The European Patent Office and the Slovenian Intellectual Property Office have signed an administrative agreement which will provide financial support to certain national patent applicants and Slovenian patent holders in the form of a reduction in the fee for searches to be carried out by the European Patent Office under the working agreement signed on 4 September this year.

Prime Minister Golob is attending the December European Council meeting today and tomorrow. On the table are strategic decisions important for the future of the EU: the rapprochement of Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina and the European budget.

The Government adopted a decree on the establishment and provision of a public information and alert system via public mobile networks, took note of information on the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Plan and issued the Ordinance temporarily reintroducing controls at internal borders of the Republic of Slovenia with the Republic of Croatia and Hungary.

On December 8, 2023, the American-Slovenian Club (ASC) was formally established in Washington D.C., USA, to help Slovenian businesses in the USA better connect with the diaspora and to foster stronger collaboration among American Slovenian experts, entrepreneurs, professionals, and individuals.

The EU-Western Balkans Summit, which was attended today by Prime Minister Dr Robert Golob, reaffirmed the prospect of EU membership for the Western Balkans on the one hand and the increased commitment of the Western Balkan partners to accelerate reforms and alignment with EU policies and values on the other.

Ambassador Tadej Rupel, National Coordinator for External Aspects of Digitalisation, AI and Cyber Security, represented Slovenia at the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) Summit and Ministerial Council meeting in New Delhi, India, on 12–13 December 2023.

The Prime Minister Dr Robert Golob met with the President of the French Republic Emmanuel Macron in Paris. During a working lunch, the two leaders exchanged views on key issues to be discussed at tomorrow’s European Council. They also discussed strengthening bilateral cooperation, particularly in the economic field.

Today, Slovenia received an advance of EUR 24 million of EU funds under the Recovery and Resilience Plan for the implementation of REPowerEU measures to reduce the dependence on Russian energy products and accelerate the green transition. In total, EUR 122 million is available to Slovenia for this purpose. It will receive the remaining funds when it meets the milestones and targets of the planned measures.

The Slovenian delegation is attending the Global Refugee Forum in Geneva, which aims to strengthen international solidarity and burden-sharing in response to the large number of refugees worldwide.

The Ministry of Cohesion and Regional Development has approved EU funding for the project with the acronym ‘zMIGAJ!’, which supports sports and recreation activities to promote health.

As part of a final discussion of its working bodies, the Government adopted decisions establishing two public education institutions, reallocated spending rights and amended the 2023–2026 Development Programmes Plan.

On 11 and 12 December 2023, Minister of the Interior Boštjan Poklukar hosted a meeting of the interior ministers of the Salzburg Forum member states in Brdo pri Kranju.

State Secretary Marko Štucin attended a regular meeting of the EU General Affairs Council in Brussels, where ministers focused on the draft conclusions for the December European Council and on enlargement. He underlined that the decision to open accession negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina is key to maintaining the region's confidence in the EU.

Prime Minister Robert Golob has attended today's meeting of the ambassadors of EU members states to Slovenia hosted by the Spanish ambassador Juan Aristegui Laborde at the European Union House in Ljubljana.

The last Agriculture and Fisheries Council under the Spanish Presidency began on Sunday with negotiations on fishing opportunities. On the second day of the meeting, the Council considered the compromise text of the proposed regulation on new genomic techniques and discussed the labelling of the origin of honey blends. State Secretary Eva Knez participated in the second day of the meeting, in which the Council discussed the proposal for a regulation on plant protection products, took note of the situation in agricultural markets and took stock of the strategic plans of the common agricultural policy.

The Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob attended today's corner stone ceremony for Lek Pharmaceuticals' new high-tech centre for the production of biosimilars in Lendava. This is one of the largest direct foreign investment projects in Slovenia's history.

Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon attended the European Council meeting in Brussels to discuss the situation in the Middle East, Russian aggression against Ukraine and the Sahel. This was followed by the Eastern Partnership ministerial meeting with ministers from the region. In the margins, she also met the High Representative of the international community for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Christian Schmidt.

As part of maintaining regular dialogue and good collaboration, Prime Minister Robert Golob and Slovenian President Nataša Pirc Musar met at a working breakfast.

