As Serbian Economist reports, the first Ukrainian Literature Festival organized by the Ukrainian Center “Triglav” in cooperation with the Embassy of Ukraine in Serbia took place in the Serbian capital.
The event united Ukrainian writers, translators, literary critics and Serbian fans of Ukrainian culture.
According to the organizers, the goal of the festival is to popularize modern Ukrainian literature abroad and develop cultural dialogue between Ukraine and Serbia.
The festival included readings by Ukrainian authors, presentations of translations into Serbian, panel discussions and meetings with translators working on adapting works by Ukrainian writers for local audiences.
New translations of Ukrainian works into Serbian were presented during the festival. Serbian publishers emphasized that interest in Ukrainian culture has grown significantly after 2022.
https://t.me/relocationrs/1569
The Nikkei Asia news portal reported that the Japanese company Sojitz will invest in the construction of a new international airport in Tashkent.
According to the publication, Sojitz will start implementing the project this year. The construction is part of the company’s $1 billion infrastructure investment.
The Tashkent airport will be built in partnership with the Saudi company Vision Invest on the basis of a public-private partnership. Sojitz plans to invest tens of billions of yen, or hundreds of millions of dollars, in the project. The company has previously participated in international airport projects in Kumamoto and Okinawa prefectures, as well as on the islands of Palau.
“The project for a new airport in Uzbekistan was approved in August 2025. According to the plan, its opening is scheduled for 2028. The new airport will be able to handle up to 20 million passengers per year and provide more than 40 takeoffs and landings per hour, making it the largest in Central Asia,” the article notes.
Sojitz also plans to participate in other infrastructure projects in Uzbekistan. Together with the Turkish company Ronesans International, it plans to build a large 800-bed hospital, a 1 GW wind farm, and a 1.6 GW thermal power plant in Samarkand.
According to Nikkei Asia, Uzbekistan is the largest country in the region with a population of 37 million. Annual GDP growth exceeds 6%, and tax breaks and incentives are available for foreign investors. The corporate tax rate is 15%.
“As of October 2024, 54 Japanese companies are operating in Uzbekistan, twice as many as in 2019. In June, Sojitz opened its first official office in Tashkent,” the publication notes.
The article also notes that other Japanese companies are actively developing infrastructure projects in Uzbekistan. For example, Toyota Tsusho, through its subsidiary Eurus Energy Holdings, is exploring a site for a 500 MW wind farm and has signed an agreement with NEC to build data centers. Marubeni, in partnership with the UAE, is implementing a project to build a wastewater treatment plant.
In addition, Nikkei Asia reports that Uzbekistan is in talks with Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry to expand cooperation in the extraction of mineral resources, particularly those of strategic importance.
The NOVUS supermarket chain has completed comprehensive preparations for the autumn-winter period to ensure the uninterrupted operation of its stores even in the event of prolonged power outages. The total investment in energy independence and backup solutions amounted to UAH 385 million, according to the company’s press service.
“We realize that the operation of our supermarkets is a matter of Ukrainians’ access to everyday products, even in times of crisis. Therefore, energy independence has become one of the key areas of investment for NOVUS,” the press service quotes Dainius Tumenas, Deputy CEO for Asset Management at NOVUS.
Currently, all NOVUS stores are equipped with generators of various capacities. Their total installed capacity is 33.72 MW, which makes it possible to maintain the network’s operation even during periods of prolonged power outages. The total investment in energy efficiency and energy independence since the start of the full-scale war has reached UAH 385 million, of which UAH 272 million has been allocated to generators.
As noted, one of the breakthrough solutions for Ukrainian retail has been gas generators, which are more environmentally friendly than diesel generators and capable of simultaneously producing electricity, heat, and industrial cooling. The company has installed four units with a total capacity of 3 MW at two of its facilities.
“Gas generators help us remain stable in critical conditions and at the same time move us towards environmental friendliness and energy efficiency,” Tumenas emphasizes.
NOVUS has also formed a strategic reserve of diesel fuel – 168 tons (calculated for six days of autonomous operation of the entire network). In addition, a system of continuous fuel supplies has been established, which allows for a quick response to crisis situations.
