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Last updated: 17.01.2008    Macedonia-UK Business News

Thursday, 17 January 2008

 

Source: www.mrt.com.mk

 

Presentation of Macedonia's investment opportunities before businessmen from diaspora

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Wednesday, 16 January 2008

Unveiling the reasons for investing in Macedonia and presenting the visions for investing in their homeland to the businessmen from the diaspora, are the main objectives of Wednesday's Business Forum in Skopje that assembles 80 Macedonian emigrants and over 200 local entrepreneurs. The Ministry of Economy organises the Forum.
- In the past 18 months, the Government of the Republic of Macedonia is doing everything in its power in order to lay the foundations for more successful entrance of investments in our country, to remove all business barriers and to allow favourable business climate for all the businessmen that will find their interest in Macedonia's investment potentials, said resigning Minister of Economy Vera Rafajlovska in her welcoming speech while opening the Forum.

She noted that most of the businessmen in the diaspora were already aware that the Republic of Macedonia represented a stable environment at political and macroeconomic plan and that the country's economy widely relied on the development of small and middle-sized enterprises.

- Macedonia's strategic location enables fast and easy access to regional markets mostly due to the free trade accords signed with 27 EU member states and 13 other countries including Turkey and Ukraine, thus enabling a free access to market as big as 650 million consumers, said Minister Rafajlovska.

She stressed that a real GDP growth of 6% was planned for 2008, as well as maintaining low inflation rate between 2,5 and 3%, projected growth of industrial production of 6,1%, of agriculture - 5,2% and of transport and communications - 11%.

Rafajlovska addressing the representatives of the Macedonian diaspora, outlined the reforms undertaken by the Government in the field of tax system, judiciary, education and improvement of investment climate.

The establishment of flat tax, regulatory guillotine, modernisation of customs procedure and the benefits offered by the Government in technological and industrial zones were pinpointed as unique benefits for potential investors.

- Regarding complete eradication of corruption, the Government implements judicial reforms and urges efficiency boost in terms of processes and procedures, said Rafajlovska, emphasising that Government's ultimate goal was to turn Macedonia into a land of IT experts which will contribute to realising the project "Vardar Silicon Valley" that "will highlight the benefits of technological and industrial development zones".

She observed that foreign direct investments were welcomed in transportation, energy and telecommunications sector, in industry and tourism development. Rafajlovska said she hoped that part of the business ambitions and projects developed by the entrepreneurs from the diaspora would be realised after Wednesday's business forum.

The advantages that are being offered to foreign investors in Macedonia were elaborated before the businessmen by minister without portfolio Gligor Taskovic and director of Foreign Investment Agency Viktor Mizo. Director of the Emigration Agency Vasil Naumov presented the legal authorisations of the Agency and the benefits it offered to the emigrants. Several businessmen, who have returned in their homeland, shared their experiences, including the director of the Dutch Chamber of Commerce in Macedonia, Ljupco Todorovski.

Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski is set to address the businessmen from the diaspora and Macedonia later in the day.

 

 

Thursday, 17 January 2008

 

Source: www.mrt.com.mk

 

First International Tourism Fair in Ohrid and Struga

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Thursday, 17 January 2008

First International Tourism Fair, including the participation of about 250 representatives of the tourism sector from Macedonia, the region and beyond, will be opened in Ohrid on Thursday.
Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, who is the fair patron, is scheduled to open the event, also attended by president of the International Hotel & Restaurant Association, Ghassan Aidi.

The fair includes debates in Ohrid hotel "Inex Gorica", presentation of handicraft and other products related to the tourist offer in hall "Biljanini Izvori", as well as gastronomic contest in Struga hotel "Drim".

A two-day forum on tourism will tackle the defining of a regional tourism product, which the countries will use for performance at the tourism market in Europe and beyond. Over 70 domestic and foreign participants have applied at the forum, which will also include topics "Macedonia as a Tourism Destination", "Road of Cultural Heritage in Macedonia and the Region", "Road of Wine", as well as "Larger Regional Networking of Tourism Centers".

Fair participants are to take part Saturday (Epiphany) at the ceremonial throwing of the consecrated cross in Ohrid Lake waters. This manifestation is to be included in the tourism offer in regional countries, thus acquiring wider significance.

