Annual consultations for consular employees from around the globe

SLOVENIA, November 4 - The consultations will conclude on 6 November with a practical exercise involving the evacuation of Slovenian citizens from a crisis zone. In her opening address, Ambassador Anita Pipan, Acting Director-General for International Law and Multilateral Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, thanked the participants for their professionalism, selflessness and dedication when carrying out their consular duties.

“Consular employees are the Ministry’s greatest asset and one of its most cohesive teams,” the Ambassador said, adding that the importance of consular work is particularly evident to the public during crises and in challenging situations, when professionalism, competence and readiness of consular employees to help Slovenian citizens to the best of their ability are most apparent. “You are often the first point of contact with the homeland for citizens, ensuring that they are never left alone in times of distress,” the Ambassador emphasised. She added that consular work is one of the most important aspects of Slovenian diplomacy and that we should take pride in carrying out these duties so well.

In her address, she emphasised the value of the experience and feedback offered by consular employees, who encounter various challenges in their daily work. “Here in Ljubljana, we need your experience and feedback. You are the ones facing these challenges on the ground, so you know best where there is room for improvement and how we can further enhance our work,” she said.

She focused on the Ministry’s recent progress in the field of consular crisis management, an area in which significant strides have been made. She highlighted the establishment of a new situation centre, evolved from the existing consular crisis unit, which will enable more effective monitoring of crisis situations and coordination of responses to them. Another notable development is the eLastovka web and mobile application, which allows citizens to register their travel plans and receive important notifications directly, a particularly useful feature in times of crisis.

During the three-day event, consular employees will discuss current issues relating to migration and foreigners, including recent developments regarding travel documents and authentication. They will also address the protection of Slovenian citizens abroad. The consultations provide consular employees with an excellent opportunity to exchange experience and best practices, and to find solutions to the challenges they face in their daily work.

On the second day, the participants will be addressed by the Acting Secretary-General at the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Andrej Rode.

A particular highlight of this year's event will be the first practical exercise involving the evacuation of Slovenian citizens from a crisis zone using Slovenian Spartan military transport aircrafts. Scheduled to take place on 6 November, the exercise is organised in cooperation with the Ministry of Defence and the Slovenian Armed Forces and aims to assess the preparedness of the relevant services for crisis response and to evaluate the effectiveness of their coordination and procedures for providing assistance and ensuring the safety of Slovenian citizens abroad.

The consultations are co-funded by the EU under the Instrument for Financial Support for Border Management and Visa Policy (BMVI) as part of the Integrated Border Management Fund for the 2021–2027 programming period. More specifically, the event is part of the Standard Consular Training project worth EUR 740,000.

For consuls to carry out visa procedures smoothly and for the visa system to operate reliably and quickly in accordance with regulations and standards, it is essential to use modern information and communication technology and that the information systems of Slovenia’s diplomatic missions abroad and the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs in Ljubljana function optimally. To this end, the EU also funds projects through the BMVI. This funding is allocated towards the purchase and maintenance of:

1. Information and communications technology hardware (EUR 3,685,000);
2. Software components for the national visa information system (EUR 5,481,667); and
3. Licences for the operation of software components (EUR 1,154,333).

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