The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food has issued an open call to citizens, legal persons or other organisations for the identification of candidates for the 2023 Golden Bee Award.

In Rabat, the capital city of Morocco, where the 17th session of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage is taking place, the multinational nomination of Lipizzan horse breeding traditions has been listed on the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

How will the unitary patent system simplify and improve the European patent system for the benefit of its users? This was the focus of today's event organised by the Slovenian Intellectual Property Office, the European Patent Office and the Slovenian Chamber of Commerce and Industry for companies and interested professionals. The system is due to enter into force in April next year.

This year’s national conference of non-governmental organisations, organised by the Centre for Information Service, Co-operation and Development of NGOs (CNVOS), is aimed at addressing online, media and physical assaults on non-governmental organisations at home and abroad. Speakers shall discuss how to protect against such assaults, how and when to efficiently respond to them, and how to communicate them. The participants were greeted by the Minister of Public Administration, Sanja Ajanovič Hovnik.

The main topics of the visit of the Minister for Digital Transformation, Dr Emilija Stojmenova Duh, to Osaka, Japan on 24 November 2022 were the announcement of deeper cooperation between Slovenian universities and the University of Osaka and its research centres, the use of robots in creating a more inclusive society, and the role of the Smart City Strategy in ensuring the digital and green transition.

Minister for Digital Transformation Dr Emilija Stojmenova Duh attended the Ministerial Council Meeting of the Global Partnership for Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) in Tokyo, Japan, on 22 November 2022. The meeting adopted a declaration agreeing that the development of an AI ecosystem is essential to address the complex challenges facing society, but that it must be safe and focused on human well-being.

Minister for Digital Transformation, Dr Emilija Stojmenova Duh, met with prominent representatives of the Japanese government, business and academia working in the field of digital transformation at the start of her official visit to Tokyo on 21 and 22 of November 2022. She also took part in a roundtable discussion on country practices and challenges of global cooperation in the development and use of artificial intelligence, organised by the GPAI on 22 of November 2022.

The plenary meeting of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) is taking place in Gothenburg, Sweden, from 28 November to 1 December 2022. The Slovenian delegation presented the life and work of one of the most important chronicler of the historical events and tragedies of the 20th century, writer Boris Pahor, who passed away in May 2022 at the age of 108, to the Committee on the Holocaust, Genocide and Crimes against Humanity.

Today, at the invitation of the Minister of Defence of Ukraine Oleksii Reznikov, Minister of Defence Marjan Šarec and a delegation visited Ukraine.

Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy has approved EUR 890,000 in EU funding for the project Integrated Territorial Investments Kranj: Planina overpass – Hrastje business zone.

At the request of the Ukrainian side, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will provide 370,000 euros in humanitarian aid for the purchase of an ambulance for the transport of premature babies and mothers. The donation agreement was signed today by the Acting Secretary-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Renata Cvelbar Bek, and the Ambassador of Ukraine to Slovenia, Mr Andrii Taran.

Minister of the Interior Tatjana Bobnar attended an extraordinary meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Council in Brussels. Ministers discussed the situation on the main migration routes.

In the wake of the global food crisis, which has deepened since the start of the Russian military aggression against Ukraine, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has proposed that Slovenia join Ukrainian President Zelenskiy's 'Grain from Ukraine' initiative, in which Ukraine donates grain while donor countries, including Slovenia, finance shipping to the least developed countries in Africa and Asia, where people are at risk of starvation.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has supported a project to complete the renovation of a rehabilitation home in Ukraine. With the project, which will be implemented by the Ministry’s strategic partner for humanitarian aid, Slovenian Caritas, Slovenia will help ensure facilities for the proper care and rehabilitation of 90 children, people with disabilities and young people with special needs, who are increasing in number as a consequence of the bombing.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs joins the commemoration of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Violence against women remains one of the most common human rights violations around the world. For many years, the global average of one in three women experiencing violence in their lifetime has remained unchanged.

The European Commission has approved the new Programme for the elimination of material deprivation in the Republic of Slovenia for the 2021–2027 period. A total of EUR 32.6 million has thus been secured until 2029 to help the most vulnerable population groups and eliminate their material deprivation, of which the EU will contribute EUR 29.4 million.

The two-day CM22 session of the ESA Council, which was attended by the State Secretary at the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology Matevž Frangež, has concluded in Paris. He also participated in the OECD Green Growth and Sustainable Development Forum entitled Green Innovation and the Impact of Economic Shocks.

Minister Irena Šinko participated in the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council meeting. European Commission informed the EU Ministers on implementing the new EU forest strategy for 2030, and on ensuring the availability and affordability of fertilisers. They dealt with the agricultural aspect of the proposal for a Regulation on nature restoration, on two points concerning fisheries, on energy transition of the EU fishing fleet and aquaculture, and on the algae sector development activities. In bilateral meetings, the Minister met with the European Commissioner for the Environment, Marine Affairs and Fisheries, Mr Virginijus Sinkevičius, and with Mr Peter Kullgren, the Minister for Rural Development of Sweden, which in 2023 begins the Presidency over the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council.

The ministers in charge of Cohesion Policy met in Brussels to exchange views on the long-term impacts of Cohesion Policy on EU regions. The ministers agreed that the fundamental role of Cohesion Policy should continue to be to reduce disparities in the level of development of the various member states and regions, despite recent crises.

Speaking at the press conference after the conclusion of the annual IMF Mission to Slovenia’s consultations, Minister Klemen Boštjančič expressed his agreement with its findings.