Honorary Consulate of Republic of Lithuania in Tanzania

Weekly News from Lithuania, September 13 2019

		Lithuania MFA @LithuaniaMFA

The #ECHR accepted that #LTFreedomFighters and their supporters "had played an essential role in protecting the nat… https://t.co/jIKEZ3IawY

1:39 PM - Sep 11, 2019

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POLITICS

Lithuanian Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Darius Skusevičius met with the Governor of Pennsylvania Tom Wolf | Credits @ Jurijus Azanovas / URM

The President met with the Governor of Pennsylvania

President Gitanas Nausėda met with Governor of Pennsylvania Tom Wolf. Cooperation in defense, economy and culture was discussed at the meeting.

Speaking about the military cooperation between Lithuania and the United States and the partnership between the Lithuanian Armed Forces and the Pennsylvania National Guard, the President expressed delight at the fact that the US remained our strategic security partner. Continuous participation of the Pennsylvania National Guard troops in military exercises in Lithuania demonstrated military presence of the US and additional security guarantees for our region.

Lithuania's Economy Minister Virginijus Sinkevicius, proposed on Tuesday for the position of European commissioner in charge of environment and oceans, named the development of circular economy, reducing the use of plastic and reducing ocean pollution will be among his priorities, informed LETA/BNS.

What is this girl thinking after 30 years? This was the question asked in the Russian newspaper "Komsomolskaja Pravda" together with a published photo of a girl in 1990 April during the protest for Lithuanian independence. Both the Baltic Way and independence of Baltic countries still irritate Kremlin that continues to create myths and spread sarcasm about Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia.

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On the job with Lithuanian bodyguard Simona - #WeAreNATO | Credits @ NATO

BUSINESS & SCIENCE

		Startup Lithuania 12:02 PM - Sep 12, 2019

#LTstartups Today is the day! Two Lithuanian startups MoQ and Eddy Travels will pitch at Baltic Brand Ranking 2019 event! Best of luck LT team!

Comment

Vilnius Series: Invest Lithuania

Earlier this summer, I had the opportunity to spend a few days in Lithuania to check out the startup scene there. I’d never been to Lithuania before, but the country has long been on my radar. Part of the reason for this is the many initiatives the country is putting forward to help develop their technology and entrepreneurship ecosystem, with a special emphasis on fintech. These actions have been garnering quite a bit of attention (see here, here and here), with good reason. When it comes to building advantageous policies for startups, Lithuania has learned from some of the best outcomes of it’s neighbors Estonia and Latvia, and added some unique elements of their very own.

The jury of Baltic Startup brand ranking has announced the top 10 Baltic startups to battle it out for the Grand Prix. Six of those come from Latvia: Printify, Nordigen, Gamechanger Audio, Giraffe360, Lokalise, CastPrint. Two on the list are from Lithuania – Eddy Travels and MoQ and two Estonian startups – Veriff and HUGO.legal. Altogether nearly 100 startups applied for the Baltic Startup brand ranking.

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		Manfred Reudenbach @MReu134

DYK - ?? @BeAirForce was the first Ally to start @NATO's Baltic Air Policing mission after ?????? joined the Allian… https://t.co/kKN23bjrRi

8:14 PM - Sep 2, 2019

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CULTURE & HISTORY

Reconstructed Vilnius Square opened in Tbilisi | Credits @ Lithuanian Embassy in Georgia

The work of famous Lithuanian artist Kristina Inčiūraitė will be presented in Rome

The body of work of famous Lithuanian contemporary artist Kristina Inčiūraitė will be presented in Rome this autumn: a solo show at AlbumArte, an independent space for contemporary art, and the musical performance “The Fragment as a Proverb” at MAXXI, the National Museum of 21st Century Arts.

New additions to the always-open Open Gallery in Vilnius include artworks by the Dutch duo TELMO MIEL and the Lithuanian Eglė Žvirblytė; the co-founder of the gallery praises the transformational power of street art, informs "Vilnius Go".

Open Gallery is a long-term interdisciplinary project, situated in the post-industrial Naujamiestis district. Aimed at reinvigorating the formerly decaying neighbourhood with art, the Open Gallery showcases murals, installations, and sculptures, hosts performances and non-commercial cinema.

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Lithuania’s fans | Credits @ Getty Images

‘A second religion’: Lithuania’s insane fan section is easily the best in world basketball

Imagine playing a game on your home court, only for the crowd of the opposing team to completely turn the tables on you.

Rewind just a few months, and that’s what the Netherlands had to endure. It was a FIBA World Cup qualifying game in Amsterdam, and Lithuania was in town for the matchup. The first meeting between the two teams ended in overtime, with the Lithuanians picking up the win in the nation’s capital, Vilnius. This was the perfect chance for the Dutch to give them a taste of their own medicine, but in their own capital; except, something was off.

