Minister meets Slovenian agricultural officials from four countries
Gornja Radgona, 24 August - Minister for Slovenians Abroad Matej Arčon met representatives of Slovenian agricultural organisations from Italy, Austria, Hungary and Croatia at the Agra agricultural fair in Gornja Radgona on Wednesday. He stressed the importance of such cooperation, which he said could be extended to other fields, especially business.
The meeting with representatives of Agraslomak, which has been successfully connecting Slovenian farmers in four counties for a decade, was also attended by Agriculture Minister Irena Šinko, the Government Office for Slovenians Abroad said.
Arčon said the organisation should be a role model for cooperation among Slovenians living abroad in other fields as well, especially in business. "Cooperation among Slovenians living abroad is truly precious," he said.
Representatives of the Agricultural Alliance Trieste, the Community of South-Carinthian Farmers and the Farming and Educational Community from Austria, the Slovenian Landscape Development Agency from Hungary and the Gorski Kotar Agricultural and Educational Community from Croatia presented their work and stressed that they devoted a lot of attention to nurturing the Slovenian language.
The expert and other support they provide in Slovenian is extremely important for preserving the Slovenian culture and identity, they said. Moreover, farming is essential for the transfer of old values and traditions to new generations, they said, adding that the challenge was how to attract young people.
The officials also pointed to topical issues such as drought, damage caused by the fire in the Kras region and energy price hikes.
Before the meeting, Arčon was received by executive director and project leader of the Pomurski Sejem, the organiser of Agra, Boris Nicolas Erjavec, who told the minister he wished Agra would become a hub for Slovenians abroad who are active in agriculture.