Category: Author’s post
Serbia issued around 79,000 work visas last year
According to Marko Đurić, Serbia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs in the caretaker government, the country issued around 79,000 work visas last year, that shows a significant facilitation of the domestic labour market.
A statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reports that he presented Serbia’s economic results and investment potential at a roundtable in The Hague, where representatives of Dutch companies came together.
Serbia is a small country, but open to economic investments and business cooperation and investing heavily in the IT sector. It could maintain consistent and stable economic growth.
Serbia has free trade agreements with China, Egypt, the UAE, and many other countries, while also having access to the European market, where it conducts the largest volume of trade.
Good political and economic relations with South American and African countries and a strategic dialogue with the United States were also mentioned by the Minister.
Nevertheless, the EU is still Serbia’s most significant foreign trade partner and the primary source of foreign direct investment, with Serbia being the leading trading partner of the EU in the Western Balkans.
Residence and work permits have been digitalized.
The Office for IT and eGovernment announced in a separate statement that they had approved 41,319 applications for a Unified Permit for temporary residence and work of foreign nationals in the first year of operation of the Foreigners’ Portal in Serbia.
Dr Mihailo Jovanović, the Director of the Office for IT and eGovernment, said that they issued 3,004 unified permits in the form of a biometric document in card format in January 2025 alone. He added that the process for foreign nationals wishing to live and work in Serbia has been significantly simplified and accelerated by the establishment of the Foreigners’ Portal.
Foreign nationals or an employer on their behalf can submit an application for a unified permit exclusively online via the Foreigners’ Portal.
If the application is submitted independently by a foreign national, an account on the Electronic Identification Portal (eid.gov.rs) is necessary. An employer or a legal representative also needs a registered account on the eGovernment Portal (euprava.gov.rs) as a legal entity to submit the application.
It is also possible to submit applications for a Type C visa, which allows stays of up to 90 days and is issued for tourism, business, and other travel purposes, permitting single, double, or multiple entries into Serbia, and for a Type D visa, which allows stays from 90 to 180 days and is issued for employment, education, or family reunification purposes, on the Foreigners’ Web Portal.
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Read more100,738.00 dinars is the average salary in November
As the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia announced today, the average net salary in Serbia for November attained 100,738 dinars, while the average gross salary, including taxes and contributions, was 138,911 dinars.
Gross salaries increased by 14.2% nominally and 9.1% in real terms in the period from January to November 2024, compared to the same period last year. The growth of the average net salary was 14.1% nominally and 9.0% in real terms.
The average gross salary for November 2024 grew up by 12.1% nominally and 7.5% higher in real terms, while the average net salary increased by 12.0% nominally and 7.4% in real terms compared to the same month of the previous year.
50% of employees received a salary up to 77,830 dinars (the median net salary for November 2024).
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Read moreEU’s visa-free travel suspension for diplomatic passport holders is slammed as “hypocritical” by Georgian Parliament Speaker
The European Council’s decision to suspend visa liberalization for holders of Georgian diplomatic and service passports was called “false and hypocritical” by Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Tuesday.
The suspension was announced by the EU body on Monday in response to controversial laws that the Georgian Parliament had passed last year, including the law on the transparency of foreign influence and legislation on family values and the protection of minors.
Papuashvili reminded the public the agreement on simplified visa issuance for Georgian officials signed under former President Mikheil Saakashvili’s “regime” in 2010 and accused Brussels of “targeting Georgia while ignoring the historical context” behind the original visa agreements in a post on social media.
Abuses from the Saakashvili era between 2004-2012, including “uninvestigated murders” of Sandro Girgvliani, Buta Robakidze, and Zurab Vazagashvili, seizure of media outlets like Rustavi 2 and Imedi TV, and formation of a “systematic culture of torture” in Georgian prisons, later condemned by the European Court of Human Rights, were also outlined by Papuashvili.
“Rigging” of the 2008 elections and the “regime’s complete control over businesses” were also referenced by the official.
Papuashvili emphasized that the creators of this autocracy, were rewarded by Brussels with visa-free travel, while ordinary people received the same privilege only seven years after the defeat of the regime by Georgian Dream.
