26 October, 2018
Ljubljana

Representatives of the Association EPEKA, Soc. Ent., will take part in the conference “Speaking Cohesion?”. The event will take place on 26 October between 10 am and 2 pm at the City Hotel in Ljubljana.

The event will be attended by Bojan Suvorov, Director of the Office for Cohesion Policy (Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy – SVRK), Ivan Žagar, President of the Development Council of the Eastern Slovenia Cohesion Region, Maja Tomanič Vidovič, Director of the Slovenian Enterprise Fund, Lilijana Madjar, President of the Development Council of the Western Slovenia Cohesion Region, and selected representatives of the most interesting projects that have received cohesion funding.

The conference is organised jointly with Radio Student as part of the ‘Speaking Cohesion’ project, co-funded by the European Commission, Directorate General for Regional and Urban Policy. The conference is free of charge.

Programme:
10.00 – 11.15 Cohesion policy yesterday – today – tomorrow

We will discuss how well we are doing in drawing down cohesion funds, what the key challenges are for regional development and how we are addressing them, and what the future holds for cohesion after 2020 with:

  • Bojan Suvorov, Director of the Cohesion Policy Office (CPCO), and
  • Lilijana Madjar, President of the Development Council of the Western Slovenia Cohesion Region.

Among other things, you will get answers to your questions:

  • How successful has Slovenia been in absorbing funds in the 2007-2013 period?
  • How has cohesion policy changed?
  • Is Slovenia really under-performing?
  • Is Slovenia a net contributor or a net recipient of funds from the common European coffers?

11.15 – 12.00 What kind of cohesion policy would you like to see in the period 2021-2027?

In a moderated discussion, we will make proposals for the future of cohesion policy in Slovenia.

12.00 – 12.30 Informal gathering with coffee and snacks

12.30 – 14.00 Cohesion policy in practice: what have we achieved?

Did you know that thanks to cohesion funding we can now transport 14 tonnes of freight a year instead of 8 tonnes, that almost half a million people are drinking better water, and that hospitals, nursing homes, boarding schools and student hostels are saving as much as 20 million a year thanks to energy renovations?

We will talk to:

  • Zlata Ploštajner from the University of Ljubljana, which has built the Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, the Faculty of Computer Science and Informatics and a new extension to the Faculty of Biotechnics, among others, with the help of cohesion funding, and which has a number of projects that promote cooperation between students and researchers and the economy and the wider social environment.Zlata Ploštajner from the University of Ljubljana, which has also built the Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, the Faculty of Computer Science and Informatics and a new extension to the Faculty of Biotechnics,
  • Jelko Gros from the Sport Institute Planica, which has renovated and upgraded the Planica Nordic Centre with cohesion funding and promotes the employment of sports graduates and the implementation of sports programmes run by schools and sports associations through the Youth for Youth and Healthy Lifestyles programmes,
  • Metka Cerar and Barbara Vrtačnik from the Slovenian Employment Agency, which uses the European Social Fund to provide a number of employment and training programmes for the unemployed and employers, and to promote the activation of young people on the labour market through the Youth Guarantee,
  • Simona Kneževič Vernon from the Ljubljana Technology Park, which uses cohesion funds to promote the development of innovative companies and young entrepreneurs, and
  • representatives of other invited institutions supporting entrepreneurship development and promoting employment and inclusion of vulnerable groups.

14.00 Closing of the conference with a banquet

The Association EPEKA, Soc. Ent., is supported by: