Minister of Finance Klemen Boštjančič attended the Ministerial Council Meeting of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in Paris. Ministers discussed the current challenges facing countries and possible approaches to address them with a view to achieving sustainable and inclusive economic growth.

The fourth Golden Bee Award will be presented this year. The award committee received 16 applications from 11 countries for achievements in the promotion of bees and wild pollinators.

In the first half of 2004, the Presidency of the Council of the EU was held by Ireland, which organised the Day of Welcomes on 1 May 2004 in Phoenix Park, Dublin, for the new Member States. The late Irish Nobel Prize-winning poet Seamus Heaney wrote a poem for the occasion, entitled Beacons at Bealtaine, which he also read at the event.

Twenty years have passed since Slovenia became a member of the European Union. The significant enlargement on May 1, 2004, was the result of our longstanding desire for positive change and the determination to become part of an advanced Europe.

Twenty years ago today, the European Union witnessed its largest enlargement in history, a process that demanded extensive preparations from both the Union and the ten countries of Central, Eastern, and Southern Europe. In the subsequent years, three more new Member States joined. From today's perspective, this wave of enlargement seems like a small miracle, as it is difficult to maintain the same pace of enlargement in the face of numerous global and domestic challenges.

In April, when Malta held the presidency of the UN Security Council, the focus was on the situation in Gaza and on emergency meetings following the attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus and Iran's attack on Israel. An event was organised on the role of youth in addressing security challenges in the Mediterranean, an open debate on the Middle East and a vote on a resolution on Palestinian membership.

Dear citizens, dear residents of Slovenia and Slovenians at home and abroad, my sincere congratulations on May Day, Labour Day, which historically symbolises the struggle of workers for dignity, equality and fair working conditions.

Between June 6 and 9, 2024, citizens of the EU Member States will have a chance to elect new members of the 720-seat European Parliament. Elections of nine members from Slovenia will be held on Sunday, June 9. Slovenia elected its first members of the European Parliament on June 13, 2004, just a month and a half after its accession to the European Union. Let us see some of the documents related to this process.

On 20 May, Slovenia and the world will celebrate World Bee Day for the seventh time. The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed World Bee Day on 20 December 2017. Its main purpose is to raise awareness among the international public about the importance of bees and other pollinators for humanity in light of food security, the global elimination of hunger and care for the environment and biodiversity.

Minister of the Interior Boštjan Poklukar has attended the two day Ministerial Conference on Implementation and Operationalization of EU Pact on Migration and Asylum in Ghent, Belgium.

Citizens of other EU Member States can vote in the European Parliament elections in Slovenia. They must first request to be entered in the voting rights register and their names will be added to the electoral register.

Dear citizens, Slovenians at home and abroad, throughout history, our nation has demonstrated its commitment to freedom of thought and liberal values. There have been moments when we have had to stand tall and make it clear that we oppose all forms of oppression and injustice.

Twenty years on, the largest EU enlargement presents an opportunity to draw lessons from past communication efforts and to prepare for the upcoming EU enlargement, which is once again high on the EU political agenda. For this reason, together with the Club of Venice, we decided to organise a conference in Slovenia, 26 April 2024, and invited Government representatives and communication experts to discuss and share knowledge and experiences on the subject, with a special focus on disinformation.

Since the beginning of this year, the National Assembly has been hosting a number of activities and events to mark the 20th anniversary of Slovenia's EU membership.

The Ministry of Cohesion and Regional Development has approved EU funding for 12 Entrepreneurial approach to addressing challenges (PONI) projects across Slovenia. A total of EUR 12,921,484.80 of European Regional Development Fund support will be allocated to the twelve projects.

The first bilateral economic consultations at Director-General level between Slovenia and Montenegro were held on the sidelines of the official visit by the President of Slovenia, Nataša Pirc Musar, to Podgorica.

On Friday, May 3rd, the Archive, the reading room and the information room will be closed due to a collective leave day.

Slovenian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon participated in a round table discussion at the Faculty of Social Sciences in Ljubljana to mark the 20th anniversary of Slovenia's EU membership. The event was organised by the Student Association for International Relations Globallis.

Prime Minister Robert Golob attended a foundation stone-laying ceremony for a new investment of the Japanese corporation Yaskawa in Kočevje.

The statement made by Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić after yesterday's UN Security Council debate on the report of the UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) is unacceptable and insulting, and goes against the spirit of friendly relations between Slovenia and Serbia. The Ministry has therefore summoned the Serbian Chargé d'Affaires over this matter.