Strawberry Season Comes Early To Belgrade… Next Stop, The World!
Strawberries will be bursting out all over the world, thanks to an environmental initiative that has given a young Serbian business a leg-up. Strawberry Energy, a business that designs and markets solar-powered mobile chargers, is building on an EU accolade to plant roots at home and bring clean energy to Africa and Asia. One small step in planting a Strawberry Tree in Belgrade marks a giant leap for the business and for the future of clean energy.
“Now we are installing our public solar chargers in Serbia and the Balkan region, but my main efforts are aimed on our next step: bringing solar charging possibilities to rural areas of Africa and India,’ Strawberry Energy CEO Miloš Milisavljević told W!LD RooSTeR. “In these areas there in no electric grid and mobile phones are their only connection to the world.
Clean Up Corruption & Organised Crime Before You Join, Europe Tells Serbia
Serbia has to clean up its record on corruption and organised crime, a European Commission report says. While recognising efforts already made in a Justice Ministry crack-down, the commissioners claim there are still too many cases stagnating in the system and not brought to court or conviction. If Serbia wants to progress to full candidacy of the European Union, it must clean up its own back yard first, they say.
While highlighting the issue of Kosovo as a significant stumbling block and condition in Belgrade’s journey towards Brussels, the report on Serbia’s level of EU readiness recommends that Serbia should be granted candidate status. Its recommendation is also based on the condition that further progress is seen in key areas, including infrastructure, the legislature, human rights and the economy.
Serbia’s EU Dream is Conditional on Renewed Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue
The European Commission has told Serbia’s Boris Tadić that he must get back around the table with Pristina if his EU dreams are to become a reality. As approval for the EU plummets to a ten-year low at home, President Tadić has been handed a report that recommends candidacy, on condition that Serbia sorts out its Kosovo situation. It does not go as far as to call for Serbia to recognise the independence of Kosovo, but Belgrade must work constructively with Pristina, if Tadić is to follow his yellow brick road to Brussels.
With Belgrade politicians already posturing in the long run up to next year’s elections, this explosive topic that runs so deep is certain to increase temperatures in coming months and could put pressure on Tadić to make his position clear one way or the other. Something he often appears unwilling to do, say his critics.
eCommerce Can Boost Serbian Business: Embrace It
Online retailing delivers the best prices, the widest choice and the most convenient way of shopping for millions around the world. That is a fact. It is fast, efficient and easy to use and can be safe and secure if used sensibly. Internet shopping might not be for everyone, but that is his or her choice. At least, it is in countries where that choice is available to them.
eCommerce can make so many things possible for so many people. It already does that in many countries. It brings products and services within reach by opening the doors to the world. With the advent of online payment systems, Serbians will finally be able to legally purchase any number of items from beyond their borders. This is not a deterioration of border controls, a loss of homeland trade or any infringement of Serbian territory by outside forces.
