Vienna Economic Talks – Prishtina Meeting 2023
The Vienna Economic Talks – Prishtina Meeting 2023 took place on 8. May 2023 under the Patronage of H.E. Mr. Albin Kurti, Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo in Prishtina.
Vienna Economic Forum is proud to have organized the successful event under the Motto "Regional Cooperation in a Fragmented Environment" together with the Government of the Republic of Kosovo.
More information will follow shortly. The Program can be found here.
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Vienna Economic Forum and Delphi Economic Forum in the framework of the Annual Conference Delphi Economic Forum VIII
On 29. April 2023, Vienna Economic Forum (VEF) and Delphi Economic Forum (DEF) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) during the Annual Delphi Economic Forum VIII conference in Dephi, Greece.
The Secretary General and Founder of Vienna Economic Forum, Ambassador Dr. Elena Kirtcheva and the Founder and President of Delphi Economic Forum, Mr. Symeon Tsomokos emphasized that this is yet another and very important step in the long-term cooperation of both organizations, which corresponds to their strong commitment to promoting regional cooperation and is of immense importance for the economic development of the region.
The signing took place at the end of the Session "Building a Safe, Fair and Responsible Migration Policy for European Societies" in the presence of H.E. Mr. Karl Nehammer, MSc, Federal Chancellor of the Republic of Austria, speaker in the “World Affairs” and “Immigration” Sessions.
Vienna Economic Forum and Delphi Economic Forum will also cooperate at the upcoming 20th Jubilee Vienna Economic Forum, on 13 November 2023, at the Vienna City Hall - Rathaus!
Vienna Economic Forum Member country Montenegro – Investment potential and possibilities
Vienna Economic Forum is proud to present the economic opportunities and development potentials, as well as investment and business opportunities in the VEF Member country Montenegro.
Please find here the link to the Brochure of the Chamber of Economy of Montenegro, Cooperation partner of Vienna Economic Forum with concrete investment opportunities and a list of potential projects.
Vienna Economic Forum congratulates the longstanding Cooperation Partner Serbian Association of Economists for celebrating the 30th Jubilee Kopaonik Business Forum
This year’s 30th jubilee edition of the Kopaonik Business Forum was again an important place of gathering, business connectivity and dialogue between the business, political and academic elite. Kopaonik Business Forum was held in Serbia from 5th to 8th of March 2023, at the Congress Centre of Hotel Grand in Kopaonik. The central topic of the 30th edition of the Kopaonik Business Forum was “Pursuing Resilient Economy in Uncertain Times: Major Challenges for Serbia and the Western Balkans”.
Vienna Economic Forum congratulates especially Mr. Aleksandar Vlahović, Presidentof the Serbian Association of Economists and Member of the Board of Vienna Economic Forum, for the excellent organization of the Kopaonik Business Forum and wishes many further successes in their significant endeavours.
Here is the press release.
Vienna Economic Forum would like to express its gratitude to THE HEAT COMPANY for the generous donation to the victims of the terrible earthquakes in Türkiye and has the privilege to publish the Thank you Letter of Mr. Ahmet Burak Dağlıoğlu, President of the Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye Investment Office and Board Member of Vienna Economic Forum.
Regular Board Meeting and Annual General Assembly of Vienna Economic Forum on 13 February 2023
The Regular Board Meeting, followed by the Annual General Assembly of Vienna Economic Forum (VEF) in 2023 took place on 13 February at the Vienna headquarters of the VEF Founding member - Vienna Insurance Group AG (VIG).
The host Mag. Peter Höfinger, Member of the VIG Board and VEF Vice-President, welcomed the present participants on the top floor of the Ring Tower.
The Secretary General Ambassador Dr. Elena Kirtcheva reported on the VEF activities in yet another special and volatile year, which despite all global challenges can be described as very successful for Vienna Economic Forum.
In the special year 2022, VEF managed to adapt to the requirements of the time and made a further contribution to regional economic development with the organization of Vienna Economic Talks- Istanbul Meeting 2022 in May 2022. After the long break of the pandemic period, the 21st Traditional Garden Party of Vienna Economic Forum took place on 10 June 2022 in the Paradise garden of Villa Flora.
The VEF Secretary General particularly emphasized the great success of the 19th Vienna Economic Forum - Vienna Future Dialogue 2022, which took place on 14. November 2022 at the Raiffeisen Bank International in Vienna under the motto "Economy meets politics in difficult and uncertain times".