Frustration over the EU’s stance on Saakashvili, who is currently imprisoned in Georgia, and Zurab Adeishvili, the wanted former Prosecutor General and Minister of Justice of Georgia, who is now in Ukraine, was also expressed by the Speaker.
As Papuashvili said, Brussels officials hosted the wanted Adeishvili last year in the same rooms where this decision was made today.
The bloc’s decision “no surprise given the ongoing calls for the release of Saakashvili, the architect of the authoritarian regime” was also noted by him.
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Read moreShorena Kopaleishvili says that some IT companies have preferred Slovakia and Armenia to Georgia
Shorena Kopaleishvili, Chairman of the Association of Georgian Virtual Zone, assessed 2024 as a negative year for the IT sector due to gradual disappearance of the trend of turning Georgia into a regional center that developed over the years. The reasons of that are leaving of foreign companies from the country and difficulties with the support of existing ones. Kopaleishvili told Сommersant that the unstable business environment had mainly caused this situation.
According to Kopaleishvili, small and medium-sized international companies mainly represent an IT intra-industry called the Association of Georgian Virtual Zones. In 2024 the growth declined both in terms of interests and the trend of existing companies to leave Georgia compared to the boom in the sector and even compared to the 2023 figures. There were other prerequisites with companies with the status of a virtual zone, because they had had a two-year dispute with the tax authorities, although positive dynamics was still maintained in spite of the unstable environment and political and economic fluctuations. They set some parameters for the IT sector, and this business strives for as well as it needs to meet certain needs.
Several factors, such as the preferential regimes established by the state for the virtual zone and international IT companies, let Georgia become regional leader in this area several years ago. This made many successful or start-up IT companies get interested in entering the jurisdiction of Georgia. Moreover, activity in the country was stable and predictable in addition to that. As Shorena Kopaleishvili notes, the combination of these parameters for a certain period of time boosted the attraction of financial resources.
It is highlighted by IT intra-industry that, in spite of preservation of favorable conditions, the business and economic environment is still the main thing. Neighboring Armenia has been chosen for settling in by some IT representatives who have left Georgia.
In fact, the development of the IT sector has been hampered by the current situation in the country, although the preferential regime in Georgia remains and has not changed. Other preferential regimes are being looked for by companies. Slovakia, as well as Armenia, which is very actively working on changing and improving legislation, have been chosen by some of member companies that have left Georgia.
Shorena Kopaleishvili, Chairperson of the Georgian Virtual Zone Association, emphasizes the impossibility to attract companies only with benefits and tax preferences, without preservation of the existing ones either, in an interview with Commersant.
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Read moreA Digital Map of Enterprises is to be launched in Kazakhstan to identify financial, social and labour risks
The Action Plan within the framework of the Year of Vocational Occupations, initiated by the Head of State, was considered during the Government session chaired by Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov. As the Minister of Labour and Social Protection of Population of the Republic of Kazakhstan Svetlana Zhakupova said, more than half of all working Kazakhstanis have vocational or technical education. There are 2.3 million people of more than 2 thousand working professions and more than 270,000 of vacancies, especially in the transport, trade, industry and agriculture sectors.
The Innovative Project Navigator has been developed by the Ministry in order to plan personnel training more effectively. It possible to forecast human resources needs and synchronise labour market demands with the training of specialists in TVET organisations and synchronise training with projects implemented at the expense of the State budget due to this platform.
1,600 professional standards for working professions and 87 per cent of educational programmes have been updated by the Ministry of Labour.
More than 12,000 skills were included in an electronic Skills Bank according to the European standard (ESCO).
4 independent Centres launched assessment of qualifications recognition.
They are actively developing vocational and on-the-job training at the request of employers.
An internship function on the Electronic Labour Exchange launched to provide students with practical skills and practical courses using VR and AR technologies in working professions and for industrial practice are implemented in career centers in the cities of Konaev, Ust-Kamenogorsk, Turkestan, Astana and Shymkent.