The United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, adopted on 9 December 1948, was the first international human rights treaty to define the responsibility of states to prevent and punish genocide, a crime that shocked the conscience of the world at that time. One day later, on 10 December, UN Member States adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Zaključilo se je 23. zasedanje držav pogodbenic Konvencije o varovanju morja in obal Sredozemlja – Barcelonske konvencije – COP 23 (angleško Conference of Parties – COP). Pogodbenice so sprejele več pomembnih zavez za zaščito Sredozemlja ob vse večjem vplivu podnebnih sprememb, zmanjševanju biotske raznovrstnosti in onesnaženju. V ospredju COP 23 je bila vključenost mladih v procese odločanja.

A ribbon cutting ceremony was held today in Pragersko to mark the official opening of the renovated railway hub and railway station. The event featured remarks by Mayor of Slovenska Bistrica Dr Ivan Žagar, Minister of Cohesion and Regional Development Dr Aleksander Jevšek, and State Secretary at the Ministry of Infrastructure mag. Andrej Rajh.

The reading room and information room of the Archives of the Republic of Slovenia will be open from 8 AM until 12 PM on Thursday, December 14, 2023.
We also inform you that the reading room has a new email address, namely: citalnica.ars@gov.si.

At its meeting on the 6th of December in Botswana, the Intergovernmental Committee of the 2003 Convention adopted a decision to enter “Midwifery: knowledge, skills and practices” on the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The nomination was proposed by Colombia, Cyprus, Germany, Kyrgyzstan, Luxembourg, Nigeria, Slovenia and Togo.

The temporary reintroduction of controls at the internal borders with Croatia and Hungary has been extended for 12 days, until 21 December 2023. Afterwards, the measure is due to be prolonged for another six months.

"When it comes to the environment, there are no borders. There is only one environment, and that is the environment of our planet. We must take action and we must act globally. You will be proud of what Slovenia is going to stand for in the next two years," Prime Minister Dr Robert Golob told the delegates gathered at the 23rd Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention – COP 23, as Slovenia takes over the Presidency.

At today's session, the Government has adopted the Energy Act Proposal and reallocated EUR 5 million for co-funding radio and television programmes at RTV Slovenija for the Italian and Hungarian ethnic communities. In addition, it has approved the National Commodity Reserves Act Proposal and extended the controls at internal borders.

“When it comes to the environment, there are no borders. There is only one environment, and it is the environment of our planet. We must take action and act globally. You will be proud of what Slovenia will advocate in the next two years,” said Prime Minister Dr Robert Golob to the delegates gathered at the 23rd Meeting of the Member Parties to the Barcelona Convention, COP 23, as Slovenia is taking over the Presidency.

State Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs Marko Štucin is attending the 22nd session of the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. He took part in the General Debate and held several bilateral meetings in the margins of the session. Slovenia was elected to the Bureau of the ICC Assembly of States Parties for the 2024–2026 term.

Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon participated in an audio-video conference on the humanitarian activities carried out so far in Gaza, hosted by the French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Catherine Colonna. Today's conference is a follow-up on the International Humanitarian Conference for the Civilian Population in Gaza held in Paris on 9 November.

On the second day of the meeting of 21 contracting parties to the Barcelona Convention, which is currently ongoing in Portorož, the Delegates focused on marine spatial planning, ballast water management and inert waste disposal. Today, the countries also completed the final content harmonization of the Portorož Declaration, which will be adopted at tomorrow's ministerial meeting. The countries also support the idea of establishing a new regional climate change centre.

State Secretaries at the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Slovenia Dr Damir Črnčec and at the Ministry of Defence of the Federal Republic of Germany Benedikt Zimmer signed today in Berlin a Programme Agreement between the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Slovenia and the Federal Ministry of Defence of the Federal Republic of Germany on the participation of the Republic of Slovenia in the procurement of IRIS-T SLM systems in accordance with the Memorandum of Understanding on the Joint Procurement of Air Defence Systems within the framework of the European Sky Defence Initiative.

The Financial Administration of the Republic of Slovenia (FURS) today paid the first EUR 4.5 million in advance payments to homeowners for the reconstruction of homes damaged by floods and landslides on 4 August 2023. To date, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Spatial Planning has advanced EUR 218.5 million for emergency rehabilitation to all municipalities that have submitted applications.

The Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, Robert Golob, today held a meeting with representatives of business associations and organisations.

