The Prime Minister Janez Janša and his team continued their second visit to the Savinjska-šaleška region with this morning's working meeting in Luče. As the PM said at the press conference yesterday afternoon, there were two main reasons for the visit. The government has not only had the opportunity to see that the promises made in June 2005 have been kept, but has also recognised new development possibilities in the region. In contrast with the government's first visit, the latter were the subject of the majority of yesterday's and today's talks at sixty meetings held in ten municipalities.
(Photo: Primož Lavre/Salomon 2000)
After the working meeting, the PM visited the Podkrižnik family business in Ljubno ob Savinji, which produces specialised metal parts and utensils for small kitchen appliances, and employs 87 people. Mr Janša took a tour of the production facilities and congratulated the owners on the courage and effort which they have invested in the successful management and growth of the company. The owners informed Mr Janša about restructuring the company's present liabilities, and they also discussed tenders for development funds for small and medium-sized companies provided by the Slovene Enterprise Fund.
(Photo: Primož Lavre/Salomon 2000)
The PM then went to Nazarje where he visited BSH Hišni aparati, a company which has increased their production of small home appliances fivefold in the last ten years. In 2006, the company, which employs 627 people, manufactured 4.5 million appliances, generating a turnover of €105 million. In the last six years, BSH Hišni aparati has submitted over a third of all international patent applications in Slovenia. The PM, who was accompanied by the Minister of the Economy, Andrej Vizjak, and the Development Minister, Dr Žiga Turk, discussed the issue of maintaining the competitiveness of the labour market with the company's management, who expressed their support for measures aimed at increasing the flexibility of the labour market. Mr Janša said he expected that negotiations with employers and employees about amendments to the Employment Relations Act, headed by the Minister of Labour, Family and Social Affairs, would be concluded by the end of this month. The government delegation and the BSH management also discussed the construction of a motorway in Slovenia's third development axis, since pressure on the existing infrastructure is bound to increase, while the company is already planning to expand. The PM said that a national spatial plan is being drawn up, and that the draft version is expected to be concluded by September 2007. They also discussed the public tender for promoting FDI in 2007 and 2008, for which the company has applied, proposing a new production line of high-end home appliances. The investment is valued at €5.6 million, with plans to employ some 200 people in the course of three years.
(Photo: Primož Lavre/Salomon 2000)
At an afternoon press conference in Mozirje, the Prime Minister stressed that the final assessment of the work done in the region in the last two years had been reached at the morning's working meeting. It was established that during this period not a single promise that had been given was not kept, with the exception of those which demand more time. The PM said he was convinced that, given current trends, and provided that the collaboration of all stakeholders continue, the Savinjska-šaleška region would be one of the most successful in Slovenia.
Mr Janša added that the main promise of two years ago was the answer to the question of the Savinja-šaleška sub-region becoming one of Slovenia's new regions, and he outlined the procedures that have taken place relating to the introduction of regions. A maximum number of regions has been established, and according to the PM, the Savinjska-šaleška region is one of them. He also said he believed that it was prudent to enable those parts of Slovenia which seek to realise their goals together to do so.
Once the new region is established, it will be entitled to €35 million for its current and development tasks. The amended Act on Local Finances also presents new opportunities for the region and benefits for all its local authorities. Overall, this means nearly €4 million or an average increase of 12 per cent, said the PM.
(Photo: Primož Lavre/Salomon 2000)
Mr Janša also pointed out four promises that have been kept in this period. A waste water treatment plant began operations in September 2006 in Šaleška Valley, and this has already had a positive impact on the River Paka. The project is worth €10 million. At the end of 2006, the Mozirje social work centre opened in new premises. The other two promises that have been kept are the construction and opening of the new Inter-Company Training Centre (MIC), and a branch school and kindergarten in Solčava.
Projects included in the Resolution on National Development Projects for the Period 2007-2023 which are directly connected to the Savinjska-šaleška region are: the construction of the sixth unit of the Šoštanj Thermal Power Plant, the construction of some parts of the Tehnopolis technological city in Celje, and the modernisation of the national road network along priority development axes.
According to the PM, the economy in the region has shown positive trends; however, in terms of GDP, it is still somewhat behind the Slovenian average. Intensive industrial programmes are already underway which will provide a development boost for the region in the following decade. Mr Janša said that this was the only realistic basis for investment in education, culture, healthcare and social services, emphasising the role of the Gorenje Corporation, which he visited yesterday, since the company with its products accounting for 6 per cent of Slovenia's exports is one of the key engines of development in the region. In the last two years, unemployment has fallen substantially, and the majority of companies now face a shortage of specialised workers, said Mr Janša.
The Prime Minister took the opportunity to appeal publicly to all stakeholders in the region to bid for EU funds in the new 2007-2013 Financial Perspective, adding that a serious approach was the prerequisite for high quality projects.
(Photo: Primož Lavre/Salomon 2000)
In the afternoon, the whole government delegation gathered in Velenje to meet mayors, business representatives, deputies and state councillors from the region to discuss development breakthroughs and the perspectives of the Savinjska-šaleška region. Members of the cabinet presented the work done in the last two years, heard the initiatives of participants, and replied to their questions.
(Photo: Primož Lavre/Salomon 2000)
In the evening, a government team with the PM Janez Janša took on a team of politicians and business people from the Savinjska-šaleška region in a game of futsal, beating their hosts 4:1. Donations collected on the occasion were, as is customary, donated to charity, this time for the purchase of a CT scanner in Topolšica hospital.¨
Already the previous day in Velenje the Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, Janez Janša together with some ministers opened the Inter-Company Training Centre and visited the company Gorenje (more about the event).
