December 6^th

The IT sector is the most promising industrial branch in our country, not only for the owners of IT companies but also for the employees. The City of Nis is aware of the fact that proper investment in advanced technologies at all levels is the only real chance for the recovery of our economy and we believe that it is more than necessary to implement this field at all levels of economy, state administration and local self-government and education, said Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic at today’s press conference held at the Nis City Hall. He pointed out that this was actually the main message sent from the recently held Advanced Technology Forum. At the press conference, the results from the Second Advanced Technology Forum were summed up and the conclusions reached by the organizing committee of this Forum were summarized. One of the conclusions is that we are lacking IT experts and that our primary task is to improve non-formal education for working in the field of ICT and other close branches, both through training and re-training programs, as well as through funding training at ICT academies, said the Mayor. He added that the City of Nis would try to promote the idea of education and science in the function of economic development in the following period, which would, as he pointed out, be supported from the highest state level. “The Serbian Government gives full support to the development of the IT sector and encourages domestic ICT companies that are export oriented, in order to create the best possible conditions for forming domestic innovative companies,” the Mayor said. Dragan Jankovic, the Dean of the Faculty of Electronic Engineering pointed out that the idea for organizing the Forum was in fact created by young people in order to find ways and measures to keep them in Nis and Serbia. “The Advanced Technologies Forum is not a matter of a faculty, an educational institution, a mayor or any individual, it is the forum of all Nis. This uniqueness of all actors who participated in the organization brought us results”, said Dean Jankovic.

December 2^nd

In celebration of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, the session of the Council for Persons with Disabilities of the City of Nis, attended by Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic was held today at Nis City Hall. On this occasion, Mayor Bulatovic thanked all the people with disabilities for providing tremendous contributions and advice to local self-government in order to solve common problems in the best possible way. “I am not saying everything goes smoothly, without problems, quite the contrary. But with enough understanding, dedication and with the desire to move forward, we overcome the obstacles we encounter”, the Mayor said. Today is the opportunity is to promote understanding of the problem of disability and to once again demonstrate how important tolerance, mutual respect and cooperation are, but also the availability of institutions in order to include people with disabilities more in the social and economic life of our city,” he added. “We are doing everything in our power to improve and help greater involvement in all aspects of life. Unfortunately, there are still many barriers that we face as a society. People with disabilities continue to face unequal opportunities in terms of education, employment, and many institutions remain physically inaccessible. The rate of employment of people with disabilities is extremely low, despite the implementation of the Law on Employment of Persons with Disabilities. These are just some of the problems, “said Mayor Bulatovic. ”Ever-present problems must not remain invisible so that you would not feel invisible in your community, and I believe that this happens often to you. My associates and I will try, together with you, to solve problems one by one, that equal opportunities that are guaranteed to you become truly equal, and above all, we will strive to respect your right to diversity”, concluded Mayor Bulatovic.

December 1^st

The European Delegation in Serbia presented a valuable gift to the University Library “Nikola Tesla” of 50 books of professional literature dealing with legal and scientific developments related to the functioning of the European Union. The donation was handed over to the Director of the Library, Zoran Zivkovic, by Michael Devenport, the Head of the European delegation in Serbia. This library, based on its literary and scientific material, is an important place for science and education in Nis and throughout southeastern Serbia. Nis City Deputy Mayor Prof.dr Milos Bandjur, also attended the ceremony, and on this occasion he emphasized the importance of this kind of literature, which would easily find its way to professors and students interested in studying the policy of the European Union, but also to all those of our fellow citizens who wanted to be informed about the European Union. It is very important that the academic community in Nis continues to cooperate with the Delegation of the European Union in Serbia in order to realize the foreign policy priority of our country, which implies future membership in the European Union.