving at a young age, and these later application of such solutions in projects as that we ultimately take all our projects became professional challenges presented being crucial and something without which very personally, and that we also follow to me by this calling. These challenges forced it is impossible to survive on the market. their work when they leave the premises me to give my all from project to project We primarily hire young engineers beof our company and start their lives in the cause we want to offer them the opportuand to progress in a professional sense. I’m production plants of our clients.

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DEVELOPMENT FINANCE CORPORATION (DFC)

New Approach

To Promoting Growth

MINISTER OF FINANCE OF THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA SINIŠA MALI, WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF THE DFC AND EXIM, THE EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES

DFC and the authorities of Serbia and Kosovo are currently discussing four projects to which DFC could contribute, thus enhancing the region's growth and development while promoting the rule of law and fair business practices

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he U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) opened an office in Serbia this September, while DFC and the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) recently signed Letters of Intent (LOIs) with Serbia and Kosovo, in order to help finance the important projects identified through the U.S.-brokered agreement on the normalization of economic relations between Kosovo and Serbia,

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signed in Washington on September 4th by Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić and Kosovo Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti.

Speaking in a recent press briefing, DFC Chief Executive Officer Adam Boehler said that four projects are currently being discussed in Serbia and Kosovo. The first two are the Peace Highway and the railway connecting Serbia to Kosovo.

Some projects are already underway and are multi-phased, and DFC’s approach to them will aim to broaden the financial tools and resources available to both sides, in support of their efforts to better lay the groundwork for enhanced economic cooperation. The third project is a lending framework to help support small and medium-sized enterprises and so-called local small–mid caps. Here DFC is reviewing a proposal tabled by the Serbian Government. Lastly is a project representing an effort to better promote entrepreneurship between young Serbs and Kosovars, both cross-border but within Kosovo.

DFC is a fairly new agency that emerged via the BUILD Act

has operated for over 18 years without any significant update to become a new developmental entity endowed with more or expansion of its original authorities. This resulted in the lack resources and a broader mandate to place development and modern, development-finance mechanisms needed to counter growth at the center of its work, compared to its predecessors: the state-driven model of countries like China, or to cooperate the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and USAID’s with Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) of U.S. allies like the Development Credit Authority (DCA). It’s enhanced authority is United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, and Japan, which are investing intended to enable it to compete more effectively with the supheavily throughout developing world countries. In contrast to OPIC port provided by China and Russia for infrastructure in emerging and the DCA, which had budget authorization on an annual basis, markets,, and to combine its efforts with those of the State the DFC will have multi-year authorization, in order to reassure Department and USAID. U.S. businesses and allies that the U.S. Government will continue As stated in the President’s National Security Strategy, “the to co-invest with the private sector in order to increase global United States must today compete for positive relationships development and support countries’ journeys to self-reliance. around the world. China and Russia target their investments in As commentators note, among the enhancements are the the developing world to expand influence and gain competitive doubling of the maximum size of the agency’s portfolio to $60 advantages against the United States. China is investing billions billion (up from OPIC’s $29 billion), its authorization to make equity of dollars in infrastructure across the globe. Russia, too, projects investments, and the abolition of U.S. eligibility requirements its influence economically, through the control of key energy and for the beneficiaries of guarantees and political risk insurance. other infrastructure throughout parts of Europe and Central Accordingly, these resources and authorities are seen as suffiAsia... The United States provides an alternative to state-directed cient to engage the American business community in advancing investments, which often leave developing countries worse off.

America’s development and foreign policy goals, and to promote The United States pursues economic ties not only for market the rule of law and fair business practices, as well as the more access, but also to create enduring relationships to advance sustainable development of the countries that are recipients of common political and security interests”.

The executive summary prepared for the Congress states that the new instituThis newly formed development finance institution will have tion would be better placed to advance sufficient resources and authorities to engage the American development and national security policy business community in advancing America’s development and goals in the developing world, which is critiforeign policy goals cal to promoting American prosperity and national security. Furthermore, the DFC DFC support. Emerging trading partners are expected to adhere would be better aligned with development and national security to free market principles and provide transparent, rules-based goals, designed to better manage U.S. taxpayer risk, streamlined governance. Developing relationships with the countries that to increase effectiveness and operational efficiencies (making are recipients of the support will, over the long term, result in more funding available for programming), focused on mobilizing a strengthened geopolitical position of the United States, as private sector funding, and modernized with a 21st century toolkit well as providing the economic foundation for future alliances. that allows the DFC to compete and cooperate globally.

The objectives of the DFC are to deploy development finance The new institution combines the resources and expertise to support economic growth as part of a long-term strategy to of OPIC and the DCA, boasting similar tools to OPIC and DCA transition countries toward self-sufficiency; coordinate with today, e.g. loans, guarantees, and insurance. Furthermore, the DFC U.S. firms to facilitate new market entries, when appropriate; will be able to support development finance related feasibility align development finance as a core tool of U.S. national security, studies and other tools as authorized. Its governance structure, including as a counter to the rise of other countries’ influence in which is more connected with the State Department and USAID, developing markets; and promote sustainable and economically will drive better pipeline and programming coordination among responsible policies that help partner countries on their own different agencies. Therefore, for example, the DFC will be able to journey to self-reliance and prosperity. support a feasibility study and subsequent early-stage financing The aim of the DFC is to be a catalyst for investment, as well for a new project in high priority countries, while USAID will fund additionally ensuring private sector resources while taking care economic-policy reforms that aim to strengthen the enabling not to displace private sector investment by deploying developenvironment and attract more private sector investment. ment finance in selective circumstances, where markets are Prior to this modernization, OPIC spent the last 15 years otherwise unable to attract quality, stand-alone private capital. operating without significant legislative updates, while the DCA

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CORPORATE

ĐORĐE ĐOKIĆ, PARTNER, VUJINOVIĆ & ĐOKIĆ LAW OFFICE

Be Adaptable The Vujinović & Đokić Law office has rich experience in the field of business law, representing and consulting for the largest domestic and foreign corporate and financial businesses, while it recently also received great acknowledgment for its work

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iscussing the situation on the real estate market, lawyer and partner Đorđe Đokić believes that further development will be dependent on many conditions. He considers that investors who are able to sense the needs of the market could create good business opportunities even under these circumstances.

the business environment is constantly changing its form, which we’ve been reminded of by the COVID-19 Pandemic, it is clear that easy and quick adaptability to circumstances is essential.

As such, our task is to recognize the client’s business philosophy, and thus support them in achieving results.

the clear position of the state that the epidemiological situation must not result in work stopping on construction sites was certainly an excellent signal to investors. On the other hand, fear exists among investors regarding the future development of demand, and investments are undeniably slower and more cautious.

Your team has rich experience when How important is it in your work to it comes to advising foreign and do- You recently received a major acknowladapt to the individual and specific mestic investors conducting transac- edgment. Did that surprise you, given needs of each client? tions linked to real estate. How do that the moment and the atmosphere - Adapting to clients and their business you assess the current situation on aren’t ideal for financial arrangements system is no longer an advantage, but this market? and projects? rather absolutely essential - We are proud of the fact if the goal is to provide highthat renowned international The turnover of housing properties has quality services. Globalization, legal directory IFLR 1000 proven to be more resilient to the crisis, which has created a drastic ranked our office among but current prices are unsustainable over increase in supply and an inSerbia’s leading law firms the longer period in the fields of financial and creasingly complex business corporate law. This shows that environment, has led to successful companies today being the ones - At this juncture, the real estate market a well-planned business strategy that’s that have found a unique and original can be assessed as being relatively adaptable to changing conditions can approach. After business models that calm, but uncertain. The turnover of convert any circumstance into an ideal were for decades based on traditional housing properties has proven to be one. This acknowledgment, which we principles, modern business has set more resilient to the crisis, but current received as a relatively young office, creativity and courage as values that prices are evaluated as being unsus- confirms that our principles and values are highly rated. tainable over the longer period. When have been set well, and it will certainly When you add to this the fact that it comes to large investment projects, motivate our further work.

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VUJADIN ŠĆEKIĆ, DIRECTOR OF JUGOIMPEX D.O.O. NIŠ

CORPORATE

Recycling Is Our Chance Jugoimpex d.o.o., from the city of Niš, is one of our country's leading companies when it comes to the bulk collection and processing of raw materials, and the recycling of electrical and electronic waste.

After commemorating 30 years of successful operations recently, it is entering its 4th decade with great optimism and major plans

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he pandemic showed us how vulnerable we all are individually, how difficult it is to function and do business when borders are closed, and how important it is to develop one’s own potential. I hope for the strengthening of our economy, because only a strong economy can handle strong blows, says Jugoimpex Diector Vujadin Šćekić

know that our goal shouldn’t be to open an EU accession negotiation chapter and work on it in an administrative sense, rather to implement that chapter in all segments of the state and society, for those principles to be accepted by everyone, from the economy and citizens, to the government and administration.

Could you explain the concept of the circular economy to us? How do you assess NALED’s estimate that 30,000 new jobs could be created in Serbia by 2023 on the basis of the circular economy?

- The essence of the circular economy is finding and giving added value to raw materials that we previously considered waste. So, everything that is classed as waste should be

from good will and the vision to create 30,000 new jobs, we also need a realistic and positive investment climate. That would contribute to products from ecological processes having a priority and an advantage on the domestic market, to be marked with a “green apple” or some other label that shows that they were created in a process that preserved our natural resources and reduced imports of raw materials. Such products and manufacturers should have an advantage and a better position, both on shelves and in tenders.

A special problem in our country is represented by industrial and other waste collected in the recycling process that we have to export because we don’t have sufficient processing capacities. This represents another great potential that could be realized if we had a good investment climate.

How would you evaluate the situation in the domain of collecting, processing and recycling waste? Is Serbia advancing in this area?

- Although the situation isn’t great, I must mention that things are slowly changing for the better. In this phase, the education of society as a whole is better, with understanding of the importance of what we are dealing with growing from year We export industrial and other waste to year, and thus along with it the collected in the recycling process because we understanding of the importance don’t have sufficient processing capacities of environmental efforts. We are How much does your memberseeing growth of the number of ship in the American Chamber products made from recycled raw materials separated, recycled and prepared to be part of Commerce mean to you? on the market, but there is also growing awareof the raw materials that can be processed to - We are proud of the fact that our company create a product for the market.

That product is a member of the chamber of the world’s ness that our entire society has an obligation should have the same quality as a product strongest economy, because that says a lot to implement quality technologies as much made from primary raw materials. about us. They do a lot of work to improve as possible, and to recycle them.

The potentials are extremely high, and conditions for doing business in Serbia, and In that sense, we are slowly moving closer when it comes to the number of potential new to support their members. This membership to Europe, both in terms of quantities and jobs I’m more optimistic than NALED. However, is important to us because of the exchanges in terms of the quality of recycling. I’m an none of that can be implemented without a of experience, because of contacts and posoptimist, so I believe that we will approach system that’s regulated regarding the use of recycling and the obligation to recycle with sibilities to cooperate with the best, and to products from the circular economy. Apart greater understanding in the period ahead. You learn from the biggest and the best.

