List of author's articles, page 4
Watch your speed
A LOWER speed limit in towns, headlights on at all times, higher penalties for drivers who break the law, compulsory reflective clothing for cyclists and pedestrians outside towns: all these are part of Slovakia’s new traffic code. According to the Interior Ministry, the new measures are to increase road safety, improve driver discipline and cut the number of accidents and casualties on the road.
IT firms seek new opportunities
THE INTERNET and IT market in Slovakia is experiencing a new wave of acquisitions, say insiders. In the face of growing competition, firms want to secure their growth capital, strengthen their position against competing players and explore new opportunities to penetrate foreign markets.
French plant is a milestone investment
FOREIGN investment in Slovakia is often distinguished as "before Peugeot" or "after Peugeot".
Unburdened by the past
IN the 1950s, the Communist government in Czechoslovakia banned English, as well as other languages of the "imperialists," and required every elementary school and high school student to learn Russian.
The size of the market matters
RUSSIA is attractive to Slovak businesses due to the size of its market. And Slovakia offers Russian businesses entry to the 500 million potential customers of the European Union. When Slovakia was part of the communist bloc under the Soviet Union, the countries had a very direct economic and political relationship. But that relationship is now rather indirect, as it is mostly conducted on Slovakia's behalf through the European Union.
Focused on SMEs
BELGIUM is known in Slovakia mainly through its investments in banking and finance. However, more and more Belgian companies – particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – are spreading into various fields of business in Slovakia.
Workforce good, justice system lags
ITS HIGH-QUALITY and relatively low-cost workforce, and favourable central European location are listed among Slovakia’s advantages by the many Dutch businesses operating here. On the other hand, they say they would welcome improvement in the slow work of Slovak courts and in standards of law enforcement, which is currently regarded as weak.
Red tape still an obstacle
BELGIAN companies often operate in the Slovak market as suppliers to large foreign investors. And many of these companies are saying that Slovak bureaucracy, though improved, is still a hindrance.Belgian firms involved in finance have been in the Slovak market the longest, but the list of companies and industries has since branched out into steel and metal products, furniture, consultancy, and information and communication technologies.
Slovakia’s top investor
THE NETHERLANDS is the largest source of investment in Slovakia, according to the latest statistics produced by the National Bank of Slovakia (NBS). Although there are more than 100 Dutch companies present in Slovakia, most are small and medium-sized enterprises and the volume of their investments would not be enough to make Holland the number one investor.
More popular than you'd think
CHARITY and philanthropy are often publicised by companies as their main socially responsible activities. But donations are only a part of corporate social responsibility (CSR). Conversely, companies are sometimes engaged in a whole range of activities which, in fact, amount to CSR - but just don't label them as such.
Finding the fine line between a story and PR
THERE'S a fine line between an interesting news article on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and one that's free publicity. But some companies complain that journalists reject stories about CSR outright without knowing the difference. The media responds that companies should follow CSR as a matter of principle, no matter whether their efforts are publicised. However, both focus too much on charity and philanthropy, to the detriment of more newsworthy CSR topics, say insiders.
Society can afford more
THE United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Slovak NGOs have published studies that charge the government with failing to support and implement corporate social responsibility (CSR).
Learn early, learn often
CHILDREN will soon have to start learning two foreign languages at elementary schools: one from the third grade, and a second from the sixth grade. Up to now, learning a second foreign language had been optional. The change is part of a new plan by the Education Ministry, beginning in the next school year, which also introduces stricter guidelines on how schools should teach languages. According to the ministry, schools should deal with any shortage of language teachers at junior elementary level by re-training existing teachers, irrespective of the subjects they currently teach.
Money, money, money - in a pupil’s world
AN INTEREST rate, mortgage, debit and credit card. Children will learn more about these terms, as well as many others, under a new plan by the Education Ministry to integrate financial education into lessons at elementary and high schools.
New clusters mushroom
THE IDEA of clusters - co-locating and interconnecting industry, research bases, a labour source and local administrative support - which are already a reality in places like Silicon Valley in California, and Aerospace Valley and Axelera in Europe, is now gaining ground in Slovakia. Industrial clusters have begun mushrooming across the country.