Nominated by Slovenia, Beti Hohler was elected as a judge of the International Criminal Court at the 22nd session of the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute.

On the occasion of the visit of the Slovenian Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, Dr Igor Papič, to Rome, the Directorate for Economic and Public Diplomacy of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of Slovenia organised an event entitled "Science and Innovations, Slovenia - Italy" at the headquarters of the National Research Council of Italy (CNR) in Rome.

Prime Minister Robert Golob met today with the representatives of newspaper publishing houses Delo, Dnevnik and Večer.

The Prime Minister, Robert Golob, today met the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany, Ms Annalena Baerbock, who is on a working visit to Slovenia. They discussed in particular Bosnia and Herzegovina's further steps towards EU membership and the situation in the Middle East.

Around 400 representatives of Mediterranean countries have gathered in Portorož, at the 23rd meeting of member parties of the Barcelona Convention – Conference for Mediterranean Countries (COP 23 – Contracting parties) and over half of them are high-ranking representatives of 21 Mediterranean countries. The opening speech was given by State Secretary Maša Kociper, who welcomed the gathered delegates on behalf of Slovenia, as the new country of presidency over the Convention.

Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon hosts a visit by German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock. The Ministers discussed the Slovenian-German strategic partnership, the importance of EU enlargement and reforms, and current foreign policy issues, in particular the war in Ukraine and the situation in the Middle East. They also agreed on the areas in which the two countries will further strengthen cooperation.

Minister of the Interior Boštjan Poklukar attended a meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Council of the European Union in Brussels, where the main topics were the Schengen area, migration and the implications of the war in Ukraine and the conflict in the Middle East on the EU's internal security.

From tomorrow until the end of this week, Slovenia's coastal town will be hosting representatives of 21 Mediterranean countries at the 23rd Meeting of Member Parties to the Barcelona Convention, COP 23 – the Conference for the Mediterranean, taking place under the slogan "Green Transition in the Mediterranean: from decisions to actions". Here, Slovenia will take over the two-year presidency of the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment and Coastal Regions of the Mediterranean (the Barcelona Convention).

The Ministry of Cohesion and Regional Development has approved EU funding for the project Implementation of the EURES Network and the ALMA Initiative. “Young people not in education or employment are often socially excluded, which is why we need to strengthen measures for their inclusion in education and the labour market,” said Minister Jevšek on the occasion of EU funding approval.

Prime Minister Robert Golob, President of the Republic of Slovenia Nataša Pirc Musar and President of the National Assembly Urška Klakočar Zupančič hosted a traditional reception for representatives of disability organisations in Brdo pri Kranju to mark the occasion of International Day of Persons with Disabilities, which is commemorated on 3 December.

On behalf of the Slovenian Government, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon today signed an agreement on the donation of EUR 1.5 million, which Slovenia will make available for humanitarian demining activities in Ukraine by the end of the year. At the signing ceremony, she emphasised that Slovenia is aware of the enormous need for demining in Ukraine and supports all efforts to put the country on the path to safe and sustainable reconstruction.

A special event was held today in Ljubljana to showcase the vast array of opportunities and possibilities cohesion policy has to offer to young people. In his opening remarks, Minister of Cohesion and Regional Development Dr Aleksander Jevšek underscored that cohesion is mostly about cooperating and bringing together – countries, regions, cities, organisations, businesses, and people – young, old, and everyone in between. He said that this kind of events was important and that the ministry would continue to organise them in the future.

Ten years ago, Slovenia became a member of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC).

Today is the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, a day to raise awareness about the inclusion of people with disabilities in our society.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon is visiting Skopje, where she and Deputy Prime Minister of North Macedonia for European Affairs Bojan Maricik signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Development Cooperation between Slovenia and North Macedonia for the 2023-2024 period.

Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Slovenia will host The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) 2023 Global Access to Justice Roundtable that will take place in Ljubljana, Slovenia, from 6th till 8th of December 2023.

On the occasion of the approval of EU funding, Dr Aleksander Jevšek, Minister of Cohesion and Regional Development, said: “The planned integrated measures to improve flood safety along the Drava, Dravinja and Polskava River will reduce flood risk in the wider area. In the long term, these measures will reduce the impact of climate change on flood risk in the area.”

Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, Tanja Fajon, took part in the 30th Ministerial Council of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in Skopje, where the foreign ministers discussed the war in Ukraine and the current situation in the organisation. The council comes at a crucial time for the organisation, whose work has become very difficult, especially after the Russian aggression against Ukraine.

The Slovenian delegation is attending the winter plenary session of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) in Zagreb, which brings together delegates from 35 member countries, observer countries and representatives of partner international organisations.

Minister Jevšek has participated at the meeting of the EU ministers responsible for cohesion policy. The ministers have approved the conclusions on the future of cohesion policy. The conclusions will serve as a basis for the discussions and the work on the legislative framework for cohesion policy after 2027.

At today’s session, the Government laid down the text of the Draft Act Amending the Basic School Act and adopted the Action Plan to Alleviate Energy Poverty for a three-year period.

The Slovenian Intellectual Property Office and the Visegrad Patent Institute (VPI) today concluded a Memorandum of Understanding aimed at supporting the innovation ecosystems of Slovenia and the four VPI countries through joint activities.

The Ministry of Cohesion and Regional Development has approved EU funding for the project Establishing Aerial Firefighting Capacity. Dr Aleksander Jevšek, Minister of Cohesion and Regional Development, said: “With the help of EU Cohesion Policy funding, Slovenia has strengthened its capacity in the field protection and disaster relief for firefighting and protection of people and property.”

Slovenia is participating in the first Global Conference on Cyber Capacity Building (GC3B) as a co-organiser of one of the panels on cyber capacity building at the regional level. The Conference is being organised to raise awareness of the importance of each country having the expertise to invest in its digital future and to encourage countries to work together to ensure a free, open and secure digital world.

On November 28, 2023, an important stride towards ensuring the safety of nuclear and radiation practices in the Republic of Slovenia was achieved as the National Assembly unanimously embraced the Resolution on nuclear and radiation safety for the forthcoming decade, spanning 2024-2033.

The Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs will provide EUR 200,000 in humanitarian aid to the Olena Zelenska Foundation for the reconstruction of the central hospital in Izyum. The donation agreement was signed today by the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Ambassador Renata Cvelbar Bek, and the Ambassador of Ukraine to Slovenia, Andriy Taran.

Minister Tanja Fajon made her first appearance at the UN Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East in New York. On behalf of Slovenia, which will become a non-permanent member of the Security Council on 1 January 2024, she called for an immediate and lasting ceasefire in Gaza, a halt to violence, the protection of civilians, and urged the Security Council to step up its efforts to establish a lasting and just peace in the region.

The Slovenian Prime Minister, Dr Robert Golob, today attended the Slovenian Business Summit in Brdo pri Kranju. The debate focused on sustainable development, including in the context of post-flood reconstruction.

State Secretary Sanja Štiglic attends a two-day meeting of NATO and Swedish Foreign Ministers. They discussed the current international situation, which is marked by the war in Ukraine and the conflict in the Middle East. Ministers exchanged views on the situation in the Western Balkans. For the first time, a NATO-Ukraine Council meeting was held in the format of foreign ministers.

The Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia in Washington, in collaboration with the Government Office for Slovenians Abroad and the American Slovenian Education Foundation (ASEF), organized a Symposium on Artificial Intelligence that highlighted the exceptional contributions of Slovenian researchers who work in the United States.

The European Commission has approved an advance payment of 100 million euros from the EU Solidarity Fund, the maximum mobilised to date, following the application for support that Slovenia submitted to Brussels after the devastating floods that took place in the country in August 2023. The advance payment will be made in the next couple of days, said the European Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms Elisa Ferreira during a conference call with Slovenia's Minister of Cohesion and Regional Development Aleksander Jevšek.

Next week, Slovenia is hosting the 23rd Meeting of the Member Parties to the Barcelona Convention, COP 23 – the Conference for the Mediterranean, in Portorož, under the auspices of the United Nations. Slovenia is taking over the two-year Presidency of the Convention, and the programme and objectives were presented at today's press conference by H.E. Minister Ms. Alenka Bratušek.

On 28 November 2023, a cultural event with a round table discussion on "The Power of Music, Poetry and Literature as Mediums for Intercultural Dialogue" and a concert by the Jazz Oud Quartet took place at the National Museum of Contemporary History housed in the Cekin Mansion to mark the Day of the Mediterranean. The participants were first addressed by the National Coordinator for the Mediterranean at the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Nina Skočajić Juvan.

