The fair will last five days, until May 6, at which exhibitors from about 30 countries will present their businesses, and expert meetings, round tables and other significant events have been announced.

The fair was declared open by Galit Peleg, the Ambassador of the State of Israel to BiH, who emphasized that the Mostar fair is a place of numerous opportunities, partnerships and new projects.

- I am pleased that the State of Israel is this year's partner of the fair, which gives us an additional opportunity to strengthen, first of all, economic partnership, but also other forms of cooperation - she pointed out, declaring the fair open.

The director of the Mostar Fair Dalfina Bošnjak, the mayor of Mostar Mario Kordić, the Federal PM Nermin Nikšić, the PM of the Republic of Serbia Ana Brnabić, the PM of Croatia Andrej Plenković and the chairperson of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina Borjana Krišto spoke on the occasion.

The director of the Mostar fair, Dalfina Bošnja, is convinced that the performance of the fair's partner - Israel will be at a high level and that the visitors will be delighted with the contents offered.

She also said that their presence is confirmation of the importance of the fair for the common good of all its participants.

- We are honored that Israel is a partner country of this fair. The presence of Israeli companies is one step in the development of relations between the countries that is expected to result in Israeli investment in Bosnia and Herzegovina - said Bošnjak.

Mario Kordić, the mayor of Mostar, pointed out that this is the most important fair event in Bosnia and Herzegovina and represents one of the economic features of Mostar, and congratulated the organizers and friends from Israel, a partner country.

According to him, the City Administration, with a lot of desire and effort, managed to achieve what is most important for the fair, Mostar and BiH - and that is a stable and safe business environment.

- Mostar is an example and leader of the positive in Bosnia and Herzegovina. I emphasize this because it is not without reason that capital does not like uncertainty and cannot tolerate political instability. We have done a lot to create political stability. We also worked on the creation of economic measures within our competence, and one of them is the decision on the convenience of investing in the City of Mostar - said the Mayor of Mostar.

He pointed out the importance of starting air traffic, noting that Mostar is today connected to the rest of the world via Zagreb.

- We want Mostar, which will be a desirable place for investments and a desirable place to live in, where young people will stay, start a family and start a business - underlined Kordić.

Nermin Nikšić, Prime Minister of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina pointed out that the economy is a key integrative factor of society, which is why this fair is an important international event that deserves the attention of the domestic and regional order.

- The presence of the prime ministers of neighboring countries sends an important positive message about the understood need for mutual cooperation, the common good on both sides - in BiH and outside it - said Nikšić, adding that the international representatives showed that the European Union is here again and ready to cooperate with the new authorities. in Bosnia and Herzegovina at all levels, in order to move towards integration into the EU, where we are welcome.

He also emphasized that the partner of this year's fair is the state of Israel, which is an important country in the world economy with which Bosnia and Herzegovina must build close relations.

In addition, he noted that a stable environment for investors will not be created by itself.

- It is up to us to use domestic resources correctly and with the attention of a good host for the benefit of society, and with international friends we must stabilize economic conditions, as well as political ones - said Nikšić.

The Chairperson of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Borjana Krišto, emphasized that Bosnia and Herzegovina stands out and is becoming the center of recognizable and useful gatherings and conferences.

She reminded that politicians, business owners, visionaries who will create new bridges and business opportunities are meeting in Mostar these days in person, and she emphasized that this year the fair also opened the door to domestic and foreign companies from the region and the world in order to establish new business and friendly contacts.

- I am glad that today's fair is being held in the context of an important historical element for Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is that Bosnia and Herzegovina has become a candidate country for EU membership since December last year. That's a big step forward. The brave decisions of the High Representative following the General Elections create a framework for the progress of economic development and deeper integration of BiH into the EU - said the Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia, Andrej Plenković.

He pointed out that the progress of any country requires political institutions to create political stability. He also stated that "the big, major political steps that took place in the formation of the FBiH Government give a clear signal that BiH is facing a period of more intense and faster development".

Plenković once again emphasized the importance of the partnership between the Republic of Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina through support on the European path and investments.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also spoke in a video message, saying that everyone is committed to promoting peace, well-being and security. He added that they developed a free economy in Israel and became known for innovation. He expressed the hope that Bosnia and Herzegovina can help with ideas and work habits, and that our country's cooperation with Israel can be of mutual benefit.

In her address in Mostar, the Prime Minister of Serbia also pointed out that the bilateral exchange between BiH and Serbia has doubled in ten years.

- We managed to raise the exchange by two times. Another fact is that when you look at how important the BiH market is to us from the perspective of Serbia, you can see that BiH is our second export partner. The first is Germany, the second is BiH, you are so important to us. The third data is that Serbia is Bosnia and Herzegovina's third export partner. The first is Croatia, the second is Germany, the third is Serbia - she said.

She stated that those three parameters clearly show how dependent we are on each other and how much potential there is that citizens don't see and it seems that sometimes another country is more important economically, but when you look at these parameters, everything is clear to you.

After the speech, the high delegations toured the fair exhibition area where they attended the ceremonial opening of the National Stand of the partner country of the State of Israel.

As part of its activities at the International Business Fair, in cooperation with the University of Mostar, the FBiH Chamber of Commerce will organize a conference designed through three panels on current topics, such as the adaptation of the University of Mostar to modern labor market conditions, the energy transition and BiH's candidacy status in the EU.

Also, the FBiH Chambers of Commerce will present two large projects, one in the creative industries, and the other a project in which all the countries of the Adriatic-Ionian region participated, based on "blue growth" and "blue economy".

The organizers hope that an additional step forward will be made compared to previous years and that the Mostar International Business Fair 2023 will be a great opportunity to meet businessmen, all with the aim of investing as much as possible in the future in BiH.

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(FENA) L. N.