Mechanisms for preventing occupational injuries will be improved through digital monitoring in the field of occupational safety and health, integral assessment of occupational risks and strengthening requirements for training and knowledge testing.
The transparency and legality of labour relations will be ensured due to mechanisms for the declaration of labour relations in an electronic format.
They will implement a joint action plan to promote the principles of decent work in the framework of cooperation with the International Labour Organization.
They approved a methodology for setting the minimum wage last year and plan to ratify the ILO Convention on the Establishment of Minimum Wages with Special Reference to Developing Countries this year.
The Digital Enterprise Map that makes it possible to identify risks in enterprises in real time in advance and to implement preventive measures is one of the most important projects in the field of working professions.
If employers combine the Digital Enterprise Map with the Digital Family Map, they can automatically identify risks. Businesses can implement the principles of social responsibility by using the Digital Enterprise Card.
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Read moreGeorgian domestic business should be free from problems caused by political tensions
As Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze pledged on Thursday, businesses across the country would “remain free” and “face no challenges” amid domestic political tensions with ongoing public protests against the Government’s decision not to have European Union accession talks on agenda until 2028.
Kobakhidze emphasized on the Government’s responsibility for the “significant achievement” of “ensuring business freedom” since the ruling party came to power in 2012 in an interview with Imedi TV.
“Misinformation propagated by some domestic media outlets and political figures” regarding the Government’s decision, urging business leaders to “engage responsibly” with the information provided was criticized by the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister emphasized that the opening of negotiations “should not be viewed as a singular issue [used] for blackmail against Georgia”, and that regular European Council meetings to “prevent the subject from being used as leverage” are extremely important.
The Government’s “commitment” to European integration was underscored by Kobakhidze. He asserted that it remained a “primary choice without alternative” for the country.
“Pressures being placed on businesses”, particularly by “those linked to the previous Government”, was alleged by the Prime Minister during the interview. Kobakhidze also warned against “return of political racketeering seen before 2012” and expressed the opinion that business “should not interfere deeply in political affairs”.
The business representatives were invited by Kobakhidze to share their thoughts on the discussion in comments on his recent meeting with the domestic business community. The gathering was described by him as “important”. The minister also added that it had allowed the participants to exchange their opinions and had given them an opportunity to “ask critical questions”.
According to the Prime Minister, businesses has always been impacted by “short-term fluctuations” in the economy and by the exchange rate of the national currency. He added that in the past, both the exchange rate and the overall economic situation had “stabilized quickly each time” after political tensions.
When Kobakhidze was asked about his views on domestic companies who took critical positions with regards to the Government but “profit from economic ties with Russia”, the Prime Minister claimed that “some people resent the Government’s pragmatic policy”.
In conclusion Kobakhidze said that the businesses in question did “not have answers to these questions, which is why they struggle to participate in the discussions”.
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Read moreThe decrease of Georgia’s IT Sector Foreign Income is $133 Million in Nine Months
The National Bank of Georgia reports that the foreign income of Georgia’s IT sector decreased by 22% in January- September 2024 compared to the same period last year.
A peak for the industry was reached in 2023 ($784 million). The migration effect achieved its peak in 2022-2023, because geopolitical unrest made thousands of Russian, Ukrainian, and Belarusian IT specialists temporarily relocate to Georgia. The sector’s foreign income got a large contribution from their activities, conducted from Georgia, during that period.
30,600 people were employed in the information and communication sector, which includes IT, at the end of 2021. This number increased to 39,000 in 2022 and attained 48,000 by 2024, but the sector’s overall income has shown a decline in spite of the increase in the number of employees. The return migration of Russian, Belarusian, and Ukrainian IT professionals who had temporarily boosted the industry’s earnings during their stay in Georgia caused this decline.
Temporary external factors such as migration influenced the decline and underscored the challenges of sustaining rapid growth in the IT sector. The sector may be stabilized and expanded by enhancing the domestic IT workforce and fostering long-term growth strategies.
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Read moreKazakhstan has the third-highest unemployment rate in Eurasia according to global ranking
According to the global ranking of unemployment rates for 2024, prepared by ILOSTAT, Kazakhstan is 104th out of 187, with an unemployment rate of 4.8%.
Analysts from Energyprom.kz recorded the worst unemployment rates in Eswatini (34.4%), South Africa (33.2%), and Djibouti (25.9%). Qatar has the lowest rate (0.1%).
Only Tajikistan (11.6%) and Azerbaijan (5.6%) were ahead of Kazakhstan in the Eurasia region. Moldova (1.4%), Russia (2.5%), and Kyrgyzstan (3.3%) showed the best performers in the region. For context, the global average unemployment rate in the Central Asia region stood at 5.5%, compared to 5% in Europe.
According to the Bureau of National Statistics of Kazakhstan (BNS), there were 448,600 unemployed individuals by the end of Q3 2024 (0.6% fewer than during the same period in 2023), with the official unemployment rate at 4.6%.
The primary causes of unemployment were family circumstances (100,200 cases), voluntary resignations (95,600 cases), and difficulties in finding employment (92,200 cases).
It took 127,500 individuals less than a month to find a job; 113,300 – one to three months;124,600 – three to six months; 36,800- six months to a year; 46,000 – over a year.
Entrepreneurial ventures had already been initiated or employment arrangements were secured by 332 individuals.
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Read moreStatistics Office reports a 10.9% surge of Georgia’s average monthly earnings in Q3 to $731.92
As the National Statistics Office said on Monday, average monthly nominal earnings in Georgia raised by 10.9 percent (₾201.3 ($71.64) in the third quarter of 2024, compared to the same quarter in the previous year, and reached a total of ₾2,056.7 ($731.92).
According to the Office, the information and communication sector offered the highest monthly earnings (₾3,976.9 ($1,415.27) on average, showing an increase of 0.5 percent from last year). Then followed construction, (₾3,198.2 ($1,138.15) on average, up 5.4 percent), financial and insurance sector (₾3,186.6 ($1,134.02), up 13.5 percent),
professional, scientific, and technical sectors (₾3,062.9 ($1,090), up 17.1 percent).
Average earnings at ₾1,650.6 ($587.40) for women and ₾2,451 ($872.24) for men make the earnings gap between genders prevalent. An annual earnings growth is ₾191.5 ($68.15), or 13.1 percent, for women and ₾217 ($77.22), or 9.7 percent for men.
An increase in the business sector is 9.1 percent, (the average earnings attained ₾2,190.1 ($779.40). A decrease of 0.2 percent in the information and communication sector made the earnings fall to ₾4,065.8 ($1446.90), while an increase of 16.9 percent, averaging ₾3,500.5 ($1,245.73), was recorded in professional, scientific, and technical sectors.
Meanwhile, a 14.8 percent increase was seen by employees in the non-business and financial sectors, making their average earnings attain ₾1,813.5 ($645.37). Financial and insurance activities are the leaders in this domain.
The leaders in average earnings are the capital city of Tbilisi and the Mtskheta-Mtianeti region of the country.
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Read moreMore than 13,000 foreigners work in Kazakhstan
The Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Population reports that 13,743 foreign citizens are currently working legally in Kazakhstan.
Most of them are managers and their deputies (564 and 2,585 permits issued for heads of structural subdivisions, respectively). The majority of the foreign workers are specialists (4,913) and skilled workers (999). Seasonal work and corporate transfers attracted 1,186 and 3,496 people respectively.
Foreign citizens work for 1,744 employers in Kazakhstan (a total workforce of 388,000 Kazakhs, 96.5% of the total number of employees).
Construction (5,390 people), manufacturing industry (1,455 people), mining and quarrying (1,335 people), administrative and auxiliary services (1,305 people), agriculture, forestry, and fishery (1,237 people) employ the largest number of people.
The largest number of foreign workers is from China (4,881 people), Uzbekistan (1,273 people), Türkiye (1,203 people), and India (1,095 people).
Approximately 1 billion tenge was attracted by the Kostanay region worth of foreign investments in the past two years, creating over 1,000 jobs.
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