At Thessaloniki City Hall, the Mayor of Thessaloniki, Stelios Angeloudis, met with the Ambassador of Bosnia and Herzegovina to Greece, Dragan Vuković, and the Head of the Republic of Srpska Representative Office to Greece, Jelena Jovanović.

The discussion focused on business cooperation strengthening through mutual business delegation visits and establishing direct links between institutions and companies from Thessaloniki and the Republic of Srpska. Opportunities for cooperation in the fields of tourism, culture and education were also discussed.

Special emphasis was placed on city twinning initiative.

The meeting ended with mutual agreement to intensify contacts and specify joint projects in the coming period.

In order to improve cooperation in the field of education and culture, a delegation from the Republic of Srpska met with the Thessaloniki Deputy Mayor of Education and Culture, Efi Theodoraki, in Thessaloniki.

The Republic of Srpska delegation included: Slađana Tanasić, Director of the Republic Pedagogical Institute of the Republic of Srpska, Milija Marjanović, Head of the Secondary Education Department, Arijana Žujić, Head of the Teaching Quality Assessment Department, Biljana Pisić, Director of the Petar Kočić Secondary School Center Zvornik, and Jelena Jovanović, Head of the Republic of Srpska’s Greek Representation.

The main topics of the meeting were: twinning of schools from Thessaloniki and the Republic of Srpska, student and teacher exchange, and involving educational institutions in international programs such as Erasmus+.

The importance of student and teacher exchange was particularly noted for intercultural dialogue strengthening and professional development of teaching staff. Representatives of the Republic of Srpska also emphasized the importance of Serbian language classes organized in Thessaloniki, as an example of preserving the language and cultural identity in the diaspora.

The meeting unfolded in a friendly atmosphere, and both sides expressed their readiness to take concrete steps towards formalizing the cooperation in the coming period.

The stand of the National and University Library of the Republic of Srpska at the 21st Thessaloniki International Book Fair was ceremonially opened in the presence of many guests.

The Republic of Srpska NUL’s participation in the Fair was supported by the Republic of Srpska Representative Office in Greece and exceptional efforts invested by the Representation Head, Jelena Jovanović.

By participating in the fair, the Library continues its mission of presenting the cultural and literary heritage of the Republic of Srpska on the international stage through developing cooperation with institutions and audiences from the region and beyond.

At the Thessaloniki Book Fair, which took place from 8 to 11 May, the National and University Library of the Republic of Srpska presented its bilingual publications.

Special attention of the visitors was attracted by the children’s workshop Discover the Cyrillic Alphabet together with Gagarin, the Silliest Dog in the Universe, inspired by the book of the same name by Berislav Blagojević.

Representatives of the Republic of Srpska Pedagogical Institute Banja Luka also attended the opening ceremony.

The stand of the Republic of Srpska National and University Library at the Thessaloniki International Book Fair was visited by Metropolitan Filotheos of Thessaloniki and Bishop Jovan of Pakrac and Slavonia, who expressed their support and interest in the Library’s publishing activities and the cultural presentation of Srpska at this important international event.

Participation of the Republic of Srpska NUL in the Thessaloniki Book Fair was supported also by the Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republic of Srpska.

Source: Republic of Srpska Representative Office in the Hellenic Republic – RTRS

Photo: Republic of Srpska Representative Office in the Hellenic Republic