Vienna Economic Talks – New Perspectives for the Republic of North Macedonia

In the interactive discussions under the VEF moto “Business meets politics”, high-ranking and decision-making representatives of the economy tackled the question of how increased economic cooperation could positively influence new regional perspectives. The focus of all considerations was the economic development not only of the country, but also of the whole region.

The High-ranking Delegation of the Republic of North Macedonia was led by H.E. Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, Patron of Vienna Economic Forum and included H.E. Dr. Kocho Angjushev, Vice Prime Minister, responsible for economic affairs, H.E. Dr. Dragan Tevdovski, Minister of Finance and H.E. Dr. Arber Ademi, Minister of Education and Science.

The entire conference was moderated by VEF member of the Board and President of Jackovich International LLC, USA, Ambassador Victor Jackovich and Dr. Sonja Sagmeister, author and journalist, ZIB 2, ORF.

In her opening speech, Secretary General, Ambassador Dr. Elena Kirtcheva, expressed her great pleasure in being able to welcome all participants and guests of this first international conference for the Republic of North Macedonia abroad. After three historically important steps: the last parliamentary elections and the government election; the solving of the name issue with neighboring Greece; and the recent presidential elections; for the first time in almost three decades, came a day that the Republic of North Macedonia is seen in a new light worldwide!

The host and Member of the Board of Vienna Economic Forum, Mag. Thomas Arnoldner, CEO of the A1 Telekom Austria Group, was delighted to welcome all participants and guests to this important conference in the A1 headquarters. He talked about the current and further planned activities of the A1 Telekom Austria Group and explained the significant cooperation with the Republic of North Macedonia and the countries of the VEF region.

The President of Vienna Economic Forum, DI Dr. Günther Rabensteiner thanked Mag. Thomas Arnoldner and the whole A1 Telekom Austria Group for the hospitality and talked about the active participation of the Vienna Economic Forum in the VEF countries, about the constant support of the local, regional and European economy by organizing such conferences, during which business and politics meet directly to discuss the investment environment of the country.

Keynote Speaker, EU Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighborhood Policy, H.E. Dr. Johannes Hahn stated that the political stability of the Republic of North Macedonia is the best in the region. Further signs of this were the successful presidential elections. In this direction, Commissioner Hahn encouraged the companies from Austria, to invest in North Macedonia, so that, as he said, this would mean higher profits for the country and job creation. Commissioner Hahn mentioned the progress made by North Macedonia in all areas and expressed the hope that the country would have a fixed date for starting negotiations with the European Union and therefore that the first chapters could be opened by the end of this year.

The Prime Minister of the Republic of North Macedonia, H.E. Mr. Zoran Zaev, thanked all participants and especially Vienna Economic Forum, for the idea and the excellent realization of this first conference abroad under the new name “Republic of North Macedonia”. He expressed his appreciation that this year Vienna Economic Forum focuses on investment opportunities in the Republic of North Macedonia and explicitly emphasized that Austria is a strong ally in the Euro-Atlantic integration. H.E. Mr. Zaev emphasized that Austria has been the largest investor in North Macedonia for the past 10 years. He also talked about the Prespa agreement, the successful presidential elections in the country, as well as ongoing reforms of the judiciary, the security system, public administration and the fight against corruption, which remains a top priority for the work of the government. He pointed out that 2019 will be the year of the economy, as a continuation of the economic progress of the previous year and he added that North Macedonia will continue to serve as a role model for the entire region, that the country remains reliable and stable, a land that cares and provides investors with the right conditions for the development of business ideas.

H.E. Dr. Kocho Angjushev, Vice Prime Minister, responsible for economic affairs, H.E. Dr. Dragan Tevdovski, Minister of Finance and H.E. Dr. Arber Ademi, Minister of Education and Science gave presentations on investment and economic development opportunities in the country, as well as on reforms in the education.
The VEF Board was represented by Mag. Stefan Szyskowitz, Spokesman of the Board of Management, EVN AG, Member of the Board of Vienna Economic Forum and Mag. Heinz Messinger, Managing Director of AME International GmbH, member of the Board of Vienna Economic Forum. VEF had the honor to further share the expert opinion of Mr. Andrew McDowell, Vice President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Dr. Linda Van Gelder, Regional Director of the Western Balkans, World Bank, Dr. Anita Richter, Program Manager for the Western Balkans, OECD and Mr. Symeon Tsomokos, Founder and Chairman of the Delphi Economic Forum, Greece, Strategic Partner of Vienna Economic Forum, as well as other members of the VEF and senior representatives of the Austrian and international economy.

As part of the Vienna Economic Talks – New Perspectives for the Republic of North Macedonia, the Prime Minister of the Republic of North Macedonia and his delegation were invited to discuss concrete economic projects and to enable and accelerate their implementation in bilateral talks with high-ranking representatives of Austrian, regional and European companies – Members of Vienna Economic Forum.

On the pre-eve of the Conference, the Honorary Member of Vienna Economic Forum, KR Aki Nuredini, together with the VEF Board, invited to a welcome cocktail in his Bar Sole. The unique atmosphere and hospitality of the host, very well-known and popular in Vienna and in the countries of the VEF region, has added significantly to the good mood and future-oriented discussions. The Vienna Economic Forum thanks KR Aki Nuredini for that.

The evening before, Prime Minister Zaev met with the former Federal President of the Republic of Austria (2014-2016) Dr. Heinz Fischer, Patron of Vienna Economic Forum. Dr. Heinz Fischer emphasized that Europe should reward the Republic of North Macedonia for its courage to face these difficult challenges.

Vienna Economic Forum especially thanks the CEO of A1 Telekom Austria Group and VEF board member, Mag. Thomas Arnoldner, for the generous support and for ensuring that the “Vienna Economic Talks – New Perspectives for the Republic of North Macedonia” was organized in the Headquarters of A1 were organized in Vienna.

Furthermore, Vienna Economic Forum sincerely thanks all cooperation partners, Vienna Insurance Group (VIG), Delphi Forum, MonitorTV and Society Magazine for the active support!

It is the aim of Vienna Economic Forum to contribute to the regional economic development of the entire South-Eastern Europe region and we would like to announce the “16th Vienna Economic Forum – 30 Years after” which is to be held on 18. November, 2019 in the Novomatic Forum in Vienna.