In Focus Switzerland

Switzerland 2018

NEUTRAL, INNOVATIVE, INTERNATIONAL AT HEART! MLADEN ŠARČEVIĆ

Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development

YANA MIKHAILOVA

President of the Swiss-Serbian Chamber of Commerce (SSCC)

H.E. PHILIPPE GUEX Ambassador of Switzerland to Serbia

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The Red Cross was founded in 1863 in Geneva and is still based there.

The flag of the Red Cross is the flag of Switzerland with the colours inverted.

Switzerland is just one of the two countries in the world with a rectangular flag.

ALWAYS NEUTRAL TO THE END Switzerland has a long and strong tradition of political and military neutrality. However, the country finally opted to join the United Nations in 2002, and the Schengen Agreement in 2005

06 05 NUMBER ONE Zurich is a large Swiss city has been named the number one city in the world for quality of life several times since 2006. It lies on the shores of Lake Zurich in Zurich canton. It is largely a German-speaking city.

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MORE CHOCOLATE THAN ANY OTHER NATION

They eat a record of around 11kg per year. Chocolate is a major Swiss export; with 18 Swiss chocolate companies, Switzerland exported almost 115,500 tonnes of chocolate in 2015. They have also invented techniques like conching and tempering to perfect the art of chocolate making.

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THE DRAGON MOUNTAIN

At 2123m, Pilatus (The Dragon Mountain) has the steepest cogwheel railway in the world, with a maximum gradient of 48% and an average gradient of 35%. From the top of the mountain, 73 mountain peaks can be seen and five different lakes.

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METRO AND OLYMPICS

Lausanne became the smallest city in the world to have its own metro system when it opened in 2008. It is home to many sports organisations' headquarters, including the International Olympic Committee.

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NOT FOR “CHWEITZ�!

The country code for Switzerland, typically displayed next to car plates, is CH. It stands for Confoederatio Helvetica, the Latin for Swiss Confederation - a neutral alternative to using the first letters of one of the four official languages.

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MOUNTAINS ARE NOT A MYTH

There are 208 mountain peaks above 3000 metres in Switzerland, including 24 above 4000 metres. The highest of them is Monte Rosa (Dufourspitze) at 4634m, at the boundary of the Valais and the Piedmont (Italy).

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INTERVIEW

MLADEN ŠARČEVIĆ

Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development

WE WANT TO MODERNIZE YOUTH EDUCATION 4

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The Swiss government is an important partner to the Serbian Ministry of Education and Serbian government in developing educational and scientific capacities in the country

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witzerland supports the development of educational and scientific capacities in Serbia through a series of programmes. As a result of this support, we were given an opportunity to get acquainted with one of the best dual education practices, and bring to Serbia international know-how and experience in social sciences and IT sector.

Dual education is one the most publicly visible areas, but this is, by no means, the only one. Owing to years of Swiss support, we have developed a science and technology park which is a hothouse of innovative ideas and startups that are the future backbone of Serbia's export of high added value products.

Simultaneously, Switzerland supports other projects which goal is to boost scientific and innovation capacities in Serbia.

For instance, ending on 30th September, out of 145 projects that were approved under the framework of the Horizon 2020 programme, 51 were implemented together with Switzerland. Furthermore, the Swiss National Science Foundation is financing the Scientific Co-operation between Eastern Europe and Switzerland (SCOPES) programme. On top of that, a new programme titled Joint Research Projects starts next year, says Mladen Šarčević, the Minister of Education, Science and Technological Development.

Educating workers to fit the labour market needs is one of the government's priorities. What do you think of the efforts that the Swiss government has been investing in developing professional staff in Serbia in the framework of the set goals? ― The Swiss government has been investing a lot of effort via the Swiss Agency for

Development and Cooperation in Serbia in developing high school education, and is one of the most important partners of the Ministry in developing and improving education. As a result of their projects, several educational profiles in the wood processing industry have been modernized or created.

THE SWISS AGENCY FOR DEVELOPMENT AND COOPERATION IN SERBIA IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PARTNERS OF THE MINISTRY IN DEVELOPING AND IMPROVING EDUCATION What are the most important experiences of dual education in Switzerland that Serbia can implement? ― The basic feature of the Swiss dual education model is the high level of passability through the system. After passing an additional exam, students have the right to enroll in universities, or in one of the two state-run polytechnic colleges in Switzerland. This means that a student, who has completed a second degree of secondary vocational education, which usually provides the student with practical skills and knowledge for the specific job, can continue education at the third or fourth level. Moreover, it is possible to finish school, work in the company for ten years or more, and then go back to further education. This means that there is no age limit for vocational training.

'From Knowledge to Work' is one of these programmes which goal is to enable young people to acquire knowledge and skills from the formal education system as soon as possible. How many young people will be included in this programme and how many skills are they going to acquire? ― The overall goal of this programme is the inclusive and sustainable increase of the employability of young people in the Republic of Serbia. It includes three types of projects. First, 'Innovative Approaches for Higher Employment and Employability of Young People' focuses on testing innovative employment models at the local level. This group of 9 projects generates changes in political framework, and contributes to the inclusive and sustainable position of youth in the labour market.

A total of 22 projects were selected for implementation under the 'Learning through Work' programme which aim is to support and train 350 young people from Kragujevac, Kruševac, Pirot, Knjaževac, and Novi Pazar to acquire skills and knowledge that are needed in the labour market and thus increase the chances of starting their own career.

The third one, the Informal Training Programme, focuses on youth who are not that employable. The Adoption and Foster Care Center in Kragujevac and 12 non-governmental organizations are an excellent example of a public-private partnership in implementing 6 projects which will include 350 young people - 155 of them from Kragujevac, Kruševac, Pirot, Knjaževac and Novi Pazar - who will go through soft skills training.

Also, the two countries are cooperating on improving the capacity of highly

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THE ESTIMATES HAVE SHOWN THAT SERBIA NEEDS BETWEEN 10,000 AND 15,000 ADDITIONAL IT PROFESSIONALS SWITZERLAND 2018

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skilled workforce in the ICT sector through financing the Science and Technology Park (NTP). How important is this support to Serbia? ― The Swiss government has supported the establishment and development of NTP Belgrade from the very beginning, and this was enormously important for us. As a result of this support, we have the opportunity to bring international knowledge and experience in this field to Serbia, and to study in detail the examples of best practices in developed countries. On the basis of this, we can develop a model adapted to our conditions, establish partnerships with technology parks in developed countries, especially with the Technological Park in Ljubljana and Lausanne, develop an appealing and transparent model for attracting high-tech companies to come to Zvezdara, realize more than 100 training and counseling sessions for young people willing to star their own business, as well as develop the capacities of the team that manages NTP Belgrade. We are particularly proud of the fact that NTP Belgrade is already equipped to follow the latest global trends.

The importance of all of the aforementioned is demonstrated through NTP Belgrade's rapid growth. In only two years, we have managed to bring 58 companies, which employ 450 engineers, to operate from the Park. Last year, which is also the first year of NTP's operations, these companies generated 10 million EUR in revenue with 6 million EUR generated from export alone. We are extremely grateful to the Swiss government for this, and we expect their support in the future too in mapping the need for further development of science and technology parks in Serbia.

Could you please elaborate on the Ministry's efforts to respond to the market needs through educational process and, among other things, to the needs of Swiss investors interested in investing in the ICT sector? ― The Serbian government and the Ministry have taken a number of steps towards increasing educational capacities. First, computer programming has become a compulsory subject for the fifth graders in elementary schools, and the number of advanced IT classes in high schools has been increased. In order to help stu-

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A TOTAL OF 22 PROJECTS WERE SELECTED FOR IMPLEMENTATION UNDER THE 'LEARNING THROUGH WORK' PROGRAMME WHICH AIM IS TO SUPPORT AND TRAIN 350 YOUNG PEOPLE dents with enrolling in high schools as IT majors in the coming school year, we have introduced on-line courses for the sixth, seventh and eighth grade in cooperation with Schneider Electric. For this academic year, we have increased the student quota for IT studies to 707. We are currently in talks to boost the spatial capacities of faculties that train people in this segment, while the budget also envisages a new increase in quotas.

According to the Ministry's estimates, how many more IT professionals does Serbia need in order to adequately respond to the challenges of digitalization? ― The estimates have shown that Serbia needs between 10,000 and 15,000 additional IT professionals.

Could you also elaborate on the cooperation on the Horizon 2020 programme?

― Ending on 30th September, a total of 210 institutions from Serbia participated in the Horizon 2020 programme. Out of 145 projects that were approved in the framework of this programme, 51 were implemented together with Switzerland.

The total project budget was 54.8 million EUR. Two of our researchers, Sofija Stefanovic and Magdalena Djordjevic were given grants by the European Research Council for outstanding research ideas that push research boundaries, while Biosens Institute received a 14-million-EUR investment, allocated by the Serbian government for the ANTARES project.