At the same time, the company is developing renewable energy. Pilot projects in Novi Petrivtsi (Kyiv region) and at the logistics center have proven the effectiveness of solar panels: in the summer, they covered up to 65% of the supermarket’s energy needs. By the end of 2025, 15 NOVUS facilities will be operating on their own solar power generation with a total capacity of 3.34 MW. The total investment in this area is UAH 78.6 million.
“The future of retail lies in renewable energy sources. This is not only economically beneficial in the long term, but also provides an opportunity to build a more sustainable and responsible business,” explains Tumenas.
To improve energy efficiency in stores, a Building Management System (BMS) is being implemented, which allows remote control of lighting, ventilation, power supply, and other key processes.
An important step in reducing the carbon footprint was the purchase of the first corporate electric vehicles in 2025.
The chain also emphasizes that in the event of power outages, stores remain open not only for shopping but also as a support space where you can recharge your gadgets, warm up, and buy fresh produce.
The Novus supermarket chain is developed by BT Invest (Lithuania), a company founded in 2008 by former Sandora shareholders Raimondas Tumenas and the late Igor Bezzub.
The company is represented in the capital region, Ternopil, and Rivne. As of October 25, the chain has 141 locations (88 Novus, 51 Mi Market neighborhood stores, and two Khapayka discount stores).
According to YouControl, as of October 2025, the owner of Novus Ukraine with a 100% stake in the authorized capital was Consul Trade House CJSC (Vilnius, Lithuania). The ultimate beneficiaries are listed as Marina Poznyakova, Agne Ruzgiene, and Raimondas Tumenas.
According to the company’s financial results, at the end of the first half of 2025, compared to the same period last year, its revenue increased by 21.5% to UAH 16 billion 293.739 million, The company received a net profit of 87.477 million compared to a net profit of 409 million 041 thousand UAH for the first half of 2024.
According to the Serbian Economist, Montenegro is negotiating with the Hungarian low-cost carrier Wizz Air to create an aviation hub in the country, which will allow the launch of up to 20 new international destinations from Podgorica and Tivat.
This was announced by the Minister of Transport and Maritime Affairs of Montenegro, Filip Radulovic, in an interview with Boka News.
According to the minister, the parties are “in the final stage of negotiations” and the final agreement could be signed in the coming weeks.
“The establishment of a Wizz Air hub in Montenegro will be a significant step to increase the country’s transport accessibility and strengthen its position on the European tourist map,” Radulovic said.
Wizz Air is expected to deploy up to three Airbus A320/A321 base aircraft in Podgorica, which will create hundreds of new jobs and increase passenger traffic by 30-40% in the first year of operation. Among the new destinations considered are flights to Italy, Germany, Poland, France, Sweden, Czech Republic, Hungary and the UK, as well as to several cities in the Balkan region.
The Ministry of Transport emphasizes that increasing the number of direct flights will boost tourism and business contacts, as well as expand opportunities for the Montenegrin diaspora and export of local products to EU countries.
“This is not just an aviation project – it is an element of a long-term strategy to turn Montenegro into a regional logistics hub between Central Europe and the Adriatic,” Radulovic said.
According to experts, the opening of Wizz Air hub can increase the number of air passengers in Montenegro from the current 2.3 million to 3 million people per year, as well as attract additional 200-300 thousand foreign tourists annually.
In addition, it will allow the country to strengthen ties with major European capitals and increase the sustainability of the tourist flow, which today is highly dependent on seasonality.
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Ukrainian clinics performed 459 organ transplants between January and September 2025.
According to the Ukrainian Transplant Coordination Center (UTCC), the transplants were performed by 25 transplant centers, which performed 274 kidney transplants, 114 liver transplants, and 71 heart transplants.
Currently, there are 4,120 patients on the national waiting list, including 2,512 who need a kidney transplant, 727 who need a liver transplant, 729 who need a heart transplant, 57 for a lung transplant, 19 for a kidney-pancreas transplant, 33 for a split liver transplant, and 43 for a heart-lung transplant.
The top three leaders in organ transplants are the First Medical Association of Lviv (107), the O.O. Shalimov National Scientific Center for Surgery and Transplantology (70), and the Kyiv City Clinical Hospital No. 1 (58).