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September 13-15

Nations’ Fair 2019

You will definitely smell the aromas of the fair first – various stands offering national food in the streets of Vilnius will lure you from afar. Get acquainted with national customs and traditions, from famous German sausages, pastries made by Georgians and Karaims, and other delicacies that will definitely tempt you to taste everything. But this is not just a foodie paradise; the most active masters of arts and crafts from the national communities living in Lithuania will present their arts, songs, and dances for the audience.

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September 13-14

Reading festival 2019

5th anniversary of the Reading Festival in the heart of Vilnius, inviting to be open and stay truthful to oneself. Open discussions, book presentations, concerts and free workshops combines a positive vibe of book-worms with urban way of life.

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September 21

Kaunas Architecture Festival 2019

The Kaunas Architecture Festival (KAFe) is only held once in three years, which makes it one of the most awaited events this Autumn. It’s not enough to call it ‘event’, though, as the festival will go on for two months and includes various workshops, exhibitions, walks, talks, books presentations and an international forum.

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TOURISM & GLOBAL LITHUANIA

Vilnius makes bid to host Ronaldo and Messi Dinner | Credits @ GoVilnius

Making yourself at home: 10 of the best cities for expats

Did you know that Vilnius in Lithuania is a great place for digital nomads to settle in? Lonely Planet lists Vilnius among top 10 cities for expats around the globe: "Vilnius is an outward-looking city of art collectives, tech start-ups and bookish young professionals.”

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The woman watching climate change

A Lithuanian scientist records the shrinking Toyuksu glacier above Almaty, Kazakhstan, and, from her unrivalled perspective, bears witness to the onslaught of climate change.

Life at 3,500m is one of solitude, where capricious winds whip four seasons past in a day, affording the hours an elasticity that is anchored only by the rising and setting of the sun. In the northern Tian Shan mountain system that skims the edge of Almaty, Kazakhstan’s largest metropolis, existence at this altitude would seem impossible if it wasn’t for Aušra Revutaite, a Lithuanian scientist who has called this remote outpost home for more than 30 years.

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Highlight of the Week

Minister Linas Linkevičius visiting Warsaw

Warsaw, Poland, 2019 September 5
Credits @ MFA of Poland

Sep 13 2019

		Linas Linkevicius @LinkeviciusL

Always good to be back in Warsaw & together w colleague J. #Czaputowicz discuss wide range of issues of bilateral &… https://t.co/GgnAjhgNJ2

8:51 AM - Sep 5, 2019

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POLITICS

President Gitanas Nausėda meets with President-elect of the European Commussion Ursula von der Leyen, President-elect of the European Council Charles Michel and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg | Credits @ Robertas Dačkus

The President was paying his first visit to Brussels

During the first working visit to Brussels, President Gitanas Nausėda visited the European Parliament, NATO headquarters, the European Commission, the European Council and Lithuanian Permanent Representations to the EU and NATO.

The President met with the President of the European Parliament David Sassoli and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, with President of the European Council Donald Tusk, President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Junker, President-elect of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and President-elect of the European Council Charles Michel.

Minister of the Economy and Innovation Virginijus Sinkevičius, which is participating in the 29th Krynica Economic Forum, has said that Europe immediately needs a united and coherent digital policy in order to maintain its positions globally.

According to Minister Sinkevičius, the growth and business development of the European single market must be based on innovation, digitisation and artificial intelligence.

Deividas Matulionis, First Deputy Chancellor of the Government, has had a meeting with President of the Japan BioIndustry Association, Osamu Nagayama.
The First Deputy Chancellor of the Government has pointed out Japan’s importance as one of Lithuania’s key partners in Asia, with the 10-fold increase in trade volumes over the last decade (from 38.82 million eurosin 2010 to 355.2 million euros in 2018). He has also noted the shared approach to the values and global issues.
Science partnership between Lithuania and Japan has earned a particular attention. According to Deividas Matulionis, Japan is among Lithuania’s key partners in science, technology and innovation.

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BUSINESS & SCIENCE

		Virginijus Sinkevičius @VSinkevicius

European idea is to compete globally in #innovation, #regulation and #knowledge, not in trade wars. I am glad we sh… https://t.co/KvKIjr3RYL

10:48 AM - Sep 4, 2019

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Vilnius’s Top 10 GovTech Startups

Lithuania is following the lead of other European countries and actively taking steps to attract technology startups and foster local innovation, with Vilnius being the epicentre of this emerging ecosystem. Through government initiatives such as open data and intelligent city policies, Startup Visas for entrepreneurs, the 5th fastest internet speed in the EU, as well as the 3rd lowest corporate tax rate in the EU, Vilnius is quickly building a reputation for being the fast-growing innovation hub of the Baltic region.