Furthermore, we would like to underline the importance of the Scientific Co-operation between Eastern Europe and Switzerland (SCOPES) programme, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation. Under this programme, a total of 65 projects were implemented with the participation of Serbian scientists. We expect the new International Joint Research Projects programme to be launched next year.

What has Ministry been doing to encourage cooperation between research institutions and private companies? ― The Ministry encourages the cooperation between businesses and science both directly and indirectly. We directly encourage it through the Public Call for Innovative Projects that we launch every ear, and indirectly through programmes implemented by the Innovation Fund.

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INTERVIEW

WE ARE A WHOLEHEARTEDLY SUPPORTING SERBIA’S REFORMS As an economist, I am impressed by Serbia’s ability to substantially decrease its fiscal deficit. However implementation of structural reforms has been rather slow. Through the Swiss development cooperation we are committed to help Serbia in developing good governance, economic development, employment and energy efficiency

H.E. PHILIPPE GUEX

Ambassador of Switzerland to Serbia

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witzerland, which has been a reliable partner of Serbia for over a century, is committed to foster Serbia’s growth, says H.E. Philippe Guex, Ambassador of Switzerland to Serbia.

As an economist by training how do you assess current macroeconomic environment in Serbia? ― The macroeconomic environment in Serbia has been steadily improving. This is also the conclusion of the IMF’s eighth review of Serbia’s economy since the adoption of its economic program supported by the Stand-By Agreement. As an economist, I am particularly impressed by Serbia’s ability to substantially decrease its fiscal deficit. Not a single euro zone country would be able to achieve what Serbia did: to reduce the public deficit by

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5% of GDP within two years. The strong monetary policy of the Serbian National Bank has also proven essential in maintaining the inflation at low level. Switzerland has been supporting Serbia to adopt and implement its public financial reform plan as well as to reduce banks’ non-performing loans which have now decreased from 23% to 16% in one year

NOT A SINGLE EURO ZONE COUNTRY WOULD BE ABLE TO ACHIEVE WHAT SERBIA DID: TO REDUCE THE PUBLIC DEFICIT BY 5% OF GDP WITHIN TWO YEARS

only. Whilst Serbia ought to be praised for its macroeconomic policy, the implementation of structural reforms has been rather slow and somewhat complicated.

For instance the process of privatization and of restructuring of state-own enterprises continues to hinder the Serbian economy and prospect of more significant growth. The economy remains also overburdened by a large and inefficient public sector, with too little reliance on the productive private sector.

What do you see as the next most important steps to secure current stability and spur somewhat lagging GDP growth? ― Economic growth in Serbia is primarily driven by exports and investments, which have been on the rise in the past years.

This is also the case in relations to Swit-

zerland which was actually the second largest foreign investor in Serbia in 2016.

Whilst this is very encouraging, attracting foreign investors in the long term will require further improvement of the business environment and stronger exports capacities. In this respect and whilst there is certainly space for improvement, the fact that Serbia's exports to Switzerland increased by 27% in 2016 (an upward trend which prevails this year as well) is very encouraging. Switzerland, which has been a reliable partner of Serbia for over a century, is committed to foster Serbia’s growth and knowledge-based economy.

My country has notably supported the Science and Technology Park of Belgrade to create high-tech products which are competitive in export markets. By doing so Switzerland also wants to contribute to preventing brain drain of the well-educated Serbian youth. Swiss companies contributed so far to the creation of 11.000 jobs in Serbia. It will also continue to foster youth employment in Serbia based on its experience in dual education.

Speaking of prerequisites of growth, do you consider that process of reforms adequately tackled the business environment for small and medium companies which are, for example the backbone of the Swiss economy? ― Since the adoption of its fiscal consolidation programme, Serbia’s ranking in business surveys has actually risen markedly. Future growth will however require further improvement of the business regulatory environment. A survey conducted by the Swiss-Serbian Chamber of Commerce revealed on the one hand that most of their members, including some large

multinationals but also many SMEs, did not regret having invested in Serbia and many are actually considering expanding their operations. At the same time, companies continue to stress the need for Serbia to simplify the tax system further, to increase legal security, to ensure the availability of qualified workers and to lower social costs of employment.

IN SERBIA, THE FURTHER “DEPOLITIZATION” OF THE ADMINISTRATION AND THE JUDICIARY AS WELL AS THE PROFESSIONALIZATION OF THE PARLIAMENT WILL BE ESSENTIAL IN BECOMING A WELL-DEVELOPED DEMOCRACY One of the initiatives you support is named “Through Education to employment”. Are you satisfied with how is this project implemented, and what are your expectations when it comes to sustainability of the results achieved? ― We are satisfied how this program started, especially how the private sector reacted to this initiative. For us, the involvement of the private sector is a crucial element which was often neglected in similar initiatives in the past. The Program From Education to Employment (E2E) supports evidence-based development of youth employment policies in Serbia.

Therefore, we were extremely pleased to

see that 60 companies (mainly Serbian SMEs) got engaged in the E2E, offering work-based learning of skills required on the labor market for young people. This will help young people to increase their qualifications and to faster find a decent job. Currently, E2E is working with 460 young people, of whom 110 are from vulnerable groups, as to learn skills required at the labor market.

One of the well-recognized problems in Serbia are a lot of unskilled workforce either among young people and among those older than 45. What experiences from Switzerland you may share, that would be useful for addressing these challenges? ― The approach of life-long learning is relatively new in Serbia. There is an existing legal framework but more is required so that this concept lives to full extent.

Serbia cannot be compared with Switzerland in terms of the labour market situation. However, what we have in common is the mutual understanding that reforms are needed in this field. Switzerland has been approached to support Serbia in the process of bringing closer the world of education and the labour market. The idea is not to replicate the Swiss system, but to encourage the country to find its own approach. It also took Switzerland a very long time to elaborate the most adequate model of dual education, and we are steadily revising the system along with the changes in the economy.

You once said that the macroeconomic reforms are the biggest success in the process of the Serbian Euro integration process. What has to be done in other

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SWITZERLAND HAS BEEN APPROACHED TO SUPPORT SERBIA IN THE PROCESS OF BRINGING CLOSER THE WORLD OF EDUCATION AND THE LABOUR MARKET SWITZERLAND 2018

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fields that advanced less, not just in terms of the accession process but in terms of Serbia becoming a well-developed democracy? ― Elections are not democracy, they are just a tiny part of it. Weak democratic institutions are the door open to the dictatorship of the majority. In my view, a well-developed democracy is characterized by a high degree of respect of citizens’ rights which also translate into their well-being. Whilst a strong, prosperous economy helps, the pre-requisite to any democratic system should be the existence of checks and balances. In Serbia, the further “depolitization” of the administration and the judiciary as well as the professionalization of the parliament will be essential.

Also, the civil society, including in particular the media, and regulatory bodies such as the Ombudsperson, the Commissioner for Access to Information of Public importance and the Commissioner for gender equality should be given more space to effectively protect citizens’ rights.

Catalonia at one point and that the verdicts of the Hague Tribunal recently have brought historically fraught issues in Serbia and Western Balkan in the focus. How much is the past still haunting the region? ― The past is the biggest uncertainty for the future of the Western Balkan countries. One cannot build a regional future by denying the past. The strategy aiming at “agreeing to disagree” on the past will not lead to reconciliation. An ever lasting peace in the region and long term prosperity can only be granted with reconciliation. But reconciliation might happen only once the political elites throughout the Western Balkans will decide to deal seriously with the past. So far, it is not the case. Official statements to recent convictions by the ICTY are a good illustration of this situation.

What do you see as the most optimistic results of the opposite process and that is of cooperation between the WB countries and how do you assess the role of Serbia in these processes? ― A measure which speaks in favor of regional reconciliation is the full support given by the Serbian government to the Chamber of Commerce and Industry to increase trade and investment between

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AN EVER LASTING PEACE IN THE REGION AND LONG TERM PROSPERITY CAN ONLY BE GRANTED WITH RECONCILIATION AND THAT IS TO DEAL SERIOUSLY WITH THE PAST. SO FAR, IT IS NOT THE CASE Serbia and its neighbors from the former Yugoslavia. Through trade and investment a “silent” reconciliation process can take place in the Western Balkans in order to rebuild the intense economic relations which prevailed before the nineties. It has to be remembered that economic integration was the cornerstone of the reconciliation between France and Germany after World War II and is still at the very heart of the construction of the European Union. As Serbia was the economic hub of former Yugoslavia, it has today a key role to play in this regard.

After being for more than one year in this post how do you assess bilateral relations between our two countries?

― Our bilateral relations rely on four solid pillars. First, we have excellent political relations at the highest governmental level. An example is the recent meeting in Zurich between Prime Minister Brnabic and President Doris Leuthard. Second, the backbone of our relations is the people-to-people ones with a Serbian diaspora approaching 200’000 persons who contribute to the prosperity and the social life of my country. Over 5% percent of the Swiss population mother tongue is Serbian. More than 5000 Serbian citizen receive the Swiss citizenship each year.