 

Tuesday, 11 December 2007

 

Source: www.mrt.com.mk

 

Macedonia's external trade scope - $6,85 billion by October

 

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Monday, 10 December 2007

Commodity international trade scope of the Republic of Macedonia in the period January-October 2007 is 6851653 thousands US dollars. The export share is 40.0% and the import share is 60.0%. The import coverage is 66.6%, and the deficit is 1371463 thousands US dollars. According to data provided by the State Statistical Office, the most important products in the exports were manufactured goods classified mainly by material (45.5%), miscellaneous manufactured articles (22.9%), and in the imports were manufactured goods classified mainly by material (29.1%), machinery and transport equipment (19.0%) and mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials (18.6%) .

The biggest share in the total export by economic groups of countries have the EU 27 countries (66.1%) and West Balkan countries (29.1%), and in the import the biggest share have the EU 27 countries (50.0%) and Developing countries (30.6%).

Compared with the period January-October 2006 the export has been increased in all countries except in Developing countries. The import has been increased in all countries.

 

A Linux thin client for every child

Andrew Donoghue ZDNet.co.uk

Published: 05 Dec 2007 15:26 GMT

A Linux thin client for every child

In September this year, the Macedonian government announced one of the most ambitious educational technology projects ever proposed: to provide 180,000 of its school-age children with computer access.

According to Ivo Ivanovsky, Macedonia's minister for information society: "The Computer for Every Child initiative is the largest and most important education project undertaken in the 15-year history of the Republic of Macedonia... Our goal is to build a knowledge-based economy in which our entire workforce is educated using information and communication technology within the next five years."

Aside from the logistics of rolling out new infrastructure on this scale, the obvious question is, how can a country that hardly ranks as one of the world's financial powerhouses afford a project that would stretch the resources of the richest economy? Step forward thin-client specialist NComputing and its cut-down, bloat-free approach to personal computing. The company's X-300 solid state devices allow a standard PC to act as a mini server, powering up to seven thin-client terminals.

ZDNet.co.uk caught up with NComputing's chief executive Stephen A Dukker to find out why Macedonia is betting its children's future on his company's technology, and why thin client is a better answer to bridging the digital divide than a green laptop.

What do you want to achieve with NComputing that other IT manufacturers haven't done already?
We are focused on dramatically increasing the base [of computer users] by reducing the cost. The user market has been stuck for nearly 10 years at 850 million users, which is generally seen as excluding the developing world. Gartner and IDC claim the developing world represents anything from 755 million to 855 million new users, but there are also large numbers in the so-called under-served markets in our own home communities.

In the US, the most crying need for computing suites is in education — as in the UK — where educational institutions are trying to achieve the goal of one computer station per student. In the US we are at the miserable level of one computer station per six or seven students.

If we find a solution to enable this next major wave of users, the implications on existing usage patterns and users are quite profound as well. If we find ways to open up these very large markets — that is primarily economic — we could revolutionise efficiency and usage of computing in the developed world too, as there is nothing in the solution that is unique to the developing world.

The project you are currently engaged with in Macedonia sounds like a massive undertaking, and possibly a record in terms of a thin-client deployment.
As far as we know this is the first country-wide, full education deployment where they made the commitment to equip every single student seat in every single school in Macedonia with a computer workstation, and achieve a one-to-one student-to-computer rating, which is the best in the world.

They will be rolling out 180,000 student seats, of which 100,000 are being done right now over a five-month period. They are going into high schools because those students are the closest to entering the workplace and they want them to be computer-literate. Next year 80,000 additional seats are being rolled out into primary schools.

These 180,000 seats make up 50 percent of the students in the country because they don't have enough classrooms for all the students, so in essence half of the students go to school in the morning from 6am till noon, and the other half go from noon to 6pm. This way, 180,000 seats service nearly 40,000 students.

What's the background to this deal? How can a relatively poor country such as Macedonia justify spending this much money and effort on computing?
With the election of the new prime minister [Nikola Gruevski in August 2006], his particular agenda that got him elected was a major commitment to upgrading the educational infrastructure of the country. If they were to join the ranks of the developed world, they had to be a knowledge- and information-based society.

