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COOPERATION BETWEEN GIRONDE AND NIS IN EDUCATING YOUNG FIREFIGHTERS

COOPERATION BETWEEN GIRONDE AND NIS IN EDUCATING YOUNG FIREFIGHTERS January 17th

The reception was held at Nis City Hall for the guests from Gironde (France) within the framework of the cooperation project between the Gironde fire department and Nis Administrative and Business Secondary School that educates future firemen. The delegation was led by Maryse Dusselier, the Head   of the Department for International Relations, joined by Captain Vincent Latorre, the officer from the department for firefighting training, and Jacques Loche, the director of the college Champs-d ’Eymet à Pellegrue. The guests from France were received by Mr. Sasa Zivic, the Nis City Council Member and Mr. Milos Milosevic, the Assistant Mayor. The meeting was also attended by Honorary Consul of France in Serbia, Mr. Sasa Miljkovic, and the representatives of the Nis Administrative and Business Secondary School. The total value of this project is about 17 thousand euros, and the school from Nis is in charge of its technical implementation with the support of the Nis City Municipality Medijana. In the first year this project will focus on the exchange of French and Serbian professional associates in the training of students for the profile of volunteer firefighters. The delegation from Gironde will donate to Nis Administrative and Business Secondary School the necessary funds for implementation of practical classes for the educational profile of fire protection technician.




CHRISTMAS GREETINGS FROM NIS CITY MAYOR

January 6th

Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic, on the occasion of the Christmas celebration, extended his greetings to all fellow citizens: “In the light of the birth of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, to all believers and the clergy of the Orthodox religion, I wish that this most joyful holiday of Christian culture is welcomed surrounded by the closest ones, in peace, love, health and joy. May the grace of the birth of Christ forever remind us of the power of love, of goodness, of communion, and of the beauty and richness of religious, cultural and all other diversity. Let us rejoice in each other, exchange words of love and warmth, forgive mistakes, and strengthen our faith and hope. May Christmas bring to my fellow citizens spiritual peace, prosperity, success and happiness. Merry Christmas!”




SPEECH BY NIS CITY MAYOR AT THE NEW YEAR’S RECEPTION

At the traditional New Year’s reception Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic summarized the achievements of the past year and announced plans for the next:

 

“We are at the very end of the passing year and on the doorstep of the coming year. This is a moment when we have to look back at the year 2018, to look at what we did and what kind of foundations we set for 2019. This festive evening we can rightfully say that a difficult year, a year full of challenges, difficulties and uncertainties, but also years of success, work, peace and prosperity is behind us.

There is no doubt that 2018 was a decisive year in the development of the modern Nis. During last year 3 new large factories were opened in Nis, where the value of investments was over 80 million euros and that would employ at least 4,500 workers. On the well-established foundations in 2018, we continue to build in 2019. Next year we expect the construction of a new Johnson Electric Factory, the expansion of the Leoni factory, as well as the beginning of the operations of the Zumtobel subcontractors, which will employ over 500 workers. We are negotiating with over 10 new potential investors and we are sure that in 2019, with the support of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, Nis will be an ideal destination for new investors. Special attention is paid to medium, small and micro enterprises in the strategies and the policies of the City of Nis. City of Nis, with the support of the Serbian Government, allocated RSD 110 million to support domestic micro, small and medium enterprises and has supported over 300 domestic companies through numerous stimulus measures.

We all have to agree about one thing – science, economy and advanced technologies – they are the three most powerful pillars on which we are building modern Nis. As the crown of all efforts, the foundation stone for the decade-old dream of the City of Nis was laid – Scientific Technology Park, the largest and most powerful ever investment in young people, in science and education.

At the end of this 2018 we can proudly say that we have built the most modern and largest Clinical Center in the entire Balkans, that we have built and that we are building key road directions, and the roads are important, because every new road is a new road to the future! Today, the largest national projects are being implemented in Nis, such as the project of construction of the Wastewater Treatment Plant with a network of collectors worth EUR 55 million.