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US COLLEGE

U.S. Best College Rankings For 2021 U.S. News & World Report released its 2021 Best Colleges rankings today, featuring rankings of more than 1,400 colleges and universities that grant baccalaureate degrees. It’s the 36th year for the rankings, a testament not only to its unusual longevity but also its outsized influence for students, families and the general public

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or the tenth straight year, Princeton tops the National University list, followed, also as in years past, by Harvard in second. Columbia was third, and MIT and Yale tied for fourth. Williams College heads up the list of National Liberal Arts Colleges, and UCLA once again claimed first place among Top Public Universities.

Here are the five top-ranked schools in several of the major categories.

BEST NATIONAL UNIVERSITIES (389 SCHOOLS) 1.Princeton University 2.Harvard University 3.Columbia University 4.Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Yale University (tie) Of the top 20 national universities, 19 were private, not-forprofit institutions. UCLA was the only public school in the top

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COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY

20. All the schools ranked in the top 20 National Universities in 2021 were in the top 20 in 2020, albeit in a slightly different order. This ranking inertia has come to be expected, the product of both institutional continuity and - despite small, annual revisions - a largely repetitive rankings methodology.

BEST NATIONAL LIBERAL ARTS (223 SCHOOLS) 1.Williams College 2.Amherst College 3.Swarthmore College 4.Pomona College and Wellesley College (tie) BEST NATIONAL PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES (209 SCHOOLS) 1.University of California, Los Angeles 2.University of California, Berkeley 3.University of Michigan 4.University of Virginia 5.University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Remarkably, of the top 11 national public universities, six were the various campuses of the University of California.

BEST PUBLIC LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGES (23 SCHOOLS) 1.U.S. Naval Academy 2.U.S. Military Academy 3.U.S. Air Force Academy 4.Virginia Military Institute 5.St. Mary’s College of Maryland BEST HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES (79 SCHOOLS) 1.Spelman College 2.Howard University 3.Xavier University of Louisiana 4.Tuskegee University 5.Hampton University

if schools continue to resort more often to pass/fail grades? What does average class size really matter if everyone is attending only remotely? Ditto for the student:faculty ratio. And how are student services being delivered, let alone measured, if only a fraction of students live on campus?

The 2021 U.S. News rankings were based on data from 2019. They reflect the pre-pandemic college scene. How much those rankings will need to be changed to reflect post-pandemic realities, some of which may linger for some time to come, remains to be seen.

Count it as one more example of how much higher education has changed in the last year.

By Michael T. Nietzel

TOP PERFORMERS ON SOCIAL MOBILITY NATIONAL UNIVERSITIES 1.University of California, Riverside 2.University of California, Irvine 3.Rutgers University, Newark 4.University of California, Santa Cruz 5.University of California, Merced

PRINCETON UNIVERSITY

NATIONAL LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGES 1.College of Idaho 2.Lake Forest College (IL) 3.Thomas Aquinas College (CA) 4.Spelman College 5.University of Puerto Rico, Cayey Overall, this year’s rankings reflect a small, but welcome, shift toward educational outputs, as opposed to incoming student credentials or institutional inputs. Although it remains too easy for schools to game the system, and too much weight is still focused on the highly subjective reputational measure and the various proxies for institutional wealth (e.g., faculty salaries and per-student spending), the methodological changes that U.S. News made this year represent clear improvements. Regarding the reputational survey, it’s of note that of the 4,816 academics who were sent questionnaires in 2020, only 36.4% responded, a substantial decline from the 43% response rate in 2019. It’s an increasingly questionable measure, one that should be discontinued.

Of special interest is the extent to which the pandemic and its many disruptions to the traditions of a college education - including admissions, classroom instruction, mentoring, residence life and even graduation ceremonies - may be rendering ranking systems less meaningful. How much does high school class standing mean

HARVARD UNIVERSITY

YALE UNIVERSITY

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10

NATURAL BEAUTY

Breathtaking U.S. Canyons

NINE MILE CANYON, UTAH

America is filled with countless varieties of natural beauty. From towering Redwood forests, majestic mountains, and the sparkling beauty of the coasts, this country is definitely not lacking in Mother Nature’s bounty

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ome of our most impressive assets, however, must be our dramatic canyons and gorges. Check out these jaw-dropping canyons across the U.S. that will absolutely take your breath away.

BRYCE CANYON, UTAH

1. NINE MILE CANYON, UTAH Some of the most spectacular rock art in Utah is to be found in Nine Mile Canyon northeast of Price. The canyon is actually 40 miles long, do not let the name deceive you. Nine Mile Canyon is remote, hostile, unblemished and roughly beautiful. Called “the world’s longest art gallery” it is home to numerous rock art panels, including the famous “Hunter Panel”. Most of the rock art was created by the Fremont Indians who occupied this area some 1,000 years ago.

2. BRYCE CANYON, UTAH This place is known for its crimson-colored hoodoos, or spire-shaped rock formations. The Bryce Canyon area was settled by Mormon pioneers in the 1850s and was named after Ebenezer Bryce, who built his home in the area in 1874.

One of the most scenic overlooks is Inspiration Point, where you’ll be able to take in all the incredible texture and rich

ZION CANYON, UTAH

color of the Bryce Amphitheater from a lofty aerial perch.

Prime viewing times are around sunup and sundown, when the sunlight makes the canyon’s rocks glow.

3. ZYON CANYON, UTAH One of the most intimate and favourite parks of visitors from all over the world. Elevations in the canyon range from 1,219 meters at the valley floor to nearly 2,743 meters at the highest point. A favorite of rock climbers and hiking enthusiasts, the vertical climbs and zigzagging trails will take you to pinnacles, domes, arches and spires. Hanging gardens, canyon waterfalls and natural stain-lined canyon walls create a tropical paradise in the middle of an arid desert climate.