In cooperation with the European Commission’s Directorate General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology (CONNECT) and the Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA), we invite you to the CEF Digital Info Day for the third Call for proposals under the digital strand of the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) Programme. The CEF Digital Info Day will take place online on Thursday, 30th of November 2023, between 10:00 a.m. CET and 12:30 p.m. CET.

Minister of Interior Boštjan Poklukar has attended the International Conference on a Global Alliance to Counter Migrant Smuggling in Brussels. The goal of the conference convened by the European Commission is to strengthen the efforts to tackle the challenges posed by migrant smuggling.

At the sessions of government committees, the Government adopted the opinion about the proposed recommendation to stop illegal migration. In the applicable Development Programmes Plan 2023–2026, the Government incorporated several new projects and adopted the incentive to conclude an agreement between the Government of the Republic of Slovenia and the Government of Ukraine on the donation of non-refundable funds of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia to the Government of Ukraine for humanitarian aid in the field of de-mining.

The Resolution on Nuclear Safety was adopted in the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia. The Resolution is a programming document representing the fundamental guidelines and long-term commitment of the Republic of Slovenia to nuclear and radiation safety. Its content observes the fundamental standards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

The Minister of Defence of the Republic of Slovenia, Marjan Šarec, and the Minister of Defence of the Italian Republic, Guido Crosetto, signed an amendment to the Implementing Agreement between the Ministry of Defence of the Italian Republic and the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Slovenia on cooperation in the field of military aviation (hereinafter referred to as the Implementing Agreement), which defines the purchase of additional six Leonardo AW139M multirole helicopters, based on the Government-to-Government model.

The Prime Minister, Dr Robert Golob, attended the ceremony to present the highest national prizes and awards for outstanding achievements in science, research and development.

Tanja Fajon, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, attended the meeting of foreign ministers of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) in Barcelona, co-chaired by Josep Borrell, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, and Ayman Safadi, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of Jordan.

A joint closure event of three cross-border programmes, i.e. Slovenia-Austria, Slovenia-Croatia, and Slovenia-Hungary, was held in Ljubljana today to mark the closure of the 2014-2021 programming period. The keynote speaker at the event, the Minister of Cohesion and Regional Development Dr Aleksander Jevšek, highlighted the successful performance of the programmes, drawing particular attention to their importance for cross-border regions.

Today, the European Commission provided a positive preliminary assessment of the second payment request under the Recovery and Resilience Facility, which Slovenia submitted to Brussels in mid-September. Slovenia could receive the payment in the amount of EUR 541 million around the New Year.

At the start of a four-day ceasefire between Hamas and Israel, which saw the release of several hostages and prisoners, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon met with the highest political representatives in Israel and Palestine. She called for an end to violence, respect for international humanitarian law, the protection of civilians and urgent talks on a settlement that would bring lasting peace to the Middle East.

European Commissioner for Agriculture Janusz Wojciechowski visited Slovenia at the invitation of Minister of Defence Marjan Šarec, acting in the capacity of Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food. The purpose of the visit was to present to the Commissioner the agricultural damage in the aftermath of catastrophic floods that struckSlovenia in August of this year. The Commissioner visited the affected areas to see the on-the-ground situation.

Permanent Representative of Slovenia to NATO, Ambassador Dr Andrej Benedejčič, presented letters of credence to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg today.

At its correspondence session, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia adopted the proposed Healthcare Intervention Measures Act as per the urgent procedure, which will contribute to the enhanced accessibility and efficiency of our healthcare system.

State Secretary Marko Štucin met with the President of the Austrian Federal Council, Claudia Arpa. They discussed, among other things, the good cooperation between the two countries and reviewed the possibilities for further deepening bilateral relations.

Slovenia organised a training for Information Security Officers (CISO) in critical infrastructure and state administration. The activity took place in Podgorica from 20 to 22 November within the framework of the Western Balkans Cyber Capacity Centre (WB3C). The activity was organised and financially supported by the Slovenian Government Information Security Office (URSIV) and brought together 19 representatives from all six Western Balkan countries.

