Ljubljana

Ljubljana – An online discussion on the EU’s post-pandemic economic recovery hosted by the European Parliament Office on Monday showed that opinions vary on the quality of Slovenia’s national recovery plan, but the participants agreed that the country should make the best use of the one month it still has to finalise the plan.

Ljubljana – Marking World Water Day, experts stressed the importance of waters and the need to protect the abundance of water sources that Slovenia boasts for future generations, especially in the light of proposed changes to the waters act that would loosen the rules for water protection areas.

Ljubljana – Days of Jožef Stefan will kicked off online yesterday with Jožef Stefan Institute (IJS) head Boštjan Zalar addressing the opening ceremony. Until Saturday several lectures and other events will be held to popularise science and honour the memory of the famous physicist that gave the name to Slovenia’s top research institute.

Ljubljana – Slovenia reported 516 new coronavirus cases in 2,849 PCR tests on Saturday for a positivity rate of some 18%. The seven-day average of new daily cases kept up its upward trend, standing at 808. Five Covid-19 deaths were recorded, show fresh official data.

A total of 6,843 rapid antigen tests were also conducted with all the positives there re-examined with PCR tests.

Ljubljana – The head of Slovenia’s group of experts who advise the government on coronavirus measures has warned that the country is no longer just facing a new wave of the epidemic but is already at the start of the third wave.

Ljubljana – Bars and restaurants in the Primorsko-Notranjska region could start serving customers outdoors from Monday, having been promoted to tier yellow to join Posavje and South-East Slovenia. Stores in Obalno-Kraška are meanwhile allowed to reopen provided staff get tested weekly as the coastal region has moved to tier orange.

Ljubljana – Slovenia did not opt for an optional offer by the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines as part of joint EU purchasing because the deliveries were expected as late as in the second half of 2021, the Health Ministry told the STA on Sunday. The country expressed interest in acquiring vaccine volumes on a pro rata basis, it added.

Ljubljana – Slovenia has spent billions to help companies weather the coronavirus crisis and keep unemployment low. Business associations say companies are currently in good shape overall, but they highlight pockets of problems, especially among SMEs and in industries that were shut down for a long time.

Ljubljana – The government has overstepped its powers and abused the police as it tasked the Interior Ministry to examine whether STA director Bojan Veselinovič’s alleged violations of the law contained elements of suspected crime prosecutable ex officio and to act accordingly, the trade union and the association of journalists said on Friday.

Ljubljana – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has downgraded its forecast for Slovenia’s growth in 2021 from 5.2% to 3.7%. For 2022, it forecasts 4.5% growth, Bernardin Akitoby, chief of the IMF mission for Slovenia, said on Friday. This means Slovenia’s economy would reach the pre-pandemic level next year.