4. GLEN CANYON, ARIZONA Encompassing over 1.25 million acres, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area offers unparalleled opportu-

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CANYON DE CHELLY, ARIZONA

nities for water-based & backcountry recreation. The recreation area stretches for hundreds of miles from Lees Ferry in Arizona to the Orange Cliffs of southern Utah, encompassing scenic vistas, geologic wonders, and a vast panorama of human history.

5. CANYON DE CHELLY, ARIZONA Located in northeastern Arizona, it is within the boundaries of the Navajo Nation and lies in the Four Corners region. Reflecting one of the longest continuously inhabited landscapes of North America, it preserves ruins of the indigenous tribes that lived in the area, from the Ancestral Puebloans (formerly known as Anasazi) to the Navajo. These canyons were cut by streams with headwaters in the Chuska Mountains just to the east of the monument. Canyon de Chelly is one of the most visited national monuments in the United States

BUCKSKIN GULCH, PARIA CANYON, UTAH

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6. BUCKSKIN GULCH, PARIA CANYON, UTAH Located in the Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness of Utah and Arizona, this spectacular and unique hike winds through one of the deepest and longest slot canyons in the world. Wavy sandstone walls twist their way to the sky for nearly thirteen miles, creating surreal patterns of light and sound. The canyon walls often soar hundreds of feet above the wash and are sometimes only a few feet apart. Buckskin Gulch is truly an amazing place, and visitors are sure to appreciate it’s a stunning beauty.

7. SANTA ELENA CANYON, TEXAS The majestic Santa Elena Canyon is the most impressive in Big Bend National Park - it is visible for over 10 miles away, as the Rio Grande changes direction abruptly after following beneath the straight Sierra Ponce cliffs for several miles and heads due west, cutting through the mountains via a deep, narrow gorge. This sharp

SANTA ELENA CANYON, TEXAS

PALO DURO CANYON, TEXAS

bend in the river was formed by movement along the Terlingua fault zone that crosses the park. For many miles upstream the river is trapped beneath the high walls, eventually emerging into a wider valley at the small town of Lajitas.

8. PALO DURO CANYON, TEXAS Palo Duro Canyon is the most spectacular and scenic landscape feature in the Texas Panhandle. It was formed by millions of years of water erosion by the Prairie Dog Town Fork of the Red River and the West Texas wind.

With a descent of some 800 feet to the canyon floor and more than 16 miles of paved road, Palo Duro Canyon State Park offers fantastic scenic views and historical sites.

9. THE GRAND CANYON, ARIZONA Vast, magnificent and inarguably beautiful, the Grand Canyon is easily Arizona’s most distinguishable

THE GRAND CANYON, ARIZONA

landmark—a natural wonder you must see to believe.

Stretching 277 miles from end to end, its rocky walls descend more than a mile to the canyon’s floor, where the wild Colorado River traces a swift course southwest.

Everyone should see the Grand Canyon at least once in their life. In 2019, the Grand Canyon celebrated its 100th birthday as a national park.

10. WAIMEA CANYON, HAWAII Waimea Canyon, located in Waimea, Hawaii is dubbed the “Grand Canyon of the Pacific.” Canyon was formed when the Waimea river carved its way through the lava and basalt formations of the region. The central volcano that lay on the canyon collapsed 10 million years ago, playing a vital role in forming the canyon. Consumed with wild foliage, tropical cliffs, green-and-pink scenery, mesmerizing waterfalls, and striking rainbows, the Waimea Canyon is truly the nature lover’s paradise.

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SCIENCE

Man, Scientist, Patriot Mihajlo Pupin (1854 – 1935) Together with Nikola Tesla and Milutin Milanković, Mihajlo Pupin is the third scientist of Serbian origin born in the 19th century whose scientific achievements in technical sciences placed him on the list of 100 most influential scientists of all time and who left his legacy for mankind.

Without his inventions in telecommunications, today’s world of communications would be very hard to imagine

PORTRAIT OF MIHAJLO PUPIN (PAJA JOVANOVIĆ, NATIONAL MUSEUM, BELGRADE)

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ihajlo Pupin was born on 8th October 1854 in Idvor, a small village in the region of Banat in northern Serbia. The territory of Banat, inhabited mostly

by Serbs, used to belong to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and after WWI, the collapse of Austria-Hungary and the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, it became a part of the Kingdom

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of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, later Kingdom of Yugoslavia.

The friendship of Pupin and the American president Woodrow Wilson significantly influenced the rightful determination of boundaries so Idvor found itself in Yugoslavia, i.e. Serbia, and not Romania, due to the territory’s history and predominant Serbian inhabitants.

U.S. NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL (PUPIN IS SITTING FIRST ON THE RIGHT) Although illiterate farmers, Mihajlo Pupin’s parents Konstantin and Olimpijada put their best efforts into the education of their son. Mihajlo finished primary school in his birth place as one of the best students in his generation. Led by the motto that “Knowledge is the golden ladder over which we climb to heaven”, his mother persuaded her husband to let their only son continue his education, so Mihajlo enrolled in the Pančevo Grammar School, at that time one of the educational, cultural and national strongholds of Serbs in that part of Europe. Because of his rebellious character and too openly expressed national feelings, he was expelled from school. The local Serbian church helped him to continue his schooling in Prague (Czech). When his father passed away near the end of his secondary school leaving him no funds, he embarked the Vestphalia Hamburg America Line steamship heading to New York on March 12th, 1874, as a third-class passenger, with his mother’s blessing not to come back onto the land but to follow the path of knowledge.

He arrived in America as a penniless 20-year-old, without any knowledge of English, without finished school and without any practical skills. The first five years was an extremely difficult battle for survival. He accepted all kinds of jobs; he was a farmer, coachman, logger, factory worker, etc. When he got a steady job at a biscuit factory, he saw his chance in the factory’s evening school and the Cooper Library. His goal was to prepare well for the entrance exam at the Columbia College, which he did and became a student in 1879. During his studies, he supported himself with odd jobs and not very substantial money awards for being an exceptional student. After graduation, his wish to continue postgraduate studies in technology prevailed over language studies and he found himself in Europe - Cambridge with a scholarship, eager to learn more about Maxwell’s electromagnetic theory.