With a global vision of empowering the small merchants to succeed in doing what they love and to grow their businesses, SumUp has been growing at an incredibly healthy rate of circa 100% every year. The company now operates in 31 markets across Europe, Brazil and the US. The new Lithuanian office will play an important role in SumUp’s future growth with Baltic states business development. The company plans to hire over 30 employees in Lithuania in the next three years.

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24 Businesses Doing Remote Work in Lithuania

More and more companies are catching on the benefits of remote work in Lithuania. Even though there may still be a bias on the topic whether work will actually get done if the team is not in the office.

There is plenty of data to prove the positives of remote work far outweigh the negatives. It affects people positively in many ways – productivity, happiness and your team is less likely to leave if you give them some freedom.

Take a look at a list of companies that offer remote work in Lithuania.

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Dynamic, fast growing, forward thinking - that's what modern Lithuania is all about. Unleash your talent in a country as ambitious as you are! | Credits @ Work in Lithuania

CULTURE & HISTORY

Balticbest silver for an outstanding visual identity of the festival „Lithuanian Story“ in Tel Aviv organized by Lithuanian Culture Institute and cultural attache Elena Keidošiūtė!
Created by Godspeed Branding.

After a 17-year break, Lithuanian feature films came back to the Venice Film Festival

Lithuanian filmmakers return to Venice: after a long break, Lithuanian titles and names will be heard at the main program of the film festival.Two feature films celebrating authors and talents are featured at the festival’s program this week.

This year “Parthenon” (lit. Partenonas) by Mantas Kvedaravičius will be competing at the Film Critics’ Week. The film belongs to a hybrid genre of fiction and documentary and is a co-production between Lithuania (Studio Uljana Kim, Extimacy Films), Ukraine (Esse Production House) and France (Rouge International).

The New York Times shares the tips how to pick up a book and learn to read better, making everything much more clear with the amazing illustrations of Egle Zvirblyte!

"Want to sleep better, be smarter and more empathetic? Try picking up a book. There’s a lot more between those pages than just stories. Were you once a voracious reader, but life got in the way? Do you long for the escape that comes with reading a good book? Or do you just feel that reading is a chore, not something you’d do for fun?
If you answered “yes” to any of those questions — and you’d like to get back to books — now is the perfect time to do it."

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September 5 - 8

Vilnius Gallery Weekend

Vilnius Gallery Weekend has been taking place since 2016 and symbolically marks the beginning of the exhibition season. The goal of this yearly event is to provide an opportunity to discover the city’s art spaces, visit exhibitions, meet creators and form a lasting habit of going to galleries.
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September

Visitor Centre of the Seimas will open to the public

In September, beginning with the autumn parliamentary session the Visitor Centre opens its doors. The guided tours organised in the Seimas to this day will be complemented by various educational activities, lectures and discussions, which will provide the public with a deeper insight into the history of parliamentary development, activities of modern parliaments, and legislative procedures. The Centre will also host meetings with members of the Seimas.
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October 6 and 11

George: The Story of George Maciunas and Fluxus

The film ‘George’ on Fluxus founder George Maciunas by NYC based Jeffrey Perkins is selected for the BFI London Film Festival and will be shown twice as part of the Experimenta program.

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TOURISM

Holidays in Lithuania | Active leisure
Credits @ Lithuania Travel

5 Reasons Lithuania Should Be Your Next Adventure Destination

"If you love getting active, no matter the season, look no further than Lithuania" - Mpora says.
Lithuania might just be the best kept secret in the Baltic and one of the best all-round adventure destinations in Europe. Whether it’s spring, summer, autumn, or winter, there’s always something fun going on there.

Tourism experts have long noted that conference tourism is one of the most beneficial and promising types of tourism: tourists arriving at conferences not only reduce the seasonality of this activity, but also spend several times more than ordinary tourists.
Kaunas is a strategically convenient place for conferences, and it also has prominent universities, the active academic community, exciting architecture and culture: these are the main motives to choose the city.

A total of 831,000 foreign arrivals – a spike of 9.25% – was recorded in H1 2019, the highest in the past five years. The number of domestic and foreign tourists who travelled in Lithuania with at least one overnight totalled 1,750,000 or 11.30% more than in the same period in 2018.

German tourists remain in the lead among foreign tourists visiting Lithuania. Record number of tourists from France and continuing growth in inbound tourism from Ukraine, United Kingdom and Finland.

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