Students had the opportunity to get a first-hand knowledge of the ways to tackle problems facing the young at the dawn of their professional development. Slovenia’s MEPs Tanja Fajon and Franc Bogovič have initiated and played host to a total of 17 students and gave them opportunity to visit Ljubljana, Krško and Brussels and to get a first-hand knowledge of the ways to tackle problems facing the young at the dawn of their professional development. Over the course of theif stay in Brussels, the students paid a visit to the Mission of the Republic of Serbia to the EU, Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia, as well as «Wilfried Martens» European Studies Centre. NIS as a company with an unequivocall commitment to lend support to pupils, students and educations institutions, facilitating the European integrations in all West Balkans countries where it operates, has accepted with the greatest of pleasures to support this event within the activities of its EU Liaison Office. The students attending the conference's first panel discussion entitled «A step in the right direction» were addressed by Corina Cretu, EU Commissioner for Regional Policies, Maja Makovec Brenčić, Minister for Labour, Science and Sports of Slovenia, Blendi Klosi, Minister for Youth and Social Matters in Albania, Darja Bavdaž Kuret, a state secretary in Slovenia's Foreign Ministy, as well as Tanja Miščević, Team Leader for Serbia's negotiations with the EU. This panel produced a message that the cooperation and coordination among the EU-member nations and those in the accession process to the EU is key to creating adequate prospects for the young. The second panel entitled «The Young Contribute to Region's Brighter Future» moderaed by Peter Grk, Slovenia’s coordinator of Regional Youth Office, sent a message on the necessity to align systems of education with real needs of labor markets. This panel included the speeches delivered by business community representatives as well as those of non-governmental sector of the West Balkans. Serbia was represented by Milan Petrović, President of Serbia's Managers Association. During interesting debate, which took place afterwards, representatives of the NIS' programme «Power of Knowledge» Anđela Petronić and Marko Vanić have expressed their acknowledgements to the NIS for granting them scholarships, and more importantly, employement once they graduate. The Conference has been staged within the «Berlin process», which envisages setting up a coordination instrument, regional liaisons and scientific exchange among the naučnu razmenu među West Balkans countries. In Vienna, in 2015, prime ministers of 6 countries of the Western Balkans signed a declaration on the establishment of the Regional Office for Youth Cooperation, thus confirming the initiative of all signatories to provide a strong support to regional European integrations, as well as to involve the young in all essential civil society elements. This event was organized by Serbia's Association of Managers and supported by Serbia's Ministry of Labour, Youth and Sports, Slovenia's Foreign Ministy, as well as EU 40 groupe that includes the youngest MEPs.