His improved knowledge of mathematics and physics, with a support of Professor Tyndall, a good Faraday’s friend, brought him a scholarship for the Berlin’s laboratory of the then-world

RECOGNITION FOR PUPIN’S CONTRIBUTION TO SCIENCE leading authority in experimental physics, Professor Hermann von Helmholtz. He successfully defended his doctoral thesis in physical chemistry entitled “Osmotic Pressure and its Relation to Free Energy” four years later. Pupin’s academic career began at a newly established Department of Electrical Engineering in the School of Mines of Columbia College, where, together with his colleague Coker, he put into practice the idea that electrical engineering, a new field of technology, can develop independently of mechanical engineering and physics. Lectures and scientific research went hand in hand. His first research papers from that period concerning electric current flow through rarefied gases helped him later to be among the first ones to produce x-rays after Roentgen’s discovery.

As an expert on electricity, he was invited by the Institute of American Electrical Engineers to give a lecture on alternating currents in Boston. His lecture entitled “Practical aspect of the theory of alternating currents” was a major success which contributed to the victory of another Serb, Nikola Tesla, i.e. to the victory of the system of transmitting and distributing alternating currents over the system of direct currents, advocated by Edison.

The first major success came in the field of the harmonics of alternating current sources. With the oscillatory circuits, resonators, he singled out particular harmonics from the complex-periodic alternating current while measuring their

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PUPIN’S BIRTHPLACE IN IDVOR, SERBIA

MIHAJLO PUPIN AND ALBERT EINSTEIN intensity. In some way, this is analogous to the examination of the harmonics of sound, which his mentor Hermann von Helmholtz was doing in Berlin; however, the measurement technique itself was original as well as the rest of the method.

Pupin’s invention of multiple telegraphy, a universal technique for the transmission of multiple signals along the same physical transmission path, the so-called frequency multiplex, is based on these works. This invention is patent protected. The technique itself is still applied, even in most modern telecommunication systems, allowing tens of thousands of telephone or television signals to be transferred along a single transmission path. At the end of the nineteenth century, in 1895 to be precise, the world was excited by Röntgen’s discovery of unknown rays that can go through paper, wood and thin metals leaving traces on a photographic plate. When he heard about the discovery, Pupin remembered his forgotten vacuum tubes from the time he had studied electricity flow through rarefied gases and used them to generate X-rays, thus becoming one of the first few in America to make X-ray photographs. His experimental results led him to the conclusion that the impact of primary X-rays generates secondary X-radiation, which gave an entirely new dimension to the discovery of these rays.

Pupin’s most significant invention concerns a mathematical solution to the problem of transmission of alternating currents

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in telephone lines. The problem with the transmission of signals lied within the capacitance per unit length. Pupin started solving this problem by first looking at a mathematical Lagrange’s solution for taut wire vibration. He developed a new mathematical theory of oscillations transfer through the wire with distributed masses, which led him to the necessary dimensions of an analog electric line model with periodically inserted inductance.

In order to verify his theory, Pupin had to build an artificial line to examine, under laboratory conditions, the propagation of telephone currents in lines. The construction of this line simulator required a lot of experimentation and calculations.

The equivalent of 400 kilometers of a cable was packed into five boxes of four cubic meters. For every mile he could insert a special coil or turn it off. Without the coils, it would have been just an ordinary line, i.e. a cable. He was thus able to compare the transfer along both the loaded cable and the unloaded one and to unequivocally confirm his theory. His epoch-making discovery, patent protected, found its way to implementation very fast. Pupin’s patent rights were acquired by the American Telephone and Telegraph Company (AT&T) in America and by the Siemens in Germany.

After this discovery, the name of Mihajlo Pupin became widely known, not only in the world of science. In the period from 1884 to 1924, Pupin’s 24 patents published in the United States got recognized - almost all from the field of telephony, telegraphy and radio technology. He became famous and very wealthy, but never forgot who he was, where he belonged and from where he had started off into the world. As a full professor at Columbia University, Department of Physical Mathematics and Electrical Engineering Laboratory, Pupin lectured from 1901 until he retired in 1929. Being a student of Pupin’s was a remarkable privilege.

Among them were a famous Nobel laureate Millikan and Edwin Armstrong, inventor of frequency modulation in radio technology, who would later say in his memoirs: ‘’ When I studied under Pupin in 1912, his discoveries in telephone technique, his systems of

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY electrical resonance and his electrolytic detector, were known throughout the world. But what many did not know was that, in a wonderfully simple way, he was a source of inspiration to all who worked with him. We were captivated by his knowledge, human and scientific candour, richness of his linguistic expression, by his assertiveness and trust showed towards his associates ‘’. When another Nobel laureate, Isidor Rabi, an associate of Pupin’s at the time, talked about the scientific greatness of Pupin, he said: “Even after his retirement, he continued to lecture at the University of Columbia, and when the age took its toll and his legs could not sustain him anymore and he could not move around without the wheelchair, the university made a special door for him so he would still be able to lecture and come to his lab”.

