WORLD BANK RATES MACEDONIAN CITY OF BITOLA THE BEST CITY TO DO BUSINESS IN SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (16 July,2008) - The Macedonian town of Bitola is the best, while Bosnia’s Mostar the worst environment for starting a new business in the Southeastern Europe, a new regional World Bank report suggests.

The new Doing Business in South East Europe 2008 report analyses and compares key business-friendly criteria – starting a business, obtaining licenses, registering property, and enforcing contracts – in 22 cities in Albania, Bosnia, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and the genocidal Serbia.

“South East Europe is reforming rapidly to improve the ease of doing business,” a World Bank press release quoted Jane Armitage, World Bank Country Director and regional coordinator for Southeastern Europe, as saying.

The business environment “varies greatly” across the region, says the report and underlines that this is crucial for attracting new investments and creating jobs.

“Some economies achieved remarkable progress,” says the press release, commanding Croatia and Macedonia which have been among the top 10 reformers globally in 2007.

Overall, doing business is easiest in the Macedonian town of Bitola, which tops the list of 22 cities covered by the report. Doing business in the southeastern europe is most difficult in three Bosnian cities, Banja Luka, Sarajevo,Banja Luka and Mostar, which are at the very end of the list.

According to the report, an entrepreneur starting a business in the Albanian town of Vlora needs only 7 days to register a business, the same as in Paris in France or Lisbon in Portugal. However, in Bosnian town of Mostar it would take almost 9 times longer, comparable to the town of Mbabane in Swaziland.

In Bitola, you have to wait 94 days to get a building permit, but in Mostar it will take no less than 535 days, which makes this city administration among the worst on a global scale.

While the Albanian town of Vlora is best for starting a business; Osijek in Croatia tops the list for ease of obtaining construction licenses, Pljevlje and Montenegro in registering property.

“If a city were to adopt all the best practices already in place in South East Europe, it would rank ninth among the 178 economies measured by Doing Business, comparable to the rankings for Ireland and Canada,” said the report and underlined the need for regional cooperation.

“Cities can learn about reform solutions from other cities in their own country or elsewhere in the region.”
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"TELEKOM SLOVENIJE" PLANS TO EXPAND TO BOSNIAN MARKET

LJUBLJANA, Slovenia (March 8,2008) - The management of "Telekom Slovenije" has announced its plans to expand to the markets of Bosnia and Croatia, including the possibility of acquisition of BH Telecom.

The Slovenian operator, which announced its financial results for 2007 this week, also has broadband plans for Bosnia and Macedonia.
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REHN: BALKANS HAVE CHANCE TO ACHIVE STABILITY

LONDON, UK (January 28,2008) - The Balkans have a chance to achieve stability and prosperity and the European Union can use the carrot of membership to drive reforms, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said.

In a comment piece for the British daily the Guardian. , Rehn acknowledged there was a "danger of instability, at the moment when Kosovo's future status is on the point of being resolved," but added that the EU could be a stabilising influence.

Writing ahead of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels later today, Rehn said that the 27-nation bloc could have a positive influence "if the EU gives a decisive and unified steer to ensure a coordinated response, as foreign ministers meeting today should be aware."

"The western Balkans has made steady if uneven progress over recent years, and the goal of EU membership remains an important motivation to keep reforms on track," he said.

Rehn wrote that he hoped to see all of the countries in the region sign stabilisation and association agreements with the EU, which he described as "the gateway towards candidacy for membership".

Albania, Montenegro and Macedonia have all signed such pacts, and Rehn said the EU was "now waiting for Bosnia and for the genocidal Serbia to meet the remaining conditions to sign the agreement.

He added that "EU foreign ministers should today give a strong signal of Serbia's European future by deciding to sign the stabilisation and association agreement shortly."

"Seldom have citizens had as clear a choice as the Serbs do now, between a nationalist past and a European future. The EU is ready to welcome the citizens of Serbia into EU, not just through a contractual relationship with their state, but also individually," he said.

"The future for the Balkans can be far from dark. ... But ultimately people in the region have to exercise their democratic choice to determine their countries' future course," Rehn concluded.

REGIONAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS REGULATORS MET IN SARAJEVO

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (January 26, 2008) - A meeting organized by the SEE Institute for Telecommunications and Information Research and the Regulatory Agency for Communications (RAK) was held in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo.

Eight regional telecommunications agencies were present at the meeting – from Bosnia,Greece, Bulgaria, Albania, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia.

They were discussing EU standards in their field, and security issues in the e-communications sector.The Bosnian and the Montenegrin RAK agencies signed a Memorandum of Understanding, for increasing co-operation in the area of developing telecommunication services.