The remittances coming from the Serbian diaspora in Switzerland is estimated to 500 million euros. The third pillar is the economic relations which are still modest as our bilateral trade does not exceed 1% of the global trade of Switzerland. But our economic ties have a strong potential as Serbia little by little is improving rule of law and enforcing EU economic standards. Finally the Swiss development cooperation in Serbia is a key element of our bilateral ties. Switzerland is among the top four main bilateral donors, with the US, Germany and Sweden. It is 22 million euros which are yearly earmarked for Serbia until 2021. Our cooperation priorities are governance, economic development and employment as well as energy efficiency, all focused on the less developed regions of the country.

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INTERVIEW

YANA MIKHAILOVA

President of the Swiss-Serbian Chamber of Commerce (SSCC)

INNOVATION IS THE GROWTH DRIVER

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witzerland is among the 10 largest investors in Serbia, having invested more than €500 million in the last decade. The value of the trade exchange between the two countries in 2016 was around €286 million, with Serbia importing more than it exports.

Swiss companies recognized these positive changes.

However, obstacles still exist and companies expect the local business environment to advance further. Key challenges of doing business in Serbia are still related

What kind of expectations do Swiss companies in Serbia have for 2018 in terms of continuation of reforms? ― Structural reforms undertaken in Serbia in the last few years, economic and fiscal stability and strong macroeconomic indicators generally positively impacted on the conditions for doing business, and

AS THE BIGGEST MARKET IN THE WB, SERBIA OFFERS GOOD PROSPECTS FOR DEVELOPING PRODUCTION AND EXPORT

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There is a lot of know-how that Swiss companies and policy makers can share with their Serbian partners when it comes to encouraging and stimulating the creation and development of innovative companies in Serbia to administration and bureaucracy, the tax system and the fight against corruption, as well as securing legal security and stability.

Also, having in mind the recent trends in Swiss-Serbian business relations, the members of the Chamber expect from the government to continue to create framework conditions that will support the development of the national innovation ecosystem. This would not only attract more investors from foreign countries, including Switzerland, but will also contribute to producing more added-value products and services in Serbia and transitioning towards a knowledge-based economy.

There have been announcements about long-awaited changes in taxes for businesses and parafiscal charges. What do investors expect in this regard? ― In the latest World Bank report for 2018, it is stated that the tax system in Serbia has been significantly improved thanks to the use of new technologies in tax administration and the improvement of electronic systems for reporting and paying taxes, which is worth mentioning.

However, securing a more consistent and more efficient implementation of regulations is essential for Serbian economy, especially in the field of tax policy. In order to achieve that, state administration, including the tax administration, needs to modernize further.

Serbian society is divided when it comes to the country's aptitude to implement digitalization when some of its parts don't even have an adequate infrastructure. What benefits would digitalization bring to the business sector, and what do you expect the government to do regarding this? ― Digitalization of administration in Serbia will provide easier, faster and cheaper access to public services for both citizens and companies, as well as more transparency in its work.

A good example is recently introduced electronic issuance of building permits, which very quickly resulted in the increased number of building permits being issued and revitalization of the construction industry.

Besides improving of the information and communication infrastructure, it is very important that the government adopts all the necessary legal regulations as soon as possible, as well as to improve

the skills and knowledge of public administration officers. For instance, in order to enable the use of "digital identity", or digital signatures, to the citizens at large, a set of regulations which will specify the electronic identification schemes and prescribe the conditions for the reliable patterns needs to be introduced.

WE HAVE RECENTLY OBSERVED THAT SWISS ENTERPRISES, AND ESPECIALLY THOSE FROM THE IT SECTOR, WERE SHOWING GROWING INTEREST IN THE SERBIAN MARKET What parallels can be drawn between digitalization and innovation? ― We are witnessing that a large number of innovative solutions come from the digital field, and that digitalization has completely changed the way in which today's companies operate and interact with their customers and consumers. I would especially like to point out that innovative solutions in ICT in the last decade have revolutionized the way in which people communicate, having in mind a variety of communication channels, their speed, quality, low cost and interactive nature.

Innovation, which is at the heart of digitalization, is an approach, a mentality and a way of living and thinking. It is the essence for evolution of companies,

everything is connected to it today.

Swiss companies and SMEs recognize the relevance of digitization as a means for business innovation. They can use digital products to expand customer relationships and tap into new markets and sales channels – such as through e-commerce and digital marketing. Digital tools also simplify market analysis or assessments of customer potential.

SSCC is actively involved in supporting innovative capacities in Serbia. What do you expect from this process? ― According to an index by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Switzerland is number one country in the world when it comes to innovation.

Innovation is the growth driver of Swiss economy, so there is a lot of know-how that Swiss companies and policy makers can share with their Serbian partners when it comes to encouraging and stimulating the creation and development of innovative companies in Serbia.

We have recently observed that Swiss enterprises, and especially those from the IT sector, were showing growing interest in the Serbian market. This trend clearly confirms that innovation is the key element for further strengthening of economic relations between Switzerland and Serbia.

The Science and Technology Park Belgrade (STP), as the first institution of its type in Serbia, is a clear example of Swiss support in that direction. With more than 400 people that are working in 57 hightech companies settled there, STP has become a key player in the innovation ecosystem – it creates high-tech products which are competitive in export markets.

STP is co-financed by Swiss Secretariat for

INTERACTION

DIGITALIZATION HAS COMPLETELY CHANGED THE WAY IN WHICH COMPANIES INTERACT WITH THEIR CUSTOMERS SWITZERLAND 2018

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firms have recognized this potential by developing their innovative products and services on the Serbian market, such as in the cases of Namics and InterVenture.

In order to further accelerate the ICT sector, Serbia needs to secure the availability of skilled workers, such as engineers, IT experts and other specialists.

But, not only in IT services, Serbia has a strong opportunity to become an attractive destination for the outsourcing of all kinds of services, in general.

the Economy with 900 000 CHF for 201719, and with this support, Switzerland aims at helping to speed up the export growth which is crucial for the development of the Serbian economy.

In the end, as I’ve already mentioned, we expect that this process will lead to the creation of framework conditions that will provide for the development of the national innovation ecosystem in Serbia.

EXPORTS OF SERBIAN PRODUCTS TO SWITZERLAND ARE GROWING EVERY YEAR AND INCREASED BY 27 PER CENT IN 2017

How satisfied are you with the quality of the public-private dialogue in Serbia in this and other areas that are important to businesses? ― Public-private dialogue in Serbia is solid, however there is room for advancement. We hope that Task Force, which gathers members of the Government and the FIC Steering Board, will significantly improve the quality of public-private dialogue in Serbia.

The FIC expects the joint Task Force formed with the Government to become a vehicle for accelerating reforms with two goals: accelerating the harmonisation of laws with EU regulations and improving law implementation.

Besides that, SSCC organizes conferences and seminars with the aim to facilitate public–private dialogue, provide constructive feedback to stakeholders and offer concrete proposals on topics

that are important and relevant to the Swiss business community operating in Serbia, such as dual education or SME development.

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You regularly post on your website successful stories about Swiss companies in Serbia. How appealing is today's Serbia to Swiss investors? ― As the biggest market and business center in the Western Balkans, Serbia offers good prospects for developing production and export, with its geographical position, well-developed infrastructure, attractive tax incentives and the advantages of free trade agreements with CEFTA, EFTA and EU countries, but also with Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Turkey and Kazakhstan.

As I mentioned earlier, Serbia is becoming an attractive destination for shared services investments, since many Swiss

How, in that context, would you rate the overall economic relations between Switzerland and Serbia in terms of investments and external trade? ― Swiss investors are successfully operating in many sectors in Serbia, such as construction, food manufacturing, wood processing, the ICT sector, pharmaceuticals, the automotive and energy industries, as well as textile production.

Exports of Serbian products to Switzerland are growing every year and increased by 27 per cent in 2017, which is an excellent growth rate. Serbia is traditionally strong in exporting agricultural products, fruits and berries, metal parts and textiles, and these products have already built a strong reputation on Swiss market. However, in line with increasing investments in innovation industry, the export of ICT products and services is expected to emerge even further in the coming years.

The Swiss-Serbian Chamber of Commerce, founded in March 2014, with the aim of improving business communication between the Switzerland and Serbia and creating new networking opportunities for business professionals, have become an important link between two countries over the years.

Serbia progressing in its ranking on the Doing Business list is one of our government's priorities. In your opinion, on which segments of this list should the government focus the most? ― The World Bank’s 2018 Doing Business survey raised Serbia to the rank of 43, which indicates that improvements have been achieved, and that is a good signal for the business community. The challenge we are facing currently is to make the country’s growth momentum sustainable, accelerate the reforms and ensure law enforcement.

