The Minister of Culture, Bisera Kostadinovska-Stojchevska and the Serbian Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of the Government of Serbia, Maja Gojković, in Belgrade, at the margins of the Open Balkan Summit signed the Program for Cooperation between the Ministry of Culture of North Macedonia and the Ministry of Culture and Informing of Serbia for the period 2022-2025.
“This program is a continuity of the excellent cooperation in the area of culture nurtured by both countries, on institutional level and beyond. The program is excelled and enriched with each new version since both countries signed the Agreement in 1997 for cooperation in the area of education, culture, and sports”, said Minister Kostadinovska-Stojchevska.
Both ministers agree that in this way we are achieving strong results in the development and deepening of mutual understanding, good-neighbourliness, friendly relations, and trust in the area of culture.
“The program enables better conditions for future strengthening of the cooperation in culture in all areas of art. It alleviates the work on shared projects between national institutions and other organizations in the area of culture and art, among artists and experts of both countries.”
“The most current news for both cultures is the Decision for opening a Cultural Informative Centre of North Macedonia in Belgrade, as well as the announcement that Serbia, too will open a CIC in our country. This space and this institution, I am convinced, will be the new hub for old and new friendships of artists from all generations and areas of both countries. The cultural informative centres nurture an indispensable practice of bringing people together and exchange that is foreseen with the Program, in the areas of publishing, visual arts and fine art, in music and scene, in movies,” said Kostadinovska-Stojchevska.
Special emphasis is placed on the cooperation in the archives, libraries, and museums, as well as on protection of non-material cultural heritage by providing support for traditional cultural activities, festivals and fairs related to the traditional music, crafts, and other elements of non-material cultural heritage of both countries.
Kostadinovska-Stojchevska emphasized the importance of cooperation in protection of cultural heritage, in prevention of illegal import and export, and right to transferring ownership over cultural good, pursuant to the norms of international law.
“We will continue to jointly upgrade the shared policies on international level, in regional, European and international organizations, such as UNESCO, EU, Council of Europe, Council of Ministers of SEE, where we jointly reinforce our positions, we exchange experiences and experts in order to achieve more efficient integration in the European processes, modernization and faster introduction of new techniques and digitalization”, said Kostadinovska-Stojchevska.
The Minister of Culture, Bisera Kostadinovska-Stojchevska was part of the government delegation that attended the Open Balkan Summit in Belgrade.