Nis today is an ideal place for realization of large investment projects. All preparations were made for the big investment project by Delta Company in the construction of a commercial business center worth about 70 million euros. After a few years of delay, Novi Nis Project is progressing real well. The realization of commercial investments, such as the Delta Planet Shopping Center and Novi Nis Residential and Commercial Complex, prove that the economic situation in Nis is improving. These data, as exact and statistical indicators, show that the City of Nis is indeed a city of the future.

 

The most powerful proof is the solving of the biggest problem of today, that is, the decrease of the number of unemployed and creation of new jobs. At the moment, there is lowest possible unemployment rate in recent years. The number of unemployed, just two years ago, was about 33,000, and this number was reduced by almost 10,000 in just two years.

Our results are recognized at the national and international level: at the national level, the City of Nis was declared the Champion of Local Economic Development in the category of attracting investments for 2018/2019. Also, the Financial Times ranked the City of Nis at the 7th place as the City of the Future for 2018/2019. Nis, as a region, came in the third place in the category of small European regions with regard to attracting foreign direct investment

Dear associates and friends of the City of Nis,

New Year is a symbol of a new beginning of life, a new hope for the future. I am deeply convinced that, with joint forces, with a unique will, and above all  with diligent and hard work we can achieve a common dream and build a modern, powerful, European Nis, a “smart city”, a place that attracts tourists from all over the world and has a great reputation in the international public. Dear associates, as we are together in these pre-holiday and festive days, we are together in our everyday tasks. And precisely, our work together, friendship and sincere love of our city and our only, beloved Serbia, multiply our forces for the battle for great achievements.

Let New Year’s holidays bring the best in us, let us encourage solidarity in our neighbors, the joy of giving by which we enrich and make our own life happy; these days, but also throughout the year, we should be saying kind words to each other, we should forgive each other, we should declare and multiply love, we should enrich each other’s soul with care, respect and care. I sincerely wish that in 2019 every person’s life changes for the better.

 

I sincerely wish, to all my fellow citizens, personal and family happiness, tranquility, well-being, happiness and every personal and professional success. May 2019 bring peace and prosperity to our Serbia and our beloved Nis. May 2019 be happy, healthy and prosperous for all citizens of Nis and all citizens of Serbia. Long live!




CHRISTMAS GREETINGS FROM NIS CITY MAYOR

December 24th
Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic extended his greeting on the occasion of the Christmas, the most joyous Christian holiday, to all those celebrating Christmas according to the Gregorian calendar.
“May this great holiday bring health, love and hope to you. Celebrate it in peace, rest and joy, in the circle of your loved ones; let the holiday strengthen the most human values, such as, respect, appreciation and understanding of diversity.”

 




STATEMENT MADE BY NIS CITY MAYOR ON THE OCCASION OF MARKING ARMISTICE DAY

“With a great pleasure, and I sincerely believe that I share this satisfaction with all fellow citizens, I want to proudly emphasize that, in these days when the world is celebrating the end of the First World War, our city, has a special place in history of the 20th century beginning. Certainly, the significant events in Nis between 1914 and 1918, related to the beginning of the Great War, but also its ending, must never be forgotten. First of all, I want to say that less than a month after June 28 and Sarajevo assassination, already on July 25 1914, the state leadership ordered the evacuation of the inhabitants of Belgrade and transferred the government to Nis, which became the war capital of Serbia. And only a few days later, a telegram arrived in Nis by which the Austro-Hungarian declared the war against Serbia. During the first year of the war bur also during 1915, Serbian National Assembly held its sessions in Officers’ Mess Building in Nis where on December 7, 1914, Nis Declaration was adopted, which explained the objectives of the liberation war and announced unification of the South Slavs – Serbs, Croats and Slovenes in one state. Therefore, Niš is also called “the birthplace of Yugoslavia”. By October 1915, in Officers’ Mess Building in Nis, besides the Nis Declaration, many important decisions were made. Here, on May 6, 1915, the Yugoslav Congress was held, during which Nis Declaration was adopted which emphasized the struggle of the Balkan peoples for the liberation and unification, and  the position against the London Treaty was proclaimed, which gave a part of the Adriatic coast to Italy. It should also be said that after years of suffering and immediately after the break-up of the Thessaloniki Front, Nis was the first city that the Serbian Army, headed by the Duke Peter Bojovic, liberated exactly one month before the cease of fire and ending of World War I.