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MARKO ČADEŽ

President of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce

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witzerland's experiences in education, innovation and improving export capacities are very valuable to Serbia. Thanks to the generous help from Switzerland, Serbia is today building a successful education model that will boost our economy's investment appeal. „Excellent and ever growing Swiss investments in Serbia, a rather modest external trade between the two countries, a great potential for boosting the economic relations, and valuable experiences of Switzerland, as the most competitive and most innovative global economy, in almost all areas from hi-tech production to education“. This is how the President of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce, Marko Čadež sums up the current situation and potential of the Serbian-Swiss bilateral economic cooperation. „Switzerland is the fifth biggest investor in Serbia, but only the 25th biggest external trade partner of Serbia. In the last few years, Switzerland has doubled its investments here, amounting to nearly a billion euros. Only in the 2010-2016 period, according to the data collated by the National Bank of Serbia, the net investments by Swiss companies stood at 756 million euros. There are over 200 companies with Swiss capital, employing a total of 9,000 people, operating in Serbia's production and service sectors.

However, the value of external trade between the two countries exceeded 300 million euro (325mln, to be precise)

only once, in 2013. Also, Serbia has a constant deficit in trading with Switzerland.

Although the value of Serbian exports to Switzerland has doubled in the last ten years, the Swiss market is one of the very few Western European markets that Serbian producers and exporters, unfortunately, have not managed to conquer.

For the first time this year, providing that the trend that started in January this year continues, our exports to Switzerland

THE SWISS FINANCIAL AND EXPERT SUPPORT HAS BEEN INVALUABLE IN HELPING SERBIAN COMPANIES IN BECOMING EVEN BETTER PARTNERS TO SWISS COMPANIES could exceed 100 million euros. In the ten months of 2017, compared to the same period last year, Serbian exports rose 16.9 percent - from 73.2 to 85.6 million euros, with a 20% concurrent ncrease in imports - from 142.6 to 171.2 million euros. The value of trade in services amounted to 236 million euros in 2016, with Serbia recording a surplus, and is now almost the same as the value of the product trade between the two countries", Čadež explains.

According to the President of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce the two economies have all the prerequisites for boosting their economic cooperation. As a result of complementary opportunities and needs, the mutual trade can be more balanced, while investment activities and overall economic relations could be better and more successful. The relevant analyses indicate that, in addition to ICT sector and tourism services, Serbian food, textile, pharmaceutical, metal and machine building industries, as well as the wood and furniture industries have the biggest chance of exporting to the Swiss market and attracting new investments.

The President of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce underlines that the Swiss financial and expert support has been invaluable in terms of boosting the competitiveness of the Serbian economy and production capacities of the Serbian companies, as well as for increasing export and becoming even better partners to Swiss companies. „Thanks to the generous Swiss help, the successful education format that we copied from the Swiss, and the top experts, Serbia is nowthe first country in the region to have the Dual Education Law, and the dual education system that has evolved from an experimental phase into becoming a segment of the regular schooling system which will now be more capable of producing worker profiles that better suit the needs of Serbian economy and foreign investors“, Čadež concludes.

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STRONGLY CONNECTED COMMUNITY We are very proud that Switzerland Global Enterprise has recognized SSCC as a reliable institutional partner and agreed to cooperate with us

INTERVIEW

ANA GRUJOVIĆ

Executive Director of the Swiss-Serbian Chamber of Commerce

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SCC will be marking four years of work in March 2018. Over the last four years, approx. 70 companies decided to support SSCC and to become a member-company. We strive to build a strongly connected SSCC community and we are sure that new companies will be joining SSCC in 2018, says Ana Grujović.

You had several new members joining you this year. How many member companies do you have now, and what are your ambitions for 2018? ― This year, in line with SSCC's Board's decision to increase members' visibility within the SSCC network and maintain regular communication with member-companies, SSCC introduced a new format of internal events: ’’SSCC members reunions’’.

These networking events are an opportunity for our members to present their corporate activities, to boost their business’s image among the SSCC community and to network as well.

Which of the SSCC's activities would you like to single out in terms of boosting the economic relations between Serbia and Switzerland this year?

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― I would like to single out two main achievements. Firstly, SSCC signed The Service Performance Agreement with Switzerland Global Enterprise (S-GE) in June 2017. On behalf of the Swiss Confederation (State Secretariat for Economic Affairs SECO) and the Swiss cantons, S-GE promotes exports and investments by helping its clients to realize new potential for their international businesses and thus to strengthen Switzerland as an economic hub. We are very proud that S-GE has recognized SSCC as a reliable institutional partner and agreed to cooperate with us.

Then, the 8th meeting of the Joint Eco-

nomic Committee Switzerland- Serbia took place on June 20, 2017 in Belgrade and for the first time since its creation in 2014, SSCC actively participated to this event. Namely, economic relations between Switzerland and Serbia include regular government meetings in form of Joint Economic Committees (JEC) which are held with the purpose of establishing priorities, discussing challenges and developing new investment and trade opportunities. On this occasion, SSCC’s role was to contribute to the discussion about key opportunities for the further development of business relations between Switzerland and Serbia.

EVERY YEAR WE ORGANIZE OUR HIGHLIGHT EVENT – A CONFERENCE ON A SPECIFIC TOPIC RELEVANT FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF BUSINESS TIES BETWEEN SWITZERLAND AND SERBIA

What are expected effects of the signing of the S-GE agreement, and how much can your joint work contribute to the arrival of more Swiss companies to Serbia? ― SSCC strives to increase the visibility of the Serbian market amongst Swiss companies and to promote the existing local business opportunities to potential Swiss investors. With this in mind, SSCC has committed to provide fresh and updated information about the local market to S-GE, reports on the Serbian most promising

economic sectors as well as free initial advice to Swiss companies looking to expand their operations in Serbia.

One of SSCC’s goals in 2018 will be, for sure, to explore all possibilities on how to enhance the cooperation with Switzerland Global Enterprise in order to contribute to the further strengthening of the Swiss-Serbian economic relations.

SSCC has recently organized a conference about innovations at the Science & Technology Park in Belgrade. What long-term effects will the conference generate? ― Public-private dialogue occupies an important place in the SSCC’s scope of activities. Every year we organize our highlight event – a Conference on a specific topic relevant for the improvement of business ties between Switzerland and Serbia. Last year, we focused on SMEs, while this year the Conference was about innovations as a driving force of the Swiss-Serbian Economic Relations. The conference ''Innovations: the driving force of Swiss-Serbian economic relations'' was intended to raise awareness and to stimulate a public-private dialogue among different stakeholders about the role of innovations in national development and about their importance for the further strengthening of economic ties between Switzerland and Serbia.

Keynote speakers on this event included H.E. Philippe Guex, Swiss Ambassador; Mr. Nenad Popović Minister of Innovation and Technological Development and Dr. Olivier Küttel, Head European Public Affairs, EPFL. As Minister Popović said, Serbian Government considers innovation and IT technologies development as one of the strategic priorities and we are happy that he has also emphasized the key role of Switzerland

in the field of innovation.

The expected outcome of the panel discussion is to try to identify practical actions that could contribute to innovation development in Serbia and to building up a stronger national innovation ecosystem as well. This will be presented to the Serbian Government in the form of ’’SSCC Recommendations’’.

Which other projects implemented by

THE CONDITIONS FOR DOING BUSINESS IN SERBIA IN 2017 WERE EXPECTED TO REMAIN UNCHANGED IN COMPARISON WITH THE PREVIOUS YEAR the SSCC would you like to single out? ― We are very happy that this year gave us an opportunity to cooperate with our partner from Switzerland - ’’Switzerland Tourism’’. In cooperation with them and the Swiss Embassy in Belgrade, SSCC organized the “Grand Tour of Switzerland” photo exhibition at the Belgrade Fortress. The exhibition presented tourism offer and natural beauty of Switzerland which were shown through series of images of the most beautiful landscapes of this country.

These pictures presented an ideal combination of cities, villages and mountains.

According to the Swiss companies, which have been successfully operating in Serbia, what are Serbia's most appealing characteristics as an investment location?

― There are many characteristics of the Serbian market which could be appealing to Swiss companies, such as a large network of FTAs, geographic proximity with several daily direct flights from Belgrade to Zurich, good strategic position and a lot of potential in certain economic sectors.

For example, Serbia has great potential in the wood industry. According to Swiss company which operates in this sector, the main advantages of the Serbian market are primarily the price of energy and raw materials, followed by the proximity to the Western European market and relatively good infrastructure. Then, ICT sector is also attracting many foreign companies.

However, there is still room for the further improvement of the investment and trade relations between Switzerland and Serbia.

Could you tell us something about the results of the Business Climate Survey 2017? What Swiss companies see as a challenge, and in which areas do they need your support the most? ― The third consecutive ‘’SSCC Business Climate Survey in Serbia 2017’’ was conducted among the members of the Swiss-Serbian business community between February and April 2017. Most of the survey respondents evaluated the current business climate in Serbia as satisfying. The conditions for doing business in Serbia in 2017 were expected to remain unchanged in comparison with the previous year, as stated by a majority of surveyed companies. Also, the results showed that surveyed companies expect to see changes in the following business environment areas: bureaucracy and administration, tax system, fight against corruption, as well as ensuring legal security and stability.

