Archive of articles - November 2014, page 7
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Success stories: Shared services centres
AT&T TAPS SKILLED WORKFORCE IN SLOVAKIA
The perception of culture to change
THE NEW action plan for culture for years 2015-2017 should change the paradigm of the perception of culture in society, Culture Minister Marek Maďarič said on November 18 at a meeting of experts who should prepare the document.
Slovaks discover their music
THERE are only a few genres as diverse as classical music. From the very early stages, through Romanticism and later periods, all the way to contemporary compositions – from vocal works to instrumental – there is something for everyone to choose from. Some bigger music festivals try to present this wide offering of classical music, presenting a rich variety of composers, works and performers.
Insurer Dôvera rakes in profits
THE PRIVATE health insurer Dôvera, co-owned by Penta Investments and a Cyprus-based company, has earned hundreds of millions of euros more than its competitors in recent years, and paid a considerable part of it to its shareholders in dividends. The data from the Finance Ministry’s Financial Policy Institute (IFP) showed that the private health insurer Dôvera earned €619 million over the past five years, far exceeding the earnings of the other players on the market, the privately owned Union with €13 million and the state-run Všeobecná Zdravotná Poistovňa (VšZP), which lost €56 million over the same period.
High vacancy for offices
While the high vacancy rate exceeding 10 percent on the office market is not an inspiration for developers to build speculatively, the volume of transactions in 2014 is encouraging. The activity on the market was propelled by relocations of large international companies into new office buildings: this raises the question of the future usage of empty offices.
Slovakia’s prices below EU average
SLOVAKS keep complaining about high prices even though they are about one third below the European average. But the whole picture should be completed with earnings, which however, are much lower, too.
No major improvement for Slovakia in the rankings
Judiciary, corruption, and excessive red tape remain the main hindrances for the quality of the business environment in Slovakia to flourish, observers and foreign investors operating in the country agree. Even though 2013 has brought some small improvements for Slovakia in some of the global rankings of the economic environment, with foreign businesses operating in the country having also expressed some optimism, their complaints remain the same as in previous years.
Memorial plaque for Tsar Peter the Great unveiled in the capital
IN 1698, Russian Tsar Peter the Great visited the current Slovak capital Bratislava, then called Pressburg or Pozsony, during his long tour around Europe. To commemorate this event, a memorial board was placed on the main building of the Slovak National Museum (SNM) in Vajanského nábrežie on October 16.
Start-ups gain recognition
Though Slovakia has not been historically known as a nation of start-ups, Slovak projects have received increasing attention over the past few years and the community has been growing since 2010. Even Slovak President Andrej Kiska supported start-up entrepreneurs during his late September visit to the United States, opening a new business incubator called the Slovak American Innovation Center in San Diego.
Countrywide Events
Western SLOVAKIA
Tatras mark 10th anniversary of windstorm
TEN years ago, on November 19, 2004, extreme winds with speeds of up to 230 km per hour levelled forests in the Tatra mountains, toppling the nation’s pride along with them. The disaster left two people dead, billions of crowns in damages and Slovakia’s most popular tourist destination badly scarred. After 10 years, all the damages have yet to be counted due to the arrival of the bark beetle which has caused comparable damages. Nevertheless, new forests are growing on affected territories, while only children of current generations will live to see proper forests here.
White Crows awarded
ZUZANA Pechočiaková, a doctor of the Faculty Hospital in Nitra who pointed out an altered medical record; fired inspector Ľubica Lapinová who revealed shady public tenders; and Oleg Pastier, a key figure in the civil samizdat movement during the communist regime, received the White Crow Award on November 17.
Smer strongman Paška steps down
ONE of the ruling Smer party’s key strongmen, Pavol Paška, resigned as speaker of parliament the same night as municipal elections, overshadowing reports on outcomes of mayoral races across Slovakia. Paška’s departure came on the heels of two rallies fuelled by anger at a widely criticised tender for an overpriced computer tomography (CT) device set for purchase by a financially ailing hospital.
Institutions and trade organisations in Slovakia
-Finance Ministry, www.finance.gov.skMinister: Peter Kažimír
Slovakia fails to maximise EU funds
Slovakia is still attempting to tap the money it was eligible to receive from the European Union for the years 2007-2013. Though it was granted an exception from the European Commission to extend the deadline for using the funds by the end of 2015, it still has some 40 percent of more than €11.6 billion allocated for this term at its disposal. Moreover, the country needs to start drawing the new funds that total more than €15.6 billion.
Catchy stories, winner films attract most
THE INTERNATIONAL Film Festival (IFF) Bratislava has experienced its ups and downs during its 16 years of history. In 2014, the situation seems to have been somewhere in the middle. The festival had somewhat constricted finances and it took place rather in smaller film clubs than in big cinema complexes, but it managed to fill the theaters, introduce foreign film-makers and present, among other works, also movies that won awards at big global cinema festivals.
Study: Employers avoid Roma
FIRMS are more interested in people who do not have typical Roma names, according to an experiment conducted by the Financial Policy Institute (IFP) of the Finance Ministry.
Noerr excelled at the Juve Awards
Noerr excelled at the Juve Awards in Frankfurt am Main in Germany on 23 October 2014, winning the awards as “Law firm of the Year” and “Law firm of the Year for M&A”.
More pro-employee measures adopted
A robust growth of the minimum wage, an extension of higher collective agreements and changes in temporary employment are the developments with the biggest impact on the labour market in 2014 and beyond. While these are praised by the Robert Fico government and trade unions, employers expect that these will have a negative influence on the labour market and the competitiveness of companies. On the other hand, they lack effective measures to combat unemployment, which is decreasing but not fast enough.
New law to restrict shell companies access to public tenders
An amendment to the Public Procurement Act approved by the cabinet on November 20 should restrict the access of these mailbox/shell companies to public tenders. The government wants to see the bill approved in parliament as soon as possible in order to enter into force as of January 1. The bill will allow only companies that will be able to disclose their owners up to the level of private persons to take part in public tenders. The only exception will be companies listed on stock exchanges in the European Union, the European Economic Area or the OECD, and their subsidiaries, Smer officials told TASR newswire.
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- Slovak female triathlete shatters barriers with historic win at Himalayan event
- Convicted of multiple murders, Slovakia’s mafia boss seeks release from prison
- Top 10 events in Bratislava for foreigners
- Weekend: Celebration of fun comes to Malacky Photo
- Slovakia loses another EV model to Spain as Stellantis chooses Zaragoza over Trnava
- UK appoints Bilal Zahid as new ambassador to Slovakia
- 3 free things to do in Bratislava in the next seven days
- Top 10 events in Bratislava for foreigners
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- Weekend: Celebration of fun comes to Malacky Photo
- Slovakia loses another EV model to Spain as Stellantis chooses Zaragoza over Trnava
- News digest: Prosecutor seeks jail for NBS Governor Kažimír as his political support wanes
- Slovak female triathlete shatters barriers with historic win at Himalayan event
- Convicted of multiple murders, Slovakia’s mafia boss seeks release from prison
- 3 free things to do in Bratislava in the next seven days
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- 3 free things to do in Bratislava in the next seven days
- Weekend: Celebration of fun comes to Malacky Photo
- Top 10 events in Bratislava for foreigners
- Digital Jarvis is real now. He is coming for your to-do list
- The disinformation scene has become a tool of media capture
- Paris leads, Bratislava trails: European cities ranked on safe travel for children
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- A mayor resigns over €2.7 million fraud scandal at town hall
- 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 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
- 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 ›
