Archive of articles - March 2010, page 3
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Teaching Slovak as a foreign tongue - in Slovakia
THE DEBATE about how to teach Slovak at minority schools where Hungarian is the normal language of instruction is not new to Slovakia. Despite that, it never fails to generate political heat, as can be seen from the reaction to recent statements by Hungary’s president on the subject. Along with heat, the row prompted the nationalist-controlled Education Ministry to draft a controversial proposal that was passed immediately by the government.
Fragrant stamp a surprise for Easter
SLOVAK POST will soon begin issuing a fragrant postage stamp for Easter. When rubbed, the unique printing ink releases a rosemary scent. Designed by Dušan Grečner, the special edition stamp depicts religious missals in the Gothic art style found at the Bratislava City Museum.
Volebné čísla
ONE OF the beauties of having a multi-party system is that before each election the parties get assigned their election numbers, volebné čísla. The draw has few real implications, but the numbers appear on the ballots and help tell the parties apart, which had often been useful in the past, when you had the Movement for Democracy (HZD) and Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS), or Slovak National Party (SNS) and the Real Slovak National Party (PSNS) competing against each other.
Turning down the light
SLOVAKIA is experiencing a boom in the construction of solar power stations. Following the adoption of a law last year to support generation of electricity from renewable resources investors came up with hundreds of projects in which, thanks to the generosity of that support, methods to harness the sun’s rays to generate power predominated. But the higher-than-expected interest surprised the government, which has now responded by tightening licensing requirements for new solar power station projects. It says this has been done in order to avoid complications in power distribution and the stability of the national transmission network. But investors and energy experts have reacted with dismay, claiming that the energy sector, with its relatively long-term returns on investment, needs stable conditions for doing business.
Countrywide Events
Western SLOVAKIA
Power market in motion
EVEN though the electricity market has been fully liberalised since mid-2007, that market was not put into motion until 2009 with the impacts of the economic crisis. More customers started to switch to alternative power suppliers last year, which has boosted competition in the market. Traditional power suppliers have reported that customers are changing suppliers, which has pushed traditional suppliers to behave more proactively and enhance their services.
Live "Way of the Cross" in Prešov
PALM Sunday marks the beginning of a series of religiously themed events staged at the Nižná Šebastová church.
Sadiki charged with heroin smuggling
BAKI Sadiki, a Kosovar Albanian with a Slovak passport, who was previously prosecuted for organising illegal trade in drugs, has been charged with serious drugs offences. If the court finds him guilty he will be sentenced to prison for 20-25 years, the SITA newswire reported.
President vetoes Patriotism Act
PRESIDENT Ivan Gašparovič returned the Patriotism Act drawn up by the Slovak National Party (SNS) to parliament.
Solar panels on at UNDP in Bratislava
BRINGING new energy to downtown Bratislava, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) opened a solar energy station at its Bratislava Regional Centre in November 2009. The solar station is the first in the city's Staré Mesto, or old town, and one of three solar stations in the Slovak capital. It is also one of the first United Nations buildings to install solar panels on its roof, the UNDP’s Bratislava Regional Centre informed The Slovak Spectator.
Chinese interested in Slovak PPP
THE CHINESE company Shanghai Construction Group (SCG) is interested in expanding its business activities in Slovakia. The Slovak Economy Ministry said on March 22 that the company is interested in building highways in Slovakia through public-private partnership projects and is able to secure the necessary financial capital, the SITA newswire reported.
Petition against waste incinerator starts
THE WESTERN-SLOVAK town of Smolenice and the civil initiative called 'Smolenice without an Incinerator' launched a petition against a project of industrial waste incinerator that the local chemicals producer Chemolak plans to build on its premises.
Power production over consumption
THE production of electricity in Slovakia totalled 29 terawatt hours (TWh) in 2009 exceeding consumption by 3 TWh. The drop is ascribed to the economic crisis, which damped production in Slovakia last year, according to the latest issue of a newsletter issued by the Slovak-German Trade and Industry Chamber.