Heart transplants are performed in eight medical centers in the country, most of them at the Heart Institute of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine (42).
Liver transplants are performed at eight healthcare facilities, with the most being performed at the Oberig Clinic (43).
Kidney transplants are performed at 21 facilities, with the most being performed at the First Medical Association of Lviv (76).
Most transplants (70%) were performed using organs from deceased donors.
The UCTC notes that during the first half of the year, most brain death diagnoses were made in medical institutions in Kyiv (27), Lviv (12), and the Kyiv region (10).
At the same time, according to the UCTC, the number of regions where no brain death diagnoses were made has decreased.
In addition, the UCTC reports that between January and September, 343 bone marrow transplants were performed in 12 transplant centers, 59 of which were performed on children.
The largest number of bone marrow transplants were performed at the Okhmatdyt National Children’s Specialized Hospital (72), the Cherkasy Clinical Oncology Center (63), and the National Cancer Institute (58). In addition, the first bone marrow transplants were performed at City Clinical Hospital No. 4 of the Dnipro City Council.
Detailed statistics can be found on the website of the Ukrainian Transplant Coordination Center.
October 29, 2025, Kyiv, International Exhibition Center (IEC)
Where is the profit during a crisis? How to scale up agricultural processing, attract investment, implement AI, and overcome the shortage of personnel in the food industry?
Experts, entrepreneurs, and leaders of the Ukrainian food sector will provide answers to these questions during the Agro2Food Profit Forum 2025 — the main event of the year for food producers and processors.
The forum will take place on October 29, 2025, in Kyiv, at the International Exhibition Center, as part of the Agro2Food exhibition of technologies, equipment, and solutions for agro-processing and the food industry.
5 panels. 1 day. Maximum practical benefit.
Panel #1. THE ECONOMICS OF ADDED VALUE IN THE FOOD INDUSTRY. Where is the profit in a crisis?
In partnership with the Interfax-Ukraine news agency.
With the participation of representatives of industry associations, clusters, distributors, and owners of processing businesses, who will share real-life cases of development, scaling, and optimization of production.
Key message: To show how Ukrainian producers are finding new sources of profit even in times of turbulence.
Panel No. 2. THE ECONOMICS OF INVESTMENT AND EUROPEAN INTEGRATION
In partnership with the Reform Support Team (RST) of the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine and ProConsalting. With the participation of a representative of Oschadbank (on agribusiness support programs), the owner of an agricultural processing company (with a scaling case study), and a supplier of processing equipment (on technological innovations).
Key message: How to attract investment during wartime, develop exports, and implement sustainability strategies?
Key topics:
Panel No. 3. ECONOMY OF INNOVATION. “Digitalization. AI. Food processing”
In partnership with the Ukrainian Food Manufacturers Association U-Food and the Ukrainian Cluster Alliance.
Key message: Artificial intelligence is already changing the Ukrainian food industry.
Key topics:
Panel No. 4. HUMAN RESOURCE ECONOMICS. Labor shortage in the food industry: challenges and solutions.
In partnership with the Job Platform for Food Technologists and Manufacturers and Odessa National Technological University.
With the participation of American University Kyiv.
Key topics:
Panel No. 5. THE ECONOMICS OF UNIQUENESS
Main message: Innovative products, intellectual property, and craftsmanship as a profit strategy.
Key topics:
Agro2Food Profit Forum 2025 is:
Agro2Food statistics.
At the exhibition venue, which will reach 4,000 m2, over 120 exhibitors will present all the key achievements in agricultural processing and the food industry.
Organizer:
Premier Expo:
Where and when:
October 29, 2025
International Exhibition Center (IEC), Kyiv
More about the program: https://agro2food.com.ua/program/profit-forum
Media contact:
Olena Zhoga, Conference Manager, Premier Expo
+380 (67) 789 27 09
Agro2Food — Building an economy of added value together.
See you at the main event of the sincere Ukrainian autumn!
Tickets for the exhibition: https://agro2food.com.ua/visitors/registration
Interfax-Ukraine — information partner
Source: https://interfax.com.ua/news/press-release/1112280.html
