"Little Feast of Orange" organized by NGO Ruke (Hands), brought together 35 exhibitors of handicrafts and homemade products on the main street in Herceg Novi and 15 at the donor table.

"Orange has become a local and integral part of Boka's coast, it has become a part of the most important customs, and in homes it has become a cure and food, a gift, a symbol of beauty, fertility, wealth and eternal life, elegance, and splendor," wrote Mašo Čekić on the event of the first festival in 2015 in the author's text "Orange for Luck".

Jams, sweet, juices, cakes and orange soaps, souvenirs, jewelry and pictures inspired by this fruit were interesting to citizens of Herceg Novi, but also to the guests who came to this sunny town.

The members of NGO Bonaca at their booth exhibited juices, sweet and delicious desserts from domestic and wild oranges, tangerines and fortunele, and Jelena Pavlović had delicious orange cakes.

This year the novelty on the "Little Feast of Orange" is the demonstration of culinary skills by Mira Martineti from Herceg Novi. She demonstrated making food such as gnocchi, pies, and chicken with orange.

Maja Erenji Harebraun from NGO Ruke (Hands) points out the pleasure to host so many visitors, but also because of the growing number of exhibitors from all over Montenegro and the region. She said that, as usual, they had a donator table and all the profit from the sale of food would be allocated for charity. 

"This time we will donate the funds to the project 'Patronage in the education system', which is realized for children with disabilities, according to the recommendation of the committee established in the city, by Kolo of Serbian Sisters.

"Little Feast of Orange" this year was also an opportunity for people to socialize, show their creativity and affirm the specialties of and with the addition of the orange.

Text by Slavica Kosic, on January 26th, 2019, read more at Vijesti

January 26, 2019 - NGO Hands from Herceg Novi is the organiser of today's Little Orange Festival, held in Herceg Novi for the fifth time. Orange is just one of the gastro topics they dedicate a large number of events to throughout the year. Their themes are, apart from seasonal fruits of the Boka Bay, handicrafts and other forms of creative work but also humanitarian work.

Copyright: NGO Hands Facebook Page

 

"When initiating this winter tourist event 50 years ago, the tourist agents of Herceg Novi and some journalists who were delighted with our town had the dilemma of whether to dedicate it to mimosa or oranges. The decision has fallen on the mimosa, which gave us a chance 45 years later to do the Holiday of Orange, as the writer Nikola Malovic named it after our first festival," explains the president of NGO Hands.

Copyright: Radio Herceg Novi

 

NGO Hands recognised the fact that for sustainable tourism development, we need to be what we are and find modern and affirmative ways to get closer to the public, both at home and abroad. In that sense, their seasonal celebrations glorify all that nature has given us in this area.

25 January 2019 - The Herceg Novi Pensioners Association donated food and provisions in order to provide assistance to socially vulnerable citizens and thus supported the action of the famous humanitarian Zorica Drakulić Vidaković.

Zorica Drakulić Vidaković is a person of a great heart, who, since she was little, has been helping those who have been deprived of the most basic resources in life - food, clothing, a home, and healthcare. Thanks to her insoluble desire and willingness to help those in need to the best of her ability, often putting her own need aside, Zorica is a driving force and participant in numerous humanitarian actions, for which she has been awarded the prestigious annual ISKRA Fund for Active Citizenship.

Vidaković, with the help of her associates, launched a new humanitarian campaign aimed at helping single mothers and families with low income. "Be a donor, a gift provider and help us as you have so far. Thank you in advance to everyone who will respond to the movement," said Drakulić Vidaković.

The donation from the Pensioners Association was used to buy food and supplies for single mothers with several children.

The representatives of the local community association point out that the money for the donation is pulled from the pensioners’ modest fund in order to help the vulnerable.

This initiative was aimed at all people, primarily those in the Red Cross and municipal structures, in order to awaken their sympathy for those who are troubled and in need.

They also called on all humane people to more actively participate in helping the vulnerable citizens of Herceg Novi, as there are plenty of those living on the verge of existence.

Of the 1,700 members of the Local Pensioners' Association of Herceg Novi, most are with low incomes, and 127 of them do not yet have their own roof over their heads.

24 January 2019 - The fifth Small Orange Festival will be held in Herceg Novi on Saturday, January 26 from 10 am to 2 pm at the pedestrian zone of Njegoševa street, with numerous exhibitors, a donor's table, an orange meal workshop, and a rich musical program. The organiser of the festival is NGO Ruke.