This is the single largest commitment for funds in the history of the country. They committed €30m (£22m) out of a total country budget of €1.8bn  (£1.3bn) for education. They said that their usual education budget is about €800,000 (£580,000) — so that's a huge step forward. The people in the country agreed to a special tax assessment to help pay for this as they recognised that this was going to be the most important investment they could make.  more…

 

 

Thursday, 29 November 2007

 

Source: www.mrt.com.mk

 

German - Macedonian Business Forum in Berlin

 

Minister of Economy Vera Rafajlovska Thursday at the second day of her visit to Berlin, will participate at the German - Macedonian Business Forum upon an invitation of the German - Macedonian Association and Federal German Chamber of Industry and Commerce.
Minister Rafajlovska will present business climate in Macedonia before the participants at the forum.

Representatives of 13 Macedonian companies and representatives of German companies that invest in Macedonia will participate at the forum. This activity of the Ministry of Economy is in accordance of the programme for improvement of the competitiveness of the Macedonian products at world markets.

Minister Rafajlovska is scheduled to meet the Environment Minister Gabriel Sigmar, Deputy Minister of the Federal Ministry of Economics Hartmut Schauerte and to visit the German Technical Assistance (GTZ) office in Berlin.

 

 

Wednesday, 21 November 2007

 

Source: NComputing

 

NComputing Announces Availability of $70 Virtual PC Solutions on Ubuntu Linux Operating System

 

License-Free Open-Source PC Solution With Complete Office Application Suite

 

REDWOOD CITY, CA--(Marketwire - November 20, 2007) - NComputing, the leading provider of virtual PC solutions, today announced the availability of its products on the open-source Ubuntu Linux operating system. Joining its Windows-based offerings, the NComputing open-source solution allows schools and businesses worldwide to deploy full virtual PC stations, complete with hardware, software, the Ubuntu operating system and the OpenOffice.org productivity suite, at unprecedented low costs by leveraging the excess power of their PCs and open-source license-free software.

This innovative solution, winner of the Wall Street Journal Technology Innovation Award for computer systems, allowed the Republic of Macedonia to fully deploy 180,000 student seats -- complete with 15" monitors, shared PCs and all software (including OpenOffice.org), peripherals, installation and training -- for less than 25% of the cost of the least expensive PC per-seat deployment.

Counting both Windows and Linux deployments, NComputing is already responsible for almost 5 percent of all new student seat computing purchases in United States K-12 public schools, a remarkable achievement for a company in only its second year of shipping products.

"NComputing has dramatically reduced the cost of PC computing to empower a new generation of users in underserved markets worldwide with affordable PC solutions," said Stephen Dukker, CEO and Chairman of NComputing. "Our virtual PC solutions, when combined with open-source software such as Ubuntu Linux and OpenOffice.org, are hard to beat. Macedonia may represent the largest global educational Linux rollout, but momentum is building rapidly in the US, with major Linux commitments by school districts in such locations as San Diego, Ohio, Indiana, and New York."

"Like most school districts around the world, Macedonia's education system has limited financial and infrastructural resources to address its need to provide all students with access to computers and technology," said Ivo Ivanovski, Macedonia's Minister for the Information Society. "By adopting NComputing's low-cost virtual PC technology bundled with Ubuntu software, Macedonia is taking the lead in providing computer-based education for school children."

The NComputing solution, available with both Linux and Windows operating systems, capitalizes on a simple fact: Today's PCs are so powerful that the vast majority of applications only use a small fraction of their computing capacity. NComputing's virtualization software taps this unused capacity so that it can be simultaneously shared by multiple users. Each user's monitor, keyboard, and mouse are connected to a very small and highly reliable access device, which is then connected to the shared PC. The access device itself has no CPU, memory, or moving parts, and the solution is easy to deploy and maintain. NComputing systems start at $70 per seat and in the past 18 months, over 500,000 NComputing systems have been deployed around the world.

About NComputing, Inc.

Winner of the Wall Street Journal's 2007 Technology Innovation Award, NComputing, Inc. was founded with the goal of making computing affordable for everyone. NComputing is a privately held software and hardware technology design and manufacturing company with offices in Australia, Canada, China, Germany, India, Korea, Mexico, Poland, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Headquartered in Redwood City, CA, the company's patented technologies drastically lower costs, improve manageability and reduce energy consumption. The current product lines deliver virtual PC computing solutions that are as low as $70 per user, affordable enough for even the smallest organization yet powerful enough for enterprise-scale applications.