I would also like to point out that the symbol marking the Armistice Day is the flower Natalija’s Ramonda and the famous Albanian Retreat medal. Dr. Sava Petrovic, personal doctor of the King Milan Obrenovic, discovered this flower in 1884 near Nis. It is specific because of the fact that when it is completely dried, it can revive after watering. It is on the list of rare, threatened and endemic plants of Europe, and it is strictly protected species in Serbia. The flower was named after the wife of King Milan, Natalija. This “flower phoenix” was chosen in the memory of Serbia which has risen from the ashes of the Great War to continue its path despite the great suffering and catastrophic losses in the Great War. All this is just one part why the Serbian history and the history of Nis are directly connected, and must never be forgotten, and why we can and should always be proud of the people of Nis.”

Mayor

Darko Bulatovic




15TH ANNIVERSARY OF PHILIP MORRIS INTERNATIONAL IN NIS

Serbian Prime Minister Ms. Ana Brnabic visited Philip Morris International on the occasion of marking 15 years since this global tobacco industry leader has privatized the Tobacco Industry Nis. The acquisition of this largest domestic tobacco factory continues to be one of the most successful privatizations and the largest direct foreign investments in Serbia so far.

Aleksandar Jakovljevic, Philip Morris General Director for Southeast Europe, said that since the arrival in Serbia, the company has invested more than $ 850 million in modernization and development of production to date and planned to continue investing in order to keep it stable and to meet the constant demand growth.  “The fact that we have increased exports 40 times compared to ten years ago and that as many as four out of five of all cigarettes today produced in Nis are intended for placement in 50 markets around the world, the best proof is the quality of this investment, our factory and 900 employees”, said Jakovljevic. Philip Morris is the second largest taxpayer in the country and accounts for more than five percent of the total tax revenues of the state budget. Based on excise duties, VAT and other taxes from coming to Serbia to date, the company has paid $ 6.5 billion to the budget, said the director Jakovljevic.

 

Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic together RS Prime Minister Ana Brnabic , during the visit to the factory, learned more about new production system which completely automates the management of the finished products.  Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said that the Serbian government was continuing to improve the business environment so that “companies like Philip Morris continue to operate in Serbia, achieve excellent business results and hire our employees and engage domestic companies as subcontractors.” At the end of the visit, Brnabic appealed to the company’s management to “direct some of its research into alternative tobacco products to our country. Innovation and research and development are important for the modernization of our economy and the acceleration of economic growth. ”

 




5.5 MILLION EUROS FOR NIS RAILWAY BYPASS TECHNICAL DOCUMENTATION PREPARATION AND NIS – PRESEVO RAILWAY MODERNIZTION

 

The Western Balkan Investment Framework (WBIF) will support with a total of € 5.5 million in grants for the development of design and technical documentation for the construction of the railway bypass around Nis and the modernization of the Nis-Presevo-Border line with Macedonia. Decision on financial support for the preparation of technical documentation for these two projects WBIF Management Board delivered upon the proposal of the Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure. Of the total amount, two million euros were approved for the development of a project for obtaining the building permit for a one-track railway bypass around Nis, as part of the modernization of the railway line on Corridor 10 from Nis to Dimitrovgrad, while € 3.5 million was designated for the preparation of the feasibility study and a study on environmental impact assessment for modernization of the railway on Corridor 10, section Nis-Presevo-Border with Macedonia, according to a statement from the Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure of Serbia.