According to the Statute, the VEF President DI Peter Umundum led through the Agenda and the following new members were proposed by the Board and confirmed by the General Assembly:
The following were elected as new Board members:
- Dr. Christian Schwarz, Managing Director, as representative of the Member - Cooperation partner KELAG AG;
- Mr. Veselin Baldzhiev, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Executive Director, as representative of the Member- Cooperation partner BULGARKONTROLA LTD;
- Mag. Olha Bosak, responsible for Strategic Business Developments, as representative of the Member-Cooperation partner enso GmbH;
- DI Wolfgang Anzengruber, long-time CEO of Verbund AG and honorary member of Vienna Economic Forum;
- Former Ambassador Dr. Emil Brix, Director of the Diplomatic Academy (DA) Vienna;
- Mag. Nikolaus-Conrad Lorenz, Strategy Director, Canon CEE, co-opted as a Board member in the place of his predecessor Mr. Wilbert Verheijen, Managing Director, Canon CEE GmbH.
The following were elected as new Members - Cooperation partners:
- BULGARKONTROLA LTD
- enso GmbH
The following were elected as new Members - Legal entities:
- KOOPERATIVA poisťovňa, a.s. Vienna Insurance Group, Bratislava
- L&M Political Risk and Strategy Advisory GmbH
- The Fund of Funds - Fund Manager of Financial Instruments in Bulgaria
The following were elected as new Members-Natural persons:
- Dr. Willibald Plesser
- Ms. Velina Tchakarova, MA
- Ms. Irena Perchuklievska Pal, BBA
The following were elected as new Members of the Ambassadors Committee:
- H.E. Mme Ambassador Dragana Radulović, Charge d'Affaires a.I. at Embassy of Montenegro
- H.E. Mme Michaela Mocanu, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Moldova
- H.E. Mme Desislava Naydenova-Gospodinova, designated Ambassador of the Republic of Bulgaria
Honorary membership in the honorary committee of the Vienna Economic Forum was awarded to the following former VEF Board members:
- Dr. Karl Blecha - former Minister of Interior of the Republic of Austria, long-standing Board member of Vienna Economic Forum
- Dr. Klaus Liebscher- former governor of the Austrian National Bank, long-standing Board member of Vienna Economic Forum
After the election and appointment of the new members, DI Peter Umundum handed over the office of VEF President to Ambassador Victor Jackovich, President, Jackovich International LLC, USA, long-standing VEF board member and supporter of various VEF activities.
Ambassador Jackovich primarily thanked DI Umundum for his activities as VEF President (2020-2023) and then expressed his gratitude for the trust. He emphasized that he wants to carry the office well into the future and develop the forum well.
With a short speech, the outgoing President DI Peter Umundum thanked the newly elected VEF Board members for their trust.
After the conclusion of the Agenda, the General Assembly was closed at 6.00 p.m.
Following this year's Board meeting and General Assembly, Mag. Peter Höfinger, Vice-President of Vienna Economic Forum, invited to a small reception, where the members had the opportunity to discuss various possibilities and ideas for further cooperation in the Vienna Economic Forum region.
Fotocredit: SOCIETY/Pobaschnig
Vienna Economic Forum - Cooperation partner Novomatic AG successful at ICE London 2023
Vienna Economic Forum is pleased to inform about the further successes of the VEF Cooperation partner NOVOMATIC AG, represented on the VEF Board by DI Ryszard Presch as VEF Vice-president.
After a tremendously busy show, NOVOMATIC takes stock of ICE London 2023, which proved to be the best, the busiest and by far the biggest ICE ever. Alongside the success on the show floor, the company was also delighted to win two first places in key categories at the prestigious European Casino Awards.
Click here for the Press release.
Vienna Economic Forum & AACC
Sign a Memorandum of Understanding
25 January 2023
Vienna- Austria
With the aim of enhancing mutual relations and strengthening cooperation between Austria, Southeastern European countries and Arab countries, the Austro-Arab Chamber of Commerce (AACC), represented by its Secretary-General Eng. Mouddar Khouja, and the Vienna Economic Forum (VEF), represented by its Secretary-General H.E. Ambassador Dr. Elena Kirtcheva, signed a Memorandum of Understanding on 25 January 2023.
The MoU ceremony was honoured by the presence of Dr. Ernst Huber, Member of AACC Board of Directors and Member of the VEF Honorary Committee. Dr. Snezana Kearns, Senior Project Manager, Ms. Irena Pal (BBA), Project & Office Manager, and Mag. Niko Petković, Project Manager additionally attended the ceremony from VEF’s side, whereas Mag. Leila Kaplan, Office Director and Chief of Staff attended from AACC’s side.
The signing of this MoU was the result of deliberations that took place during a courtesy visit paid by Secretary-General Khouja to Secretary-General Kirtcheva earlier this month. H.E. Ambassador Dr. Kirtcheva has already met with a number of Arab ambassadors in Vienna, in an attempt to further consolidate coordination and cooperation with the Arab region, an area in which SG Khouja reiterated his readiness to support by all means.