Unemployment hits new 5-year high
JOBS, or a lack of them, can influence voters’ choices. So the fact that the number of unemployed in February reached a five-year high might be expected support the argument of critics of the current government’s employment policies. Market watchers, however, say the 12.97-percent jobless rate should be placed in context: jobless rates always tend to increase in January and February. Nevertheless, an unemployment rate close to 13 percent goes against predictions made by Prime Minister Robert Fico as recently as early March, when he hit an optimistic note and said that February would be the month when unemployment stopped growing.
Ryanair to start flights to Sardinia
IRISH low-cost air carrier Ryanair will extend the range of destinations it serves from Bratislava Airport at the end of June 2010, with flights to Sardinia, the SITA newswire reported.
New revelations blow lid on Interblue puzzle
“I HAVE nothing to hide,” declared Rastislav Bilas at a surprise press conference on March 24. Bilas, a self-described former ‘project manager’ for the amorphous firm Interblue Group, which bought Slovakia’s excess carbon dioxide emissions quotas at well below market price, is the latest in a growing cast of characters to emerge during the past two months from the murk surrounding the deal. He surfaced unexpectedly after Interblue Group was named in connection with a Swiss investigation into suspected money laundering.
Record Slovak medal haul
THE THIRTEEN Slovak Paralympians ended the 10th Winter Paralympics in Vancouver, Canada with the largest medal haul for the independent Slovak state since the beginning of the event.
Companies in the energy sector in Slovakia
Slovenské Elektrárne (SE), www.seas.sk
Easter markets open
THE FIRST Easter Market to open in the country was in Hlavné Námestie in Bratislava.
Ski season slowly ending
SPRING has arrived in full force. Every Slovak ski resort has felt it, and the lower-altitude ones have already stopped operating. But on slopes above 1,000 metres people can ski until Easter. This week, the weather will fluctuate and be typical for April – unsettled cloudy weather with rain and temperatures between zero and 8 degrees at 1,000 metres.
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- Top 10 events in Bratislava for foreigners
- News digest: Prosecutor seeks jail for NBS Governor Kažimír as his political support wanes
- Weekend: Celebration of fun comes to Malacky Photo
- Slovakia loses another EV model to Spain as Stellantis chooses Zaragoza over Trnava
- News digest: Fico’s bloc wants to save money by restricting electoral access
- When will the opposition wake up to reality?
- Slovakia plans to restrict access to new medicines amid funding shortfall
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- Weekend: Celebration of fun comes to Malacky Photo
- Top 10 events in Bratislava for foreigners
- News digest: Fico’s bloc wants to save money by restricting electoral access
- 3 free things to do in Bratislava in the next seven days
- Digital Jarvis is real now. He is coming for your to-do list
- Slovakia plans to restrict access to new medicines amid funding shortfall
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- News digest: Violent gang in Bratislava is under arrest
- The Kremlin’s security agency has a Russian contractor in Slovakia - no one has noticed
- 3 free things to do in Bratislava in the next seven days
- Weekend: Celebration of fun comes to Malacky Photo
- Digital Jarvis is real now. He is coming for your to-do list
- Top 10 events in Bratislava for foreigners
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- A mayor resigns over €2.7 million fraud scandal at town hall
- Show me your moves! Slovak hockey stars share their best pick-up lines
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- He designed Gatwick. But this is his masterpiece
- Fico praises China and Vietnam as models, says liberal democracy has failed
- News digest: Violent gang in Bratislava is under arrest
- The compass points to Kúty, and people are starting to follow
- News digest: Prosecutor seeks jail for NBS Governor Kažimír as his political support wanes
- Slovakia loses another EV model to Spain as Stellantis chooses Zaragoza over Trnava
- Slovak female triathlete shatters barriers with historic win at Himalayan event
- Weekend: Celebration of fun comes to Malacky Photo
- News digest: Fico’s bloc wants to save money by restricting electoral access
- Slovakia plans to restrict access to new medicines amid funding shortfall
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- Top 10 events in Bratislava for foreigners More articles ›