MESSAGE FROM NIS CITY MAYOR DARKO BULATOVIC

 

In the last ten days, and after the celebration of the city festivities – the Days of St. Emperor Constantine and Empress Helen, but also after numerous manifestations before and after that, city leadership received numerous official responses, letters and congratulations from our country and abroad. On this occasion Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovis said:” Dear fellow citizens, I am particularly pleased to convey to you, the citizens of Nis, the messages that came from Greece, from the City of Serres, our twin city, but also from Austria, Italy, Russia, Bulgaria and other countries from which hundreds of guests stayed in our Nis at the time of the traditional celebration of the days of the city’s patrons – the Holy Emperor Constantine and Empress Helen.
All those thank-you notes, all the greeting cards received from our guests, were sent to you – to the citizens of Nis – for a warm welcome, great hospitality and, as almost every letter highlights, for the unforgettable days and pleasant moments spent in our city at the traditional city festivities. I especially emphasize that I feel, and that I share with you my dear fellow citizens, extreme pleasure for receiving the official letter from the Mayor of the Russian City of Kursk, Mr. Nikolai Ivanovich Ovcharov, who, besides everything else, emphasized “he believed that by participating in the event by which we marked the traditional city festivities, the City of Kursk contributed to the preservation of the historical and cultural tradition of Nis and further strengthened the deep spiritual and inseparable connection that exists between the Serbian and Russian people. ”
Mr. Ovcharov also pointed out that “Nis was a modern city that was developing dynamically and was surely going forward, while maintaining the recognizable spirit of Orthodox culture”, especially emphasizing that “historians had the right in calling Nis the Imperial City – the place of the birth of Emperor Constantine during the reign of whom more than 1,700 years ago, Christianity has acquired the legal right to exist and further developed ” In the end, the Mayor Kursk wrote, I quote “that after the unforgettable events in Nis, he firmly believes that with the new impulses for his work and the inexhaustible energy he had the opportunity to see with the citizens of Nis, our city will develop even more quickly and become a real European metropolis “.
I express my great and sincere satisfaction and gratitude both on my own and on behalf of all of you, for this friendly and sincere message that came from Kursk, a city in Russia known at every point of the planet Earth for the legendary Kursk Battle during the Second World War in which one of the greatest victories over fascism was won, Mayor Bulatovic concluded.




NEW YEAR’GREETINGS FROM NIS CITY MAYOR

29Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic extended his New Year’s greeting to all Nis citizens for the forthcoming 2018 with the wish for them that the following year would be happier than all the previous ones. “I wish to toy good health, success and happiness, for our families, for our children. I wish for all of us to have lot of work and to do more than in the previous year. The City of Nis will be facing great challenges next year. For this reason we have to come together with the common goal of a better life in our city. The first steps for the City of Nis to function without major problems have been made by stabilizing public finances in the city, and we have to work more to create conditions for improving living standards and a better future for our children. We leave another difficult year behind us, but in spite of all the difficulties, I want you to remember that optimism is a prerequisite for success. My dear fellow citizens please receive my congratulations on the upcoming holidays with my wish for you to celebrate them with your families and with those whom you love the most, to share joy with them, nurture friendship. In the next year, I want to us to work even more and to build our city, to make it better, and not to lose hope despite the difficulties and challenges. Happy New Year!




WINNERS OF THE 11TH JANUARY AWARD ANNOUNCED

December 26th

The President of the Commission for the City of Nis Annual Awards 11th January announced the names of the winners of this year’s highest award of the City of Nis. The commission unanimously decided that the laureates for this year would be two individuals and two collectives. For individuals, these are: the oncologist Mrs. Sladjana Filipovic and the writer Mr. Zoran Pesic Sigma. The award for teams this year would go to the prestigious secondary schools: Grammar School Bora Stankovic and Medical School Milenko Hadzic. The ceremonial session of the City of Nis Assembly, when the awards will be presented, will be held on January 11th, 2018 at the Officers Mess Building.