"A lot of exhibitors and guests have already shown great interest for the fifth Small Orange Festival. A total of 35 exhibitors have applied, who will present products and delicacies made out of bitter and sweet oranges. There is a lot of interest for the donors’ tables as well, and the funds that will be collected will be sent to children with special needs," Milina Kovačević from the NGO Ruke said for News Agency Boka News.

This unique festival that people from Herceg Novi can’t help but adore has been giving a new dimension to the promotion of creativity, handmade products, and good vibes for years and thus it became a traditional event.

In addition to 35 exhibitors, many participants will present their offer at the donor tables, such as restaurants, various associations, bakers, florists, and many others.

The visitors of this lovely small festival will be able to taste orange flavoured salty and sweet delicacies, but also to buy delicious food products, jams, cakes, cookies, as well as various handicrafts, souvenirs, jewellery etc.

This is the fifteenth festival organised by NGO Ruke and successfully managed by Maja Erenji Hare Braun and Milina Kovačević. The result of their long-standing persevering engagement of all members of the association to promote healthy lifestyles as well as creativity and entrepreneurship is branding products such as orange jam, fig jam and ginger jam, as well as and pomegranate juice. These products are often ordered as "edible souvenirs" from other cities, not only from Herceg Novi.

The Small Orange Festival is a beautiful and dreamy story of Herceg Novi that you just don’t want to miss! You can find more information on how Orange Flavour Will Spice Up the Jubilee 50^th Mimosa Festival at TMN’s dedicated page.

22 January 2019 - On January 22, Ambassador of Great Britain to Montenegro, Her Excellency Ms Alison Camp met with the Mayor of Herceg Novi Stevan Katić and his associates.

The focus of the first official discourse between Katić and Camp were the potentials for the development of Herceg Novi, the vision of local government, current and planned projects, the relationship between local and state authorities, and current investments in the field of tourism.

The Ambassador pointed out that Herceg Novi is a city of significant potentials, which development should be carefully planned. In this regard, the representatives of the Municipality informed Her Excellency about the adoption of the Spatial Plan of the Municipality, as well as about the activities and difficulties in that area.

During the meeting, Ambassador Camp explained that her communication with British tour operators led to the conclusion of what obstacles British citizens who want to visit Herceg Novi have to overcome - crowds at the Montenegrin border with Croatia and registration of residence. Bearing in mind that the majority of tourists from Great Britain arrive at Herceg Novi from the Dubrovnik Airport, Camp and Katić agreed that it is necessary to resolve the issue of summer crowds at the border with Croatia, to which the Embassy will strive to draw attention.

President Katić said that British tourists annually have between 15.000 and 20.000 overnight stays in Herceg Novi and hope that this number will increase in the coming years. During the meeting, he particularly focused on the opening of new luxury hotels and marinas in the territory of Herceg-Novi Municipality. These projects, which positively affect the reputation of Herceg Novi, make the city a more attractive destination for citizens of Great Britain.

President Katić introduced the Ambassador to the rich social and cultural life of Herceg Novi and invited Her Excellency to visit Herceg Novi during February and March and be the guest of the city during the 50th Mimosa Festival.

22 January 2019 - It is in the interest of the citizens of Herceg Novi that the “Dr. Simo Milošević” Institute and the Meljine hospital retain the focus on health tourism and improve their activities, said the President of the municipality, Stevan Katić, at a meeting with British Ambassador Alison Camp.

On January 22, Ambassador of Great Britain to Montenegro, Her Excellency Ms Alison Camp met with the Mayor of Herceg Novi Stevan Katić and his associates.

The focus of the first official discourse between Katić and Camp were the potentials for the development of Herceg Novi, the vision of local government, current and planned projects, the relationship between local and state authorities, and the issue of privatisation of the Institute “Dr. Simo Milošević” in Igalo and Meljine Hospital.

The Ambassador pointed out that Herceg Novi is a city of significant potentials, which development should be carefully planned. In this regard, the representatives of the Municipality informed Her Excellency about the adoption of the Spatial Plan of the Municipality, as well as about the activities and difficulties in that area.

Ambassador Camp expressed her interest in the issue of privatisation of the Institute "Dr. Simo Milosevic" in Igalo and the status