 

 

 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007

 

Source: www.linuxplanet.com

 

Macedonia: A New Sun of Linux Freedom Rises
In Macedonia, Edubuntu Machines For Every Student

Brian Proffitt
Monday, November 19, 2007 09:44:09 AM

The Republic of Macedonia is one of the poorer nations in southeastern Europe to come from the break-up of the former Yugoslav republic. But thanks to Linux, they do have the wherewithal to get a computer to every student in the country, thanks to a program launched in 2005 known as the "Computer for Every Child" (CEC) project.

According to the Macedonia Ministry of Education and Science, more than 180,000 workstations running Edubuntu 7.04 have already begun to be deployed to Macedonian students. The students will share time on the computers, half in the morning and half in the afternoon.

Getting computers into classrooms is a high priority for many nations, and there are several opportunities to do so--the One Laptop Per Child and the Mandriva/Classmate PC projects being two of the more well-known efforts. The Macedonian program can take its place in this group, given the scope of the project.

The CEC project is one of the largest known thin-client and desktop Linux deployments ever undertaken, according to the Canonical, the commercial company behind the Edubuntu distribution. The Edubuntu distribution (based on Feisty Fawn) will run on 160,000 virtual PC terminals and 20,000 PCs (which each also support a student on the attached monitor) supplied by NComputing. The systems were procured and will be installed by Chinese PC maker The Haier Company.

The first 7,000 computers pre-installed with Ubuntu were shipped on September 4, a press statement from Canonical confirmed.

Not only is this one of the largest known Linux desktop deployments, but according to Canonical's marketing manager Gerry Carr, this is the largest "pure" Edubuntu deployment to date. There have been larger Ubuntu deployments, he added, notably in Spain school districts.

Carr explained that this news was a long time in coming. Back in 2005, a pilot version of the program was launched that put 5,000 Ubuntu machines in 468 schools and 182 computer labs. That two-year pilot was very successful, Carr said, which led to the implementation of the full deployment this year.

This is not simply a victory for Linux on the desktop, but a direct loss for Microsoft as well. In 2003, Macedonia entered into an agreement with Microsoft to legalize copies of Windows that were at that time unlicensed by the Macedonian government. Microsoft was also to devote resources for translating more of Windows into the Macedonian language. Details of the arrangement were never fully disclosed, though presumably the translation did take place, because Carr confirmed that, like Edubuntu, Windows XP was available in Macedonian.

Despite XP's native-language capabilities, Carr did not seem the slightest bit concerned about a possible operating system switchover along the lines of what occured recently in Nigeria, when a planned deployment of 17,000 Mandriva-loaded Classmate PC was almost derailed by an unplanned switch to Windows XP on the Classmate machines.

In Macedonia, it's extremely unlikely that such an event would occur, Carr said, because the Macedonian government had put so much time and effort into researching the Edubuntu-based solution.

"This program is also unique," Carr said, "because the PCs were purchased from scratch." Essentially, he explained, they were off-the-shelf systems for which Edubuntu was then certified. That certification process was made all the more easier by the fact that all of the systems were Intel-based, and Intel has done a lot of work with Canonical to get the *buntu distributions pre-certified.

Now that the systems are starting to arrive, Carr expects that the bulk of the deployment will be finished sometime around the end of the calendar year.

 

 

Thursday, 15 November 2007

 

Source: www.bapcojournal.com

 

Sepura steps in to Macedonia with major contract win

 

Published: 14 November, 2007

Sepura has won a major order to supply digital TETRA radios to the Police of the Republic of Macedonia, under a contract between its distributor 3Tech and the country’s Ministry of the Interior.

This order forms part of a large-scale reform of all branches of the police service in the Balkan state including a new TETRA network funded by the European Union.

State police in urban and rural areas and the Border Police will use the radios to give secure, continuous, instant and clear communication.

The landlocked state has encountered problems along its borders where mountainous and sparsely populated terrain has made it a target for illegal immigration and smuggling of drugs, weapons, alcohol and tobacco.

Nearly 4000 radios will be supplied including SRH3800 sGPS™ handheld radios and SRG3500 vehicle radios which include Gateway functionality to ensure continuous reception in blackspots of network coverage. All handheld and some of the vehicle radios will benefit from GPS to locate each police officer or vehicle using the TETRA radio.

The European Agency for Reconstruction funded the overall TETRA project at a cost of €9 million, where Siemens, in partnership with Rohde and Schwarz, implemented the TETRA network.

Kenneth Hubner, Sepura’s Regional Sales Director, said: “This is another major step forward for Sepura and follows other recent sales wins in Eastern Europe including Bulgaria and Hungary.”