As a highly respected scientist, in 1915, at the height of World War I, Pupin was appointed by U.S. President Woodrow Wilson for a member of the National Research Council, i.e. for the President of the Commission for Aeronautics, which in some way was a precursor to NASA. His direct contribution to the victory of the Allies i.e. Entente Powers, were the systems for submarine detection and systems for maintaining radio communications with aircraft in flight. After he had left the Commission in 1922, then-President Warren Harding sent him a letter publicly thanking him on behalf of the people of Mihajlo Pupin was an extremely prolific writer. In addition to scientific papers and books in the field of science, he also wrote fiction. For his autobiography published in 1923, entitled “From Immigrant to Inventor” and dedicated to his mother Olimpijada, he won the Pulitzer Prize, the largest literary award in the U.S. By a White House decision, the book was made compulsory reading in schools, colleges and the U.S. Army because of its content, great style, message and its ethical and educational values. He also published a book on the monuments of the South Slavs in 1919. This book introduced the world public to the South Slavs that had just formed their common state which would become known as Yugoslavia.

In addition to being a great scientist, Pupin was a great humanist, patriot and skillful politician. In a very critical moment after WWI when the borders of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, i.e. future Yugoslavia, were in the process

AN X-RAY PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN BY PUPIN ON 2ND JANUARY 1896 of shaping, on 19 April 1919, Pupin sent a memorandum to the President of the United States exposing essential facts upon which three days later US. .President Woodrow Wilson issued a statement of the non-recognition of the Treaty of London formed by Allies with Italy and Romania by which entire areas where South Slavs of different faiths lived were supposed to be given to Italy and Romania as a part of the bargain for their help in the war. Thus Yugoslavia got Bled with its surroundings (Slovenia), parts of Dalmatia, Medjumurje and Baranja (Croatia) and a part of Banat (Serbia).

Serbia and the United States has had diplomatic relations since 1882, and Pupin was the first Honorary Consul of Serbia in the United States. He held that position from 1912 to 1920.

A world-renowned institute in the field of electronics and telecommunications in Belgrade, Serbia, is named after him, and an amphitheater at Columbia University bears his name.

During his lifetime, Mihajlo Pupin was an honorary professor at twenty universities around the world. He was a member of the US National Academy of Sciences, the French Academy of Sciences, the Serbian Academy of Sciences, and was the first president of the New York Academy of Sciences born outside the territory of the United States [6]. One could say no more about a man who was a friend with the science’s greats like Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla, except that he was one of them, one of the scientific titans of the world.

By Miroslav Jandrić, Military Technical Institute Scientific Technical Review, 2014

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ART

150 Years of The Metropolitan Museum Of Art It’s time to celebrate 150 years of the Met! The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City is America’s largest and most important art museum.

It’s also one of the world’s most significant museums

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t has a vast, encyclopedic collection, exciting exhibitions, high-level scholarship, and a spacious building on the Upper East Side. According to the museum’s website, you can “experience 5,000 years of art at The Met”, and

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that’s undoubtedly true. Every art lover will find plenty to enjoy there.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Statement of Mission, adopted in 2015.

THE MET FIFTH AVENUE MAIN ENTRANCE WITH STUDENTS CELEBRATING FLAG DAY ON JUNE 14TH, 1916. IMAGE COPYRIGHT THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART OPENING RECEPTION ON FEBRUARY 20TH, 1872, IN THE PICTURE GALLERY IN DODWORTH MANSION (681 FIFTH AVENUE), THE FIRST HOME OF THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART. WOOD ENGRAVING FROM “FRANK LESLIE’S ILLUSTRATED NEWSPAPER,” MARCH 9TH, 1872. IMAGE COURTESY OF THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART

In 2020, the Met celebrates its 150th birthday with a year of special events. To kick things off, let’s look back at some milestones in the 150 years of the Met.

was a Neo-Gothic brick building designed by Calvert Vaux and Jacob Wrey Mould. This original structure still exists, but it’s been absorbed on all sides by later additions. You can see a portion of the old brick facade in one place. Just enter the Lehman Wing from the medieval galleries and look back the way you came.

20TH CENTURY December 1902 – The Met as we see it today took shape when Richard Morris Hunt’s now-iconic Beaux-Arts facade and Great Hall opened to the public.

1917 – Among the Met’s 1917 acquisitions was a small, blue faience statuette of a hippopotamus. It was made in Twelfth-Dynasty Egypt (c. 1961-1878 BCE), buried in a tomb, and excavated in 1910. Ancient Egyptian faience animals, including hippopotami, are relatively common, but the Met’s

19TH CENTURY 4th July 1866 – American lawyer and diplomat John Jay (1817-1894) first proposed founding an art museum in New York City. He made the suggestion to influential Americans attending a Fourth of July party in Paris, and his idea quickly gained traction.

13th April 1870 – The Metropolitan Museum of Art was officially incorporated with the state of New York. However, it The Metropolitan Museum of Art collects, studies, did not yet have art to display conserves and presents significant works of art across all nor a place to display it. times and cultures in order to connect people to 20 th February 1872 – The museum opened to the pubcreativity, knowledge and ideas lic. Its first home was a leased version became particularly popular with visitors. Christened space in the Dodworth Building at 681 Fifth Avenue, near William in the 1930s, he is now the Met’s mascot. The Met the present-day MOMA. Store sells William the Hippopotamus-themed souvenirs, like 1874-6 – The Met acquired the Cesnola Collection of socks, flash drives, and Christmas ornaments. To celebrate ancient art from Cyprus. This was the first of many major William’s centenary in 2017, Conversation between Two Hipprivate collections to find a home in the museum. It also represented the Met’s first big step into the world of claspos displayed him beside a modern version by Carl Walters.