IMPROVEMENT

THERE IS STILL ROOM FOR THE FURTHER IMPROVEMENT OF THE INVESTMENT AND TRADE RELATIONS BETWEEN SWITZERLAND AND SERBIA SWITZERLAND 2018

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ACTIVITIES OF THE SSCC

VOICE OF BUSINESS IN DIALOGUE WITH GOVERNMENT

Innovations: Driving Force of the Swiss-Serbian Economic Relations

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hrough its activities in 2017, the SSCC has demonstrated that it has developed into a serious advocate of the interests of the Swiss-Serbian business community that has been actively participating in the dialogue between the governments of the two countries on the topics of boosting economic relations and investing in Serbia. Also, a series of meetings were held under the auspices of the SSCC at which the chamber membes networked and connected with other companies.

The Swiss-Serbian Chamber of Com-

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merce (SSCC) was established in March 2014 as a result of the growing interest of the Swiss business community in Serbia, and with the view of strengthening the economic relations between Serbia and Switzerland. Since its founding to date, the SSCC has been working on improving the dialogue between the two countries, promoting Swiss values and the Swissness concept in Serbia, in addition to providing business networking opportunities for its members, official representatives from Switzerland and Serbia, and the wider business community.

The Swissness concept is the foundation of all SSCC's activities, as well as of every decision making process in the chamber. The SSCC is committed to providing top notch services and building trust through promoting Swiss values, skills and know-how.

Today, the SSCC has close to 70 members and aspires to be the voice of the Swiss-Serbian business community, as well as to develop activities based on the interests and needs of its members which are then relayed to state officials and decision makers. In this way, the SSCC

is working towards advancing local conditions for doing business, and acts as a represenative of business community in front of authorities.

The conference titled “Innovations: Driving Force of the Swiss-Serbian Economic Relations”, which took place at the Science & Technology Park in Belgrade on 15th November, was one of the main events that the SSCC organized in 2017.

The event was attended by the Swiss Ambassador to Serbia and Montenegro, H.E. Mr. Philippe Guex, the Serbian Minister without Portfolio in charge of innovation and technology, Nenad Popovic, and Dr Olivier Küttel, head of European Public Affairs at Ecole Polytechnique from Lausanne.

On the occasion, the Chairwoman of the SSCC's Managing Board, Ms Yana Mikhailova said that innovation was crucial for Swiss-Serbian business cooperation. She pointed out that Swiss companies, especially those from IT sector, expressed their growing interest in the Serbian market, which has become an attractive destination for investments in service centers. Ms Mikhailova also said that many Swiss companies recognized that potential through the development of innovative products and services in the Serbian market. On the occasion, the Swiss Ambassador to Serbia

Speed Business Meeting

Swiss National day

and Montenegro, H.E. Mr. Philippe Guex underlined that that innovations were of key importance for the development of Swiss-Serbian relations, and added that the Swiss Secretariat for Economy supported the work done by the Science and Technology Park.

THE SSCC HAS BEEN WORKING ON IMPROVING THE DIALOGUE BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES, PROMOTING SWISS VALUES AND THE SWISSNESS CONCEPT IN SERBIA Serbian Minister without Portfolio in charge of innovation and technology, Nenad Popović said that developing innovation and information technology remained one of the strategic priorities for Serbian government, while underlining a great importance of the support from Switzerland, as the global leader in innovation. Assistant Minister in the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, Dr Viktor Nedović

presented „The Strategy for Scientific and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia for the 2016-2020 Period – Research for Innovation“.

Ms Mikhailova also said that the SSCC members generally expected the Serbian government to continue creating frameworks for supporting development of the national innovation eco-system, and added that that would positively contribute to production of more products and services with added value in Serbia, and the transition towards knowledge-based economy. Before the conference, the President of the SSCC, Ms Yana Mikhailova and Serbian Minister without Portfolio in charge of innovation and technology, Nenad Popović met on 31st August to discuss the importance of innovation for further development of Swiss-Serbian economic relations, the importance of cooperation between research institutions and private companies, as well as the need to increase application of innovations in the industry sector.

With the aim of nurturing relations between business people from various associations, the Slovenian Business Club (SBC), the Swiss-Serbian Chamber of Commerce (SSCC), and the British-Serbian Chamber of Commerce organized a Speed Business Meeting on 17th October at the

Innovations Driving Force of the Swiss-Serbian Economic Relations

Swiss-Serbian Chamber of Commerce

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Innovations: Driving Force of the Swiss-Serbian Economic Relations

Absolut time

'Grand Tour of Switzerland' on Kalemegdan Fortress

Hyatt Regency Belgrade which was also a partner of this event. In order to facilitate networking between foreign and domicile business people, a total of 12 ten-minute individual one-on-one meetings were held with the pairs previously selected by a draw. The meeting was attended by 26 companies from different sectors, which had the opportunity to connect with each other and expand their contact base. After the formal meetings were concluded, the participants attended a networking cocktail party during which the representatives of the companies had the opportunity to continue developing their business connections, and exchange additional information with other guests.

For the first time since its foundation, the SSCC participated in the meeting of the Joint Economic Committees (JEC) in June, which aim is to define priorities in the cooperation between Switzerland and Serbia, deal with the challenges of this cooperation, and create new opportunities for investing and further economic cooperation.

Also in June, the SSCC signed the Service Performance Agreement with Switzerland Global Enterprise (S-GE) which supports companies from Switzerland and Liechtenstein in promoting their export and investments.

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Yana Mikhailova,President of the SSCC and Nenad Popović,Serbian Minister without Portfolio in charge of innovation and technology

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The SSCC held its annual assembly meeting at the Holiday Inn Express City Belgrade Hotel on 21st February. On the occasion, the President of the SSCC, Ms Yana Mikhailova presented the chamber's results in 2016, and the activity plan for 2017. At the meeting, CEO of Adecco Serbia and Operations Director of Adecco Bulgaria, Croatia, Serbia and Slovakia, Mr. Marko Kolenc was appointed a member of the SSCC's Managing Board.

THE SSCC PARTICIPATED IN THE MEETING OF THE JOINT ECONOMIC COMMITTEES (JEC) IN JUNE, WHICH AIM IS TO DEFINE PRIORITIES IN THE COOPERATION BETWEEN SWITZERLAND AND SERBIA Over the course of this year, the SSCC members had four SSCC Members' Reunions at which the several SSCC members presented their activities. In November, an SSCC member, Absolut Time held an after-hours business cocktail party at which

Visiting Basna company

the latest collections of luxury wristwatch brands from Switzerland were showcased. Furthermore, the SSCC members had the opportunity to visit another SSCC member, the Basna Company which develops sustainable and environmentally friendly technology in Serbia.

Also, at a working lunch hosted by Confida Consulting d.o.o. on 19th October, the SSCC members had the opportunity to acquire information about the current tax-related topics like, for instance, the tax treatment of royalty-based revenue of non-residents, management fee - tax treatment and engagement of non-resident natural persons.

Together with the Switzerland Tourism and the Swiss Embassy to Serbia, the SSCC organized a photo-exhibition called 'Grand Tour of Switzerland' on Kalemegdan Fortress, in July this year. The Swiss Ambassador to Serbia and Montenegro, H.E. Mr. Philippe Guex, the Director of Emerging Markets at the Switzerland tourism, Mr. Federico Sommaruga, the Chairwoman of the Swiss-Serbian Chamber of Commerce's Managing Board, Ms Yana Mikhailova, the Executive Director of the Swiss-Serbian Chamber of Commerce, Ana Grujović, and Andrej Reljić from the Swiss-Serbian diaspora attended the official opening of the photo-exhibition.

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COOPERATION

THE BEST IS YET TO COME SECO Startup Fund boosting Serbian economy

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lthough the economic cooperation between Switzerland and Serbia is quite solid, there have been indications in the last few years, and especially this year, that the cooperation will improve even more.

Currently, there are 30 Serbian companies that are funded by the Swiss SECO Startup Fund, which can keep the investment ball rolling. We are hoping for an investment avalanche, at least.

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COOPERATION BETWEEN SERBIA AND SWITZERLAND IS CURRENTLY THE STRONGEST IN RESEARCH AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES

MUCH NEEDED AVALANCHE

If we think of the Swiss Alps, their avalanches and St. Bernard dogs, we would love to be buried under the 'avalanche' of Swiss investments, and to be saved by a special 'St. Bernard' from our own disorganization which, instead of the live-saving rum on the snow covered mountain, would bring us the talent for innovation and organization just like Switzerland's.