Car plant supplier up for sale
TWO SUPPLIERS to the carmaking industry, both based in the north of Slovakia, have been put up for sale. What makes their sale interesting is that AVC Čadca and AVC Raková were previously part of a troubled company with a history dating back to 1944 which was bought by a private equity firm and restructured. The companies are being sold at a time when the automotive sector in Slovakia is still one of the most dynamic parts of the national economy.
EC policy calls for CO2 cuts
THE EUROPEAN Commission's new climate-energy policy, which it unveiled at the beginning of this year, has some in the Slovak energy and industrial sector expressing concern.
ECB move reflects crown's growing muscle
SLIGHTLY more than six months before it becomes history, the Slovak currency has been experiencing its most exciting times.
Avoiding the euro bug
FOR the majority of companies, euro adoption might not be as simple as just converting from Slovak crowns. The switch will affect systems that many companies don't realise play an important role in their daily function, or that are connected to vital systems. In a recent survey, Ernst & Young gave the euro's impact on MS Excel spreadsheets as an example of this.
State focuses on long-term jobless
CHANGES to training models, help for the long-term unemployed to get used to working again, social companies, more active help from agents in local labour offices: these are among the tools that the Slovak government says it will use to improve Slovakia's employment position. The revision to the law on employment services, which became effective on May 1, also aspires to foster the employment of disadvantaged groups such as the physically disabled or those with lower qualifications.
- Perk, Trnava: “Stylish, affordable, and seriously tasty” – restaurant review
- Ambulance hit by Russian drone goes on display in centre of Bratislava
- Slovakia’s public finances remain in deep trouble
- News digest: Police linked to Fico gunman video leak – minister accused of cover-up
- Police bosses handed cut-price “luxury” flats in Bratislava
- Slovakia’s labour market falters as migration policy falls behind EU neighbours
- Hundreds of people ousted from Bratislava’s Volkswagen
- Water supply to be cut in parts of Bratislava’s Old Town in late April
- Ambulance hit by Russian drone goes on display in centre of Bratislava
- Slovakia’s public finances remain in deep trouble
- Bratislava’s embassy-backed events you don’t want to miss
- Perk, Trnava: “Stylish, affordable, and seriously tasty” – restaurant review
- 3 free things to do in Bratislava in the next seven days
- Slovakia mourns Pope Francis, a shepherd of hope and humility Photo
- Hundreds of people ousted from Bratislava’s Volkswagen
- “Return not,” the ocean cried. But I returned for her
- Ambulance hit by Russian drone goes on display in centre of Bratislava
- “Return not,” the ocean cried. But I returned for her
- Bratislava’s embassy-backed events you don’t want to miss
- The British Film Institute shines a light on Slovak cinema’s boldest chapter Video
- Slovakia’s public finances remain in deep trouble
- 3 free things to do in Bratislava in the next seven days
- Slovakia mourns Pope Francis, a shepherd of hope and humility Photo
- When to shop over Easter: Opening hours for supermarkets in Slovakia
- “Return not,” the ocean cried. But I returned for her
- Ambulance hit by Russian drone goes on display in centre of Bratislava
- 3 free things to do in Bratislava in the next seven days
- German shoemaker Lowa joins wave of factory closures in Slovakia
- US giant pulls plug on Slovak factory, axing 137 jobs
- Hundreds of people ousted from Bratislava’s Volkswagen
- Bratislava’s embassy-backed events you don’t want to miss
- When to shop over Easter: Opening hours for supermarkets in Slovakia
- News digest: Police linked to Fico gunman video leak – minister accused of cover-up
- Police bosses handed cut-price “luxury” flats in Bratislava
- Cyclists, sausages and a railcar called Hurvínek Photo
- Slovakia’s labour market falters as migration policy falls behind EU neighbours
- Remembering the priest-scientist and pioneer of wireless communication
- Perk, Trnava: “Stylish, affordable, and seriously tasty” – restaurant review
- What is Pope Francis’s message to the powerful?
- Slovakia mourns Pope Francis, a shepherd of hope and humility Photo More articles ›