10th May 1938 – The Cloisters, the Met’s medieval art sical art, since the majority of its earlier acquisitions were outpost, opened with an initial collection formed by George Old Masters. Collector Luigi Palma di Cesnola (1832-1904) Grey Barnard (1863-1938). It’s located in Fort Tryon Park, in became the first director in 150 years of the Met. northern Manhattan, on land donated by the John D. Rock30th March 1880 – The Metropolitan Museum of Art moved to its long-term address at the corner of Fifth Avefeller, Jr. (1874-1960). The medieval-inspired building is a 20th-century construction, but it contains many real Gothic enue and 82nd Street, just inside Central Park. It was on this and Romanesque elements. These include four medieval date that the museum’s first permanent building opened. It

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THE MET CLOISTERS. PHOTO BY BRETT BEYER

cloisters and the apse of a 12th-century Spanish church. All were purchased from their original sites in Europe, dismantled, sent to New York, and installed into the fabric of the museum. This makes the Cloisters a rare place where you can experience genuine medieval architecture in North America.

The Cloisters large collection of medieval treasures includes the Unicorn Tapestries, the Cloisters Cross, and the Belles Heures of Jean, Duc de Berry. Although the Met Cloisters has never been as well known as the main building on Fifth Avenue, it gained visibility in 2018 when it hosted part of the Costume Institute’s annual exhibition Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination.

1946 – The Museum of Costume Art joined the Met to became the Costume Institute, a repository of historical and contemporary fashion. The Costume Institute’s annual fashion exhibitions have become much-anticipated events.

THE MET FIFTH AVENUE. PETRIE COURT. PHOTO BY BRETT BEYER

a long-range master plan and executed a major expansion

by Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates. This massive project created many of the spacious, light-filled galleries we enjoy today, such as the American Wing in 1980 and the Michael C. Rockefeller Wing for arts from Africa, Oceania, and the Americas in 1982. This construction campaign included new galleries for the next two milestones on this list.

1975 – American banker Robert Lehman (1891-1969) spent decades assembling a world-class art collection that he displayed in his New York City townhouse. Upon his death, Lehman left almost 3,000 objects to the Met under the condition that his entire collection be displayed together in a replica Encouraging and developing the study of fine arts and of his townhouse. Unusually, the the application of the arts to manufacturing and practical life, Met agreed and built the Robert of advancing the general knowledge of kindred subjects, and, Lehman Wing to fulfil these wishes. The Lehman Collection to that end, furnishing popular instruction and recreation includes Old Master paintings, The Met’s 2009 acquisition of the Brooklyn Museum’s vast masterpieces of Impressionism and Post-Impressionism, costume collection has only enhanced them further. The Met early Italian art, Renaissance furniture, and precious objects Gala, a glamorous, celebrity-studded event that opens the of porcelain and metalwork. yearly exhibition, first took place in 1948.

1978 – The Met added a very special object to its 4th February – 4th March 1963 – The most famous painting collections. The Temple of Dendur is a first century BCE temple from Roman-ruled Egypt. When Egypt built the in the world came to New York in the winter of 1963. Leonardo Aswan Dam in the 1960s, the temple and numerous other da Vinci’s Mona Lisa appeared in the Met’s medieval hall historic sites in the flood zone faced certain annihilation. for about a month; she also visited the National Gallery of Through efforts by UNESCO, fifty countries contributed Art in Washington D.C. Attendance was spectacular. People money and expertise to record and save as many of these waited in line for hours in the freezing cold to see the Mona monuments as possible. The Egyptian government gave Lisa. Over 60,000 people saw the painting in one day alone.* the Temple of Dendur to the United States in gratitude 1971-1991 – Under directors Thomas Hoving (1931-2009) for the country’s major contributions. The Met beat out and Philippe de Montebello (b. 1936) the Met put together

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THE MET FIFTH AVENUE. GREAT HALL. PHOTO BY BRETT BEYER

THE MET FIFTH AVENUE (NEW YORK, NY). THE TEMPLE OF DENDUR. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE MET

several other American institutions to get the temple, largely because of an inspired plan to house it.

The Sackler Wing was designed and built specifically for the Temple of Dendur. This massive pavilion has a sloping glass wall so that the temple retains the appearance of being outside while actually enjoying protection from the elements. An artificial waterway runs around it. Visitors can walk through the Temple of Dendur, and I highly recommend the experience. The Sackler Wing also hosts many performances and cultural events set against this unforgettable backdrop. Two U.S. Presidents have held state dinners there.

21ST CENTURY 2000s – The end of the 20th century marked the last major expansions in the 150 years of the Met. Instead, the museum has focused on renovation, giving existing galleries fresh new quarters that have allowed curators to update and re-imagine permanent displays. The Galleries for the Art of the Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia (Islamic art) were completely renovated and reinstalled in 2011. The American Wing got a face lift in 2012, and the Costume Institute’s basement galleries were updated in 2014. Continuing this trend, newly refreshed British decorative arts galleries opened on 2nd March 2020.

2011 – The Costume Institute’s summer shows are always well attended, but none before or since has ever taken off quite like Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty. This 2011 exhibition of dramatic couture by the recently-deceased British fashion designer attracted 661,509 people. The museum had to extend both the duration of the exhibition

THE MET FIFTH AVENUE, THE CHARLES ENGELHARD COURT IN THE AMERICAN WING. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE MET

and daily museum hours to meet the demand.

2016 – The Met acquired its second outpost in the Breuer building, formerly home to the Whitney Museum of American Art. It is located on Madison Avenue not far from the Met’s main building. When the Whitney moved out in 2014, this iconic building’s future was uncertain until the Met signed an eight-year lease on the space. The Met Breuer, as it’s now called, focuses on modern and contemporary art, which have not traditionally been well-represented in the main building. However, rumour has it that the Met may leave the Breuer building soon. If so, the Frick Collection will likely exhibit there during its upcoming renovation.

2020 – The Met turns 150. The museum is celebrating 150 years of the Met with events all year long, including the special exhibition Making the Met, 1870-2020. There were also three days of festivities from 4th to 6th June.

By Alexandra Kiely/Daily Art Magazine

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TECH

Big Tech’s Domination Of Business Reaches New Heights As the economy contracts and many companies struggle to survive, the biggest tech companies are amassing wealth and influence in ways unseen in decades

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merican tech titans flew high before the coronavirus pandemic, making billions of dollars a year.