FACTS AND NUMBERS Looking at the relevant numbers, we can see that situation is both good and bad. Switzerland is one of those countries that are in the middle of the list (in 20th place, to be precise) in terms of Serbia's biggest external trade partners. The value of Serbia's export to Switzerland makes 0.8% of the entire Serbian exports. At the same time, the value of Serbia's import from Switzerland stands at 0.9% of the total Serbian imports. The trade relations between Serbia and Switzerland are regulated by the Free Trade Agreement between the Republic of Serbia and the EFTA countries, since Switzerland is an EFTA member. The European Free Trade Assocation (EFTA) was founded in 1960.

Its members are Island, Lichtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. The main EFTA postulate is developing trade relations with the EU and third countries. The Free Trade Agreement between the Republic of Serbia and the EFTA countries came into force on 1st October, 2011 (with amendments made in 2015) for all countries signatories.

According to the latest data collated by the Serbian Statistical Office, in the period between January and June 2016, the total external trade in goods between Switzerland and Serbia was valued at 128.5 million EUR. In the observed period, the total export amounted to 41.9 million EUR (a 0.6% share in total exports), with Switzerland occupying the 24th place on the list of countries that Serbia exports to the most. The total import in the first six months of 2016 stood at 86.5 million EUR (a 1% share in total imports), with Switzerland occupying the 25th place on

the list of countries that Serbia imports from the most.

Also according to the data collated by the Serbian Statistical Office, in 2015, the total external trade in goods between Switzerland and Serbia stood at 325.6 million EUR, which was a 11.8% hike relative to 2014. In the same year, the total export amounted to 70.2 million EUR (a

EXPERIENCES THAT SERBIA GETS FROM SWITZERLAND SHOULD BE AN INCENTIVE FOR YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS TO APPLY THEM IN OUR COUNTRY 0.6% share in total exports), with Switzerland occupying the 25th place on the list of countries that Serbia exports to the most. The total import amounted at 255.4 million EUR with Switzerland occupying the 19th place on the list of countries that Serbia imports from the most.

The export to import ratio dropped from 41% to 27.5% due to the 17.4% growth in imports, and the 21.2% decline in exports.

INNOVATION, INNOVATION But let's go back to what the Swiss are really good at, which is innovation. Since the Israelis don't lag behind the Swiss in innovation much, and since Serbs and Jews have similar mindset and history (sometimes painfully similar), it is only logical that we should learn from these

two countries how to transform our creativity into capital. Innovations are the key element of the future Serbian economy and the future economic cooperation between the two countries. This was said in November at the conference titled “Innovation: Driving Force of Swiss-Serbian Economic Relations”. At the conference, the Serbian Minister without Portfolio in charge of innovation and technological development, Nenad Popović said that, for the seventh consecutive year, Switzerland was the first country in the world in innovative development, known for „the outstanding cooperation between science and industry“.

"This combination, which today everybody calls smart specialization, has resulted in Switzerland having an excellent GDP, and the country becoming the global technological leader. A small country that was known exclusively for agriculture is a technological, technical and innovation leader in the world today. The experiences that Serbia gets from Switzerland should be an incentive for young entrepreneurs to apply them in our country“, Popović believes. One good example of this is the Science and Technology Park in Belgrade which was opened and developed thanks to a Swiss investment of 900,000 Francs. Three Swiss companies, which employ over 100 engineers from Serbia, operate on the Park's premises. The cooperation between Serbia and Switzerland is currently the strongest in research and communication technology field, and the two countries cooperate on 22 projects of a total value of 250 million EUR. Next year, the Swiss government will allocate another 270,000 Francs towards opening of science and technology parks in Novi Sad and Niš.

INVESTMENTS

THERE ARE OVER 200 SWISS COMPANIES OPERATING IN SERBIA, AND SO FAR, THESE COMPANIES HAVE INVESTED MORE THAN 800 MILLION EUR IN OUR COUNTRY SWITZERLAND 2018

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ECONOMY

START ME UP! How the swiss never stop innovating

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hose countries which promptly realize that times are changing are the ones which become and stay leaders. And the countries that fail to recognize changes, lag behind.

Switzerland helms the first group together with Israel; i.e. a group of countries that are innovative in a way that Japan used to be back in the day when it was the innovation leader. The only difference is that the Swiss do it quietly.

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POOR LITTLE BOYS AND GIRLS,

THEY MUST INNOVATE

The Swiss economy is one of the best in the world despite the country having scarce natural resources. For instance, Qatar is wealthier than Switzerland, because of oil and gas. The Swiss children are taught at school that their country is small and resource-poor, and that they need to be very diligent and imaginative in

order to have a good living standard. Just like the said Israelis who are taught early on that they live in a small country surrounded by problems. Back in the former Yugoslavia, we were taught that we were a rich and big country, and yet we did not add up to much. Actually, our golden years were the 1960s when we were really poor and recuperating. Now, when Serbia is a small country without resources (and

SWITZERLAND LACKS NATURAL RESOURCES SO IT HAS TO RELY TO THE WITS ALONE

again without a sea access), maybe the time has come to follow in the footsteps of wealthy, innovative countries.

The general consensus is that a strong economy is considered the one with low unemployment rate, cash flow, constantly improved products and services, and open market. It would be wrong to think that so many banks in Switzerland had nothing to do with the country’s wealth, but it would also be wrong to claim that the country has it easy because of so many banks. On the contrary, what makes a country wealthy is not only constantly improving the quality of its products and services, but the ability to innovate them too, i.e. to come up with new products and service. This factor in itself facilitates business changes, growth, and competition, or rather it explains why some economies grow tired, and some products and services become obsolete before they finally disappear. So, what is the biggest innovation hub in the world today? Which areas of our economy should we focus on in terms of growth? Let’s examine how the Swiss do it.

To start off with, Switzerland became a refuge or gave birth to 47 Nobel Prize laureates which is more Nobel Prize winners per capita than the US, the UK or any Scandinavian country, and that is definitely not a small feat. Maybe it’s the Swiss universities that are to blame. Switzerland has a high-quality educational system, namely outstanding universities which not only teach the next generation, but also inspire them to conduct research and development on their own terms, supporting Swiss entrepreneurship. In 2016, the Swiss federal technology institute, ETH Zurich came fourth in Europe leaving

when working on something. Our goal of being on time has led to one of the most punctual public transportation systems in the world. You could observe those values recently when the Gotthard Base Tunnel opened in Switzerland. It became operational after 17 years of construction on time and on budget as predicted and planned. Punctuality, precision and reliability are key facts of life in Switzerland. That’s probably what has made us such good watchmakers, too."

SWITZERLAND IS TOP IN THE WORLD WHEN IT COMES TO INNOVATION, ACCORDING TO AN INDEX

BY THE WIPO FOR THE SIXTH YEAR IN A ROW behind three British universities: Oxford, Cambridge and Imperial College London (and 19th overall) in the Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings.

GLOBAL INNOVATION INDEX

SAYS IT ALL

The Global Innovation Index ranked Switzerland No. 1 in innovation again last year. Switzerland lacks natural resources so it has to rely on its wits alone. Certain cultural factors add to the equation as well. H.E. Mr. Martin Dahinden, the Swiss Ambassador to the US, sums it up: "Certainly there are some cultural factors. We tend to be very accurate, almost finicky

WIPO GIVES ITS OPINION Switzerland is one of the leaders in innovation, according to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) index. The Alpine nation came out on top for the sixth consecutive year. The Swiss have the highest ratio of European patent applications per capita. In 2015, Switzerland had 873 patent applications per million inhabitants, followed by the Netherlands with 419 and Sweden with 392.

The Exhibition of Inventions in Geneva is an annual event where inventors try to find backers for their products. Switzerland also scored impressively in the WIPO innovation index in terms research links between universities and industry. Also, there are lot of high profile green innovations. Major Swiss companies regularly look to the building sector for environmentally friendly-focused solutions in construction. Furthermore, Switzerland came third in the Global Innovation Index in the sub-category for ‘knowledge intensive employment’. In other words, employees here really know their stuff. Or rather every job is perfectly matched to every employee. It's called HRM, right?

EDUCATION

SWITZERLAND HAS A HIGHQUALITY EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM, NAMELY OUTSTANDING UNIVERSITIES WHICH NOT ONLY TEACH THE NEXT GENERATION, BUT ALSO INSPIRE THEM TO CONDUCT RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT SWITZERLAND 2018

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SPIRIT

YOUR SPIRIT MAKES YOU SWISS

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lthough the idea of a state that is not national sounds very European and modern, it's not really so. Actually, the number of multi-ethnic states has been declining. They were popular back at the time of powerful empires like Spanish, Russian, Austro-Hungarian and British.

After 1848, nationalism, sovereignty

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WE KNOW ALL TOO WELL THAT A COUNTRY THAT MEDDLES LEAST INTO OTHER PEOPLE'S AFFAIRS, SUCCEEDS THE MOST

Switzerland is one of those countries that defies 'modern day' Europe. There is no such thing as an ethnic Swiss. Every Swiss is ethnic and something else at the same time.