The second day of the Latin America and Caribbean Days began with a session focusing on business opportunities and scientific research presentations in forestry and irrigation. The two afternoon panels discussed digitalisation and artificial intelligence, and feminist foreign policy. The discussion on the latter topic was opened by Minister Tanja Fajon’s address.

The Embassy of Slovenia in Tirana will be closed on December 8, on the occasion of Youth Day.

The Embassy of Slovenia in Tirana will be closed on November 28, on the occasion of the Independence Day of Albania.

Today, the Government agreed on the text of the proposed Reconstruction, Development and Provision of Financial Resources Act, whose aim is to provide mechanisms for accelerated reconstruction and development in areas that were flooded in August and protection against future natural disasters.

Today we remember Rudolf Maister. A general of steadfast character and unwavering convictions. A great patriot who, 105 years ago in Maribor, laid historic milestones in the struggle for freedom and, with his fighters, bravely and fearlessly disarmed the German security guards. Together with many teachers, educated, learned and conscious people, he passed on the awareness, ethics and knowledge of freedom to generations.

The autumn session of the 5th Latin America and Caribbean Days international conference (LAC Days 2023), focusing on the environment, climate, digitalisation, artificial intelligence and related economic opportunities, and feminist foreign policy, kicked off in Ljubljana with an opening panel.

Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon attended the meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the nine EU Mediterranean countries in Madrid, Spain, the first MED-9 meeting at the level of foreign ministers. The ministers discussed the situation in the Middle East and enhanced cooperation with the Southern Neighbourhood countries.

The Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Energy has set targets, put in place measures and allocated resources for reducing energy poverty in Slovenia in the Action Plan to Alleviate Energy Poverty. To this end, it will allocate almost EUR 34 million over the next three years.

At today's session, the Government continued its consideration of the proposed Act on Reconstruction, Development and the Provision of Financial Resources. It approved the proposed amendment to the Public Use of the Slovenian Language Act, the proposed amendment to the Building Act and the proposed Minimum Tax Act.

Representatives of the 21 Mediterranean countries – signatories to the Barcelona Convention, which commits them to the maintenance of healthy, safe, clean and biodiverse Mediterranean sea and coasts – will meet in Portorož early in December. This meeting highlights the importance of education and young people as key agents in the efforts for the sustainable development of the Mediterranean. At the meeting, Slovenia will take over the presidency of the group of countries from Türkiye, passing it on to Egypt in 2025.

At today’s sessions of the Committee on the Economy, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia included two new investment projects of the GREMO Consortium into the current Development Programmes Plan, namely e-MOTION – Experimental Development and i-MOTION – Industrial Research.

"We worked with a single goal in mind: to develop the best possible digital services for users," said Kristina Valenčič, Acting Director-General of the Directorate for Digital Solutions Development and Data Economy, at the presentation of the projects launched under the Operational Programme for the Implementation of the European Cohesion Policy in the period 2014-2020 and financed from the EU funds.

At today’s gala event at the Ljubljana Exhibition and Convention Centre, SPIRIT Slovenia and the Ministry of the Economy, Tourism and Sport presented awards to the best foreign investors who have achieved outstanding results and made a significant contribution to the development of Slovenian economy in the past year.

Ministers of the Central European Initiative (CEI) member states met to discuss the prospects for and the acceleration of the EU integration process, including in the light of the Russian aggression against Ukraine and the broader implications of the war, the impact of which is being felt in all CEI countries.

Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon announced that with great efforts and excellent cooperation between several parties, three Slovenian citizens have been evacuated from Gaza. She thanked her colleagues for their tireless efforts to help Slovenian citizens and announced a visit to the Middle East.

The Ministry of Cohesion and Regional Development has approved EU funding for the project Žalec-Rogatec Cycle Route.

Minister for Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon participated in an informal video conference of EU foreign ministers on the situation in Israel and the wider region.

At today's correspondence meeting, the Government adopted a Report on the implementation of the state budget in the first half of this year, adopted positions on the opinions of the National Council on budget documents, and took a position on the amendments to the draft budget amendments for 2024 and the amendments to the supplemented draft state budget for 2025.

Children's rights are human rights - and they are being seriously violated for millions of children around the world: in Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan, Haiti and elsewhere. On World Children's Day, we echo UNICEF's call for peace for every child. Every child has the right to live in peace, in a clean and safe environment. They also have the right to be heard and to participate in the decisions that affect them.