Now, the upheaval has lifted them to new heights, putting the industry in a position to dominate American business in a way unseen since the days of railroads.

A rally in technology stocks elevated the S&P 500 stock index to a record high on Tuesday even as the pandemic crushes the broader economy. The stocks of Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft and Facebook, the five largest publicly traded companies in America, rose 37 percent in the first seven months this year, while

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all the other stocks in the S&P 500 fell a combined 6 percent, according to Credit Suisse.

Those five companies now constitute 20 percent of the stock market’s total worth, a level not seen from a single industry in at least 70 years. Apple’s stock market value, the highest of the bunch, reached $2 trillion on Wednesday — double what it was just 21 weeks ago.

The tech companies’ dominance of the stock market is propelled by their unprecedented reach into our lives, shaping how we work, communicate, shop and relax. That has only deepened during the pandemic, and as people shop more frequently on Amazon, click on a Google or Facebook ad or pay up for an iPhone, the companies receive a greater share of spending in the economy and earn ever larger profits. This is why investors have flocked to those stocks this year at the expense of the scores of companies struggling in the health crisis, and are betting that their position will be unassailable for years.

“Covid was the perfect positive storm for these guys,” said Thomas Philippon, a professor of finance at New York University.

The companies’ deeper encroachment into American lives can be seen in web traffic numbers for Alphabet, Facebook and Amazon, which own the four most visited sites in the country. The traffic on these sites was immense before the pandemic, but daily visits increased sharply in March, when stay-at-home orders began, with Facebook up 15 percent and YouTube 10 percent, according to SimilarWeb, an online data provider.

The web traffic has held steady at the higher plateau, with more than one billion daily visits to the big four sites in the United States alone. And the same pattern is evident worldwide. Facebook reported that the number of daily users of its services globally in June was 12 percent higher than a year earlier.

Amazon’s business, already towering over competitors in e-commerce and cloud computing, has become even more important to businesses and households.

Its stock is up over 50 percent from its pre-pandemic

high, underscoring just how much investors think it has benefited from the disruption.

Critics say the companies have grown in part because of a range of anticompetitive practices. European regulators are investigating whether Apple’s App Store breaks competition rules. American regulators are looking at whether large tech firms committed antitrust abuses when acquiring other companies. Some antitrust scholars believe the rise of industry-dominating companies has led to stagnant wages and increased inequality. Last month, tech chief executives were grilled by members of the House Judiciary antitrust subcommittee.

“Any single action by one of these companies can affect hundreds of millions of us in profound and lasting

ways,” said Representative David Cicilline, a Rhode Island Democrat, in his opening statement at the hearing. “Simply put: They have too much power.”

According to some competition experts, the concentration in some industries is greater today than in the late 1800s, when Congress passed sweeping antitrust legislation to curb the power of the railroads.

Jan Eeckhout, an economics professor at Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, Spain, said that in 1929, Sears and A&P accounted for 3 percent of retail sales, a situation that stirred up concern in Congress and helped give rise to additional antitrust laws in 1936.

Today, he said, Walmart and Amazon jointly account for 15 percent of retail sales.

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In a recent study, researchers at the RAND Corporation used public filings, other data and statistical inference techniques to model the connections among top companies. Its leading example was Amazon, with its e-commerce marketplace used by thousands of retailers and its cloud computing arm, Amazon Web Services, powering so many online businesses.

On a typical work-from-home day, a person might communicate with colleagues using Slack, attend videoconferences on Zoom, order takeout food via DoorDash and in the evening watch a movie on Netflix, said Jonathan Welburn, a lead author on the RAND study. All of them run

their businesses on Amazon Web Services.

“Amazon is a very central digital hub, and it epitomizes the direction our economy has taken,” Mr. Welburn said.

The growing importance of cloud computing, the digital engine rooms of the modern economy, shows how tech firms are building on their dominance. Global spending on cloud computing rose 33 percent to more than $30 billion in the second quarter, according to Synergy Research.

To be a full-service cloud provider like Amazon, Microsoft and Google is an immensely expensive endeavor.

Each spends an estimated $10 billion to $15 billion a year on its data centers and cloud networks, said John Dinsdale,

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chief analyst at Synergy. That is just the capital-spending table stakes to compete. Only a handful of companies in the world can afford them.

The companies say their huge spending helps the U.S. economy and ends up lowering prices.

“Our engineers are helping America remain a global leader in emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, self-driving cars and quantum computing,” Sundar Pichai, Google’s chief executive, said in his prepared testimony at the recent House hearing. “Competition drives us to innovate, and it also leads to better products, lower prices and more choices for everyone.”

In his testimony, Tim Cook, Apple’s chief executive, asserted that Apple did not have a dominant share of any market in which it did business.

And during an earnings call in July, Satya Nadella, Microsoft’s chief executive, said his company could not indefinitely thrive while the rest of the economy and other industries struggled. “The world needs to do well for us to do well in the long run,” he said.

It is still possible for new companies to make inroads.

Users of Zoom, the videoconferencing company, have ballooned during the pandemic, and its stock is up over 150 percent since the end of February. And TikTok shows that it is still possible to build a highly popular social media app, though Microsoft may soon acquire it.

Of course, the searing rally in the stocks could be the result of excessive optimism and the stocks could fall. But if the Big Five keep reporting huge profits, they should still make up an outsize share of the overall market. In the 12 months through the end of June, they earned nearly $500 million a day in net income combined.

“The stock market has the great advantage that it’s looking at the stream of future profits,” Mr. Philippon said.

“They think they are high today — and going to remain very high in the future.”

By Peter Eavis and Steve Lohr

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