Switzerland is an idea movements and national revivals exploded. To add fuel to the fire, after World War I, many countries gained independence along ethnic lines. Some composite countries decided to go their separate ways, like Poland and Finland, while some, like Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia and the USSR, assembled several nations under one roof, so to speak. Sub-

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Žikica Milošević sequently, the latter three disintegrated with the end of the Cold War. Now, shadows are looming over Spain, the UK, Italy and Belgium, more or less. But never over Switzerland. How is that possible? Actually, when they were in war (and that happend quite a few times), it was the war between home countries of the Swiss Germans, Italians and French, never the Germans, French and Italians living in Swiss cantons. They never even argued, let alone went to war against each other. Can you imagine the same thing happening in the Balkans? No! In the countries where the collective national being, languages and religion are firmly construed, it is unrealistic to think that that could happen. Well, at least not until we become Swiss-like.

CONNECTING IDEA We, as in the people living in Vojvodina, like to think of the province as being a „little Switzerland“” and „the connecting idea“”that is not that strong. Switzerland gave birth to many protestant movements (with Jean Calvin and Ulrich Zwingli at helm). However, there are many Catholics living in the country too. Just like the country's official abbreviation CH shows? Does this stand for Chwitzerland?

No, the abbreviation stands for Confoederatio Helvetica, which is the country's official name in Latin. This language is used to form the country's name in order to avoid favouring one of the four official languages in Switzerland. The Latin term Confoederatio Helvetica was the basis of the French, Italian and Romansh names for the Swiss Confederation, while, the German term is Schweizerische Ei-

dgenossenschaft, loosely translated as „Swiss Oath Fellowship““ or „Agreement of Swiss Communities“. All of this speaks volumes about the nature of the Swiss people. They are a community. They are an agreement in practice.

THE CRADLE OF EUROPEAN (CON) FEDERALISM Back in 1990, swept by a wave of optimism, the Swiss organized an exhibition called „Switzerland, the Cradle of European Federalism“ in cities all over Yugoslavia probably trying to send a message

JUST LIKE THE NEIGHBOURING AUSTRIA OR BAVARIA, SWITZERLAND IS A COUNTRY THAT IS NOT TOO KEEN ON CHANGES that although nationalism was picking up pace in Yugoslavia, the country could still be organized like Switzerland, with several republic, provinces, cantons and whatnot, joint in a confederation or federation. In the end, and after a lot of damage had already been done, only Bosnia and Herzegovina actually became an amalgamation of republics and cantons in 1995, just like Yugoslavia should have been. This tells us that, since the very beginning, the Swiss

knew what they were doing, i.e. that they should not fix what is not broken.

T HE CRADLE OF EUROPEAN CONSERVATISM Just like the neighbouring Austria or Bavaria, Switzerland is a country that is not too keen on changes. It wasn't that willing to join the UN (it joined only in 2002), it wasn't willing to join the EU, and it is unsure what to do with the people who would love to live in the EU, so, as a result, the country has imposed very strict naturalization laws. Here is one piece of amusing trivia (which might not be amusing to women though) - women in certain Swiss cantons have been allowed to vote only recently, and in some areas, they still gather in town squares to vote.

Out of all countries in the world, Switzerland is closest to a direct democracy. If the country's Constitution is to be amended, a referendum needs to take place first. Actually, if you want to change any laws in Switzerland, you can ask for a referendum.

Through referendums, the citizens can change any laws passed by Bundeshaus, and through various civil initiatives they can amend the Federal Constitution which is what makes Switzerland a direct democracy. Aside from having its guards in the Vatican, the Swiss foreign policy is considered neutral, namely the country will not get involved in conflicts between different states or in their internal affairs.

Switzerland's neutrality was confirmed at the Congress of Vienna in 1815, and to this day, this neutrality is internationally recognized. We know all too well that a country that meddles least into other people's affairs, succeeds the most.

DEMOCRACY

OUT OF ALL COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD, SWITZERLAND IS CLOSEST TO DIRECT DEMOCRACY. IF THE COUNTRY'S CONSTITUTION OR LAWS ARE TO BE AMENDED, A REFERENDUM NEEDS TO TAKE PLACE FIRST SWITZERLAND 2018

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CULTURE

SOBER, NEUTRAL, CONSERVATIVE Maybe graphic design really tells us all

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re you familiar with the fonts called Swiss or Helvetica? Well, as their names reveal, they are from Switzerland. The Swiss culture goes beyond chocolate, cheese with holes, watches or skiing. It is not even the army knife or beer or puctuality. It goes beyond that.

What defines Swiss culture? "Punctual as a Swiss watch!" So, accuracy and precision? There are also chocolates, cheeses, blowing into Alpine horns, yodelling, and luxury watches, of course. This is a nation that is not defined by ethnicity, but by abiding by laws and committment to se-

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riousness. They say that when Swiss people go to neighbouring France, they are shocked to see a train has been down for 20 minutes, and that nobody „started a revolution" because of that. Yes, precision is the core of Swiss culture.

MANY OF THE ARTISTS ACTUALLY ORIGINATE FROM SWITZERLAND, AND YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW IT

SHOW ME YOUR FONT, I WILL TELL YOU WHO YOU ARE Maybe it has something to do with the Alps, with the isolation at the top of Europe, and the desire to be left alone, fitting of the slogan "Go away, leave me alone, conquer somebody else". Also, claiming that Switzerland is famous for the aforementioned Swiss and Helvetica fonts is also true.

Helvetica and Swiss quickly became very popular. Their use became a hallmark of the International Typographic Style that emerged from the work of

Swiss designers in the 1950s and 1960s, becoming one of the most popular typefaces of the 20th century. Over the years, a wide range of variants have been released in different weights, widths and sizes, as well as matching designs for a range of non-Latin alphabets. And really, they became – international! The International Typographic Style has had a profound influence on graphic design as a part of the modernist movement, impacting many design-related fields including architecture and art. It emphasises cleanness, readability, and objectivity.

All typically Swiss!

J EALOUS IN PRESERVING DIFFERENCES The Swiss are incredible: they are so jealous of their autonomy that it should be a major obstacle, but, in all actuality, it is not. For instance, the different laws and rules made by each Canton don't make life easy for Swiss companies but rather turn them into master negotiators in order to succeed. New jobs are created every year, and - remarkably - Switzerland is internationally competitive despite having the highest salaries in Europe. And their democracy is stunning – every decision must be corroborated by double majority – the majority of cantons and majority of voters.

Majorisation is excluded. Nothing can be done if someone is dissatisfied, and the Swiss know this well.

INTERNATIONAL SPIRIT MAKES ART Switzerland boosts a thriving arts scene and has a rich heritage of historical and contemporary architecture. Its

THE SWISS SPIRIT IS SEEN IN THEIR FONTS: SWISS AND HELVETICA EMPHASISE CLEANNESS, READABILITY, AND OBJECTIVITY. ALL TYPICALLY SWISS! central position in Europe, its neutrality and shared languages with neighbouring countries, made Switzerland attractive for artists and intellectuals who took refuge from political upheaval in their own country from the 19th century onward. Many of the artists originate from Switzerland, and you don't even know it. There are a number of internationally acclaimed authors with works translated into many languages -

such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Jeremias Gottfried Keller, Max Frisch, Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Germaine de Staël, Robert Walser, Alain de Botton, Zoë Jenny and others - though the most famous author is probably Johanna Spyri who wrote the two children's novels Heidi, translated into more than 50 languages. Hermann Hesse found his home in Switzerland, Charlie Chaplin did the same, while Einstein was, along with Borges, really into Switzerland and its spirit.

The culture of Switzerland is multi-faceted and age-old traditions thrive here.

They don't just celebrate for the sake of tourists; they dwell on keeping ancient folk customs alive, and wear their ethnic dresses with pride, albeit less frequently, and mostly on special occasions.

Although they are maybe a bit on the conservative side, take some time to warm up to each other and visitors, and are slow to adapt to new trends, they got a bit bolder over the years in expressing their attitudes.

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TOURISM

WHO CARES THAT SWITZERLAND DOESN'T HAVE A SEA? Actually, there is an old Serbian proverb that goes: „Who cares that Hungary doesn't have a sea?“ which is somewhat untrue becuse Hungary did have access to the sea up until 1918, unlike Switzerland which never did. However, that did not stop the Swiss from becoming a tourist superpower

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HISTORY BELONGS TO BRITISH, AS ALWAYS It's all about the brand, and a little bit about organization, but mostly about the British. At least that's how it was in the 19th century. The British did it first just like in many other countries around the world. It all started with a railroad too, on a somewhat grander scale. The tourism in Switzerland begins with British mountaineers climbing the main peaks of the Bernese Alps in the early 19th century (Jungfrau 1811, Finsteraarhorn 1812).

We should also not forget the romantic era, promoted by Byron and Shelley, his Mary and their Frankenstein.

The Alpine Club in London was founded in 1857. Recovery in the Alpine climate, in particular from Tuberculosis, was another important branch of tourism

HERE AND NOW So, what is the current situation like?