L-t-r: Ms. Pal, Mag. Kaplan, Dr. Huber, SG Eng. Khouja, Amb. Dr. Kirtcheva, Dr. Kearns, Mag. Petković
This bilateral agreement between AACC and VEF demonstrates the will of both parties as strategic partners to establish cooperation and good relations between both institutions, by means of mutual support of each other’s initiatives and activities, organising joint events and sharing useful information on the economic situation and developments aimed at supporting the goals of both institutions.
In this context, Ambassador Kirtcheva announced the upcoming “Vienna Economic Talks- Prishtina Meeting 2023”, scheduled to take place on 7-8 May 2023 in Prishtina, Kosovo and invited SG Khouja and AACC members to attend. SG Khouja extended an invitation to Ambassador Dr. Kirtcheva and VEF members to take part in the 12th edition of the “Annual Investment Meeting (AIM)” and the “Entrepreneurs Investment Summit: Investing in Arab and African Entrepreneurs”, which will be held under the support of the Union of Arab Chambers (UAC) from 8 -10 May 2023 in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Pursuant to the agreement on widely publishing information and news pertaining to each other’s activities, each of the institutions will reciprocally share information about the above-mentioned meetings and vigorously promote the other’s events within its extensive network.
Secretary General of Austro-Arab Chamber of Commerce (AACC), Dipl.-Ing. Mouddar Khouja to a working meeting at Vienna Economic Forum (VEF)
On 9th January 2023, the Secretary General of the Vienna Economic Forum Ambassador Dr. Elena Kirtcheva had the pleasure to welcome Dipl.-Ing. Mouddar Khouja, Secretary General of the Austro-Arab Chamber of Commerce (AACC) in the premises of Vienna Economic Forum (VEF).
The conversation took place in a very friendly atmosphere and focused on the options for future cooperation. New perspectives were identified, for the development of which the two parties discussed the possibility of signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).
Cooperation Agreement for the organisation of „Vienna Economic Talks- Prishtina Meeting 2023”
On 12 January 2023, Ambassador Dr. Elena Kirtcheva, Secretary General of Vienna Economic Forum and H.E. Mr. Albin Kurti, Prime Minister of Kosovo and Patron of Vienna Economic Forum signed a Cooperation Agreement regarding the organization of „Vienna Economic Talks- Prishtina Meeting 2023” on 7-8 May in Prishtina.
The signing of the Cooperation Agreement took place in the premises of the Diplomatic Academy Vienna and was followed by intense talks with the delegation of the Prime Minister and H.E. Mr. Lulzim Pllana, Ambassador of Kosovo and Member of the Ambassadors Committee of Vienna Economic Forum, and in the presence of Ambassador Dr. Emil Brix, Director of the Diplomatic Academy Vienna and a longstanding supporter of Vienna Economic Forum.
VEF Cooperation partner - Vienna Insurance Group (VIG) collaborates with World Bank Group member IFC in the VEF - Member country Bulgaria
Vienna Economic Forum is pleased to inform about the further development of the VEF Cooperation partner Vienna Insurance Group (VIG), represented on the VEF Board by Mag. Peter Höfinger as a VEF Vice-President.
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, has acquired a stake of around 10% in the Bulgarian pension fund Doverie, which is majority owned by the VEF Cooperation partner - Vienna Insurance Group (VIG). The aim of the cooperation is to strengthen private pension provision in the VEF - Member country Bulgaria and to jointly expand the pension insurance market in the country.
Vienna Economic Forum congratulates the Vienna Insurance Group on this important step and is proud of the successes of its Cooperation partner.
Click here for the Press release.
Vittorio Di Bello (IFC) and Peter Höfinger (VIG)
Working meeting with H.E. Mr. Hamad Ali Mohammed Subaih Alkaabi, Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates
On 11 January 2023, Ambassador Dr. Elena Kirtcheva, Member of the Board and Secretary General of Vienna Economic Forum was received by H.E. Mr. Hamad Ali Mohammed Subaih Alkaabi, Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates and Permanent Representative to the International Organizations for a working meeting at the Embassy of the UAE.
The main topic of the discussion were various possibilities for a cooperation and potential active participation of representatives of the United Arab Emirates economy in the VEF- Activities.
Working meeting with the Ambassador of the Republic of Iraq H.E. Mr. Baker Fattah Hussen at the premises of Vienna Economic Forum
On the 9th of January 2023, the Secretary General of the Vienna Economic Forum Ambassador Dr. Elena Kirtcheva had a working meeting with H.E. Mr. Baker Fattah Hussen Ambassador of the Republic of Iraq and Permanent Representative to the International Organizations, accompanied by Dr. Zahim M. Muslim, Counsellor responsible for the Economic Relations, at the premises of Vienna Economic Forum.
In a very friendly and open atmosphere, interesting potential opportunities and concrete initiatives for a future cooperation between the Republic of Iraq and Vienna Economic Forum were discussed.