Zarko Lenardic, of 3Tech, Slovenia, said: “The quality of the radios and the first-class customer support that Sepura offers contributed to winning the order.”

 

 

 

Thuresday, 15 November 2007

 

Telekom Austria Group: Results for the First Nine Months 2007 Withstand Challenging Market Conditions

 

Source: www.money.cnn.com

 

November 14, 2007: 01:05 AM EST

 

    VIENNA, November 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --
    - Revenues Increase by 2.0% to EUR 3,630.9 Million
    - EBITDA Declines From EUR 1,535.6 Million to EUR 1,463.6 Million
    - Fixed Net and Start-up Costs for New Operations Weigh on EBITDA
    - Net Income Declines From EUR 498.5 to EUR 451.5 Million
    - Acquisition of the Belarusian MDC Strengthens Emerging Markets Profile

- Total of EUR 712.9 Million Returned to Shareholders via Dividend and Share Buyback During 1-9 2007

- Full year 2007 Outlook Raised for Revenues & EBITDA

Telekom Austria Group today announced its results for the first nine months of 2007 and the third quarter ending September 30, 2007.

Year-to-date comparison:

During the first nine months of 2007, revenues increased by 2.0% to EUR 3,630.9 million due to higher revenues from international operations.

Lower contribution from Fixed Net and costs for the launch of start-up companies in the Republic of Serbia and in the Republic of Macedonia in the amount of EUR 34.8 million led to a decline in EBITDA by 4.7% to EUR 1,463.6 million.

Operating income decreased by 4.5% to EUR 668.0 million as growth in operating income from the Fixed Net could only partly offset a lower operating income in the Mobile Communication segment.

Net income declined by 9.4% to EUR 451.5 million as a consequence of lower operating income and higher interest expenses. Consequently earnings per share declined by 5.7% to EUR 0.99.

Capital expenditures for tangible and intangible assets increased by 26.9% to EUR 534.8 million mainly due to investments in the Republic of Serbia and in the Republic of Macedonia as well as investments in the network infrastructure.

Net debt increased by 4.7% to EUR 3,317.4 million at the end of September 2007 compared to the end of December 2006 due to higher dividend payments and an increased share buyback. During the same period net debt to EBITDA (last 12 months) increased by 5.9% to 1.8x.

Quarterly comparison:

Revenues increased by 3.6% to EUR 1,277.1 million in 3Q 07 compared to 3Q 06 due to higher revenues in both segments.

EBITDA declined by 5.4% to EUR 521.2 million due to lower contributions from the Fixed Net as well as start-up costs of EUR 18.1 million from the operations in the Republic of Serbia and in the Republic of Macedonia. Operating income declined by 8.9% to EUR 257.8 million mainly due to higher operating expenses and higher D&A in the Mobile Communication segment.

Net income decreased by 18.7% to EUR 173.7 million during 3Q 07 compared to 3Q 06 mainly due to a lower operating income and higher interest expenses following increased shareholder returns via dividends and share buybacks. Earnings per share decreased by 13.6% to EUR 0.39 as a consequence of a lower net income. Group capital expenditures for tangible and intangible assets increased by 6.5% to EUR 158.1 million during 3Q 07 due to investments for the start-up operations in the Republic of Serbia and in the Republic of Macedonia.

 

US commits $6.8m to stimulate economic growth through private sector

 

 

 

Source www.mrt.com.mk                                                                       Wednesday, 03 October 2007

An agreement covering several private sector assistance projects worth $6.8 million has been signed by acting USAID Director Michael Eddy and Macedonian Finance Minister Trajko Slaveski. The assistance will be provided by the American people through the USAID to stimulate economic growth and job creation by enhancing the investment climate and addressing trade impediments.

The goal is to make it easier and more profitable for both local and international businesses to operate in Macedonia. USAID’s e-Gov project is creating more transparency and streamlined governmental processes for businesses. Through USAID’s Business Environment Activity project, a legal and regulatory environment conducive to doing business here will be created. Other activities are strategically targeted to increase competitiveness and export potential of key industries, including the agricultural sector, and to stimulate small and medium-sized enterprises and local economies.

     

MACEDONIA RANKED FOURTH AMONG REFORMERS WORLDWIDE

The World Bank has ranked Macedonia in the top five reformers in the world by the World Bank’s Doing Business project. More »