Apart from pretty towns, skiing, mountains and the countryside, what else Switzerland has on offer? It is interesting to note that the number of visitors from Europe has been declining. In relation to 2007, there were 40% fewer Germans, 28% Britons, 41% Dutch, 24% Russians, and 11% fewer French tourists this year. Is the strong Swiss Franc to blame? Of course it is. The sanctions towards Russia? Of course they are. The global economic crisis? Definitely! But let's have a peak at another list – there were 401% more Chinese tourists, 81% more Indians, 105% South Koreans, 7% Americans, 134% Thai, 151% Hong Kongers, 160% Taiwanese, 125% Singa-

THE WEST GOT TO KNOW SWITZERLAND PRETTY WELL, IT'S NOW EVERYBODY ELSE'S TURN poreans, 45% Brazilians, and 250% more Indonesians coming to Switzerland. The world is now focusing on Asia and Third World countries, and whoever manages to attract tourists from these countries wins in the long run.

in the 19th and early 20th century, especially in Davos, GraubĂźnden. Since the Bernese Alps were very popular with British mountaineers, the Bernese Oberland was long known as a tourist destination. Meiringen's Reichenbach Falls achieved literary fame as the site of the fictional death of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes (1893). You can only imagine what happened with Reichenback after that, and how many British tourists visited it, travelling by train resembling the very Orient Express in which the murder took place, carrying huge suitcases, sitting patiently for days in private dining rooms, and sleeping in comfortable train cars just to reach the breathtakingly beautiful mountains.

Thomas Cook and Lunn Travel were the first travel agents to offer holidaying in Switzerland in the 19th century.

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One thing is for sure – the declining numbers have nothing to do with Switzerland's image. The cliché of a stable, idyllic and beautiful country still remains, and visiting Switzerland is on the bucket list for many people. Swissinfo.ch claims that Simon Anholt, tourism consultant to various governments, has developed a system that measures national reputation. He confirms that the Swiss reputation is still excellent worldwide with the country occupying the respectable 8th place in the global country ranking in the last decade or so.

Such rankings are a weak consolation for Swiss hotel owners and winter resorts.

Although tourism numbers are rising worldwide, Switzerland is struggling to attract the masses. According to the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the number of visitors from abroad stagnated

NUMBERS

THE WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM (WEF) RANKED SWITZERLAND 6TH IN ITS ANNUAL REPORT ON TOURISM COMPETITIVENESS 32

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in the period 2013-2015, while income fell by 7%. Another, albeit minimal, decline followed in 2016. In addition, the winter sports resorts were plagued by the unstable weather last season.

The World Economic Forum (WEF) ranked Switzerland 6th in its annual report on tourism competitiveness.

THE CLICHÉ OF A STABLE, IDYLLIC AND BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY STILL REMAINS, WHILE VISITING SWITZERLAND IS ON THE BUCKET LIST FOR MANY PEOPLE

WHERE TO GO AFTER ALL? Still, we should not forget that Switzerland is “almost perfect”. This is the country where the stuffs of our dreams are made of. This is the country that we watched on TV as children. Remember Heidi? James Bond battled villains while skiing in Saint Moritz. The Alps make two thirds of the Swiss territory, and you’ll see for yourself that this country has one of the most beautiful countrysides in the world, especially if you take a mountain train. Skiing, mountaineering and hiking are a must. The Swiss towns might be considered expensive compared to the picturesque Portuguese towns, but they definitely bring back that familiar feeling of ease from your childhood. The West got to know Switzerland pretty well, it's now everybody else's turn.

CORPORATE

Entering The Digital Era In Advertising

ALMA QUATTRO

While everyone is getting prepared for farewell with old calendar year, we are starting off new era in our company’s business history, by stepping into world of digital media

We are embracing new year with new potential and great expectations. What it is all about? We are talking about 84inch latest generation digital LCD panels (e-panels), positioned on central locations within pedestrian zone in downtown of Belgrade covering route from Kalemegdan fortress to Palace of Albania, across Obilićev venac and Zmaj Jovina street. This area well known for its gastronomic, cultural and historical sights and high frequency pedestrian traffic now has gained prestigious and high tech OOH media coverage.

Brand new high resolution (4K) LCD panels form network with impressive moving overall image which makes an ideal supplement to both classic OOH and online advertising Outdoor network of digital screens allows advertisers to creatively engage with their audiences through moving and interactive context. New LCD screens are fast, variable and innovative enabling our clients to improve communication with their audiences.

These features of our new media make them attention grasping 24/7 guaranteed. Viewers can browse, create, share and even download your campaign content.

Advertising content can be booked and displayed both in the form of moving picture or video in the length of 10 second spot in a loop of 60 seconds.

Almost endless possibilities are available to our clients, with one restric-

tion concerning audio reproduction which is banned.

Second news that we have to announce at the end of the current year is about network of public bus shelters. During the course of last 25 years Alma Quattro is in charge of mounting and maintenance of public bus shelters as an integral part of urban mobility in the city of Belgrade. We are proud to announce that in the course of renovation of existing bus stop shelters in the very center of Belgrade, Alma Quattro has replaced an old static one’s with the new scrolling city lights. Moreover, we

SERVICE INFORMATION The following public service information are currently installed and available on Live Touch devices in Belgrade: - TIME: displays current weather and time and weather forecast for the next few days; - PHOTOS: photos of Belgrade's sights with a short description; - TWITTER: Twitter account of Tourist Organization of Belgrade (TOB); - MAP: Map of Belgrade with a list of city sights (museums, sports facilities, historical buildings, etc.) with a brief description and images. Also, these panels have built-in option of navigating to the desired destination. Maps are based on Google Maps and the paths obtained can be easily transferred to your smartphone for the future use; - BELGRADE INFO: custom version of TOB site (Tourist Organization of Belgrade). This web site is very well updated with lots of useful information for tourists.

present our fellow citizens and tourists with the new service "Live Touch Panels" as an integral part of these new bus shelters. New bus shelters are positioned on seven locations in the center, covering route from Kralja Milana Street, Terazije, to Republic Square and Nikola Pašić Square near Pioneer’s Park. „Live touch panel“ as a new public service for citizens and visiting tourists is already present in major European cities. „Live Touch Panel“ is a 32-inch interactive touchscreen.

The system runs on the Android platform, which is specially developed and adapted for the use within the framework of public transport as a part of the urban mobility. Large number of different applications can be installed, some of the application are pre-configured and other can be installed later in accordance with needs. It is important to emphasize that all touch panels are positioned within the reach of people with disabilities. All applications are available both in Serbian and English language.

We are very pleased how the current year has been for us. Readily we wait for the new business challenges that new digital media put in front of us.

High tech LCD screens that we installed have only few cities in Europe, such as London, Stockholm and Wien, this fact gives us motivation to set new standards in OOH advertising just like we did during the course of last 25 years on our local Serbian market.

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CORPORATE

Relax on Your Skiing Holiday with AMS Osiguranje Relieve yourself from unnecessary stress, and with the help of many services that AMS Osiguranje provides, enjoy your skiing holiday and forget about your problems, at least for a little while You have bought a skiing holiday in France quite some time ago, and now you are counting days until you actually leave for the holiday. Don’t forget to insure yourself before you leave. Regardless of your skiing prowess, the risks from skiing-relating injuries are great, and medical expenses abroad even greater. Pick a good travel health insurance, protect yourself from unwanted financial costs, and enjoy in a carefree holiday.

Did you know that a doctor’s appointment abroad can cost over 50 EUR? However, if you buy AMS Osiguranje’s travel insurance policy before you leave for only1,260 dinars, which is the cost of an individual policy for seven days of skiing in Europe, you’ll be covered against the cost of surgical interventions, medication and medical aids, in line with your policy’s terms and con-

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ditions, which AMS Osiguranje is going to pay on your behalf. The savings are great especially if you are going on a family holiday. If that is the case, than the insurance premium costs only 2,772 dinars for the same time period.

RELAXED

IN ORDER TO ENJOY A COMPLETELY RELAXED HOLIDAY, YOU SHOULD NOT WORRY WHETHER YOUR HOME IS SAFE WHILE YOU ARE AWAY In order to enjoy a completely relaxed holiday, you should not worry whether your home is safe while you are away. AMS Osiguranje has very affordable home insurance policies that

protect you from many risks including fire, burst pipes, burglary, bad weather or theft, in accordance with the terms and conditions of your policy. If, on top of the home insurance policy, you choose to insure the things and belongings in your home, AMS Osiguranje will give you additional 10% discount on the total price of insurance premium.

Relieve yourself from unnecessary stress, and with the help of many services that AMS Osiguranje provides, enjoy your skiing holiday and forget about your problems, at least for a little while. Use our 20% discount on travel insurance policy this year too. For more information, please call 0800-009-009, or visit our website www.ams.co.rs , or just come our office at 16th Ruzveltova Street in Belgrade, or to any of more than 250 of our outlets across Serbia.

AMS Osiguranje wishes you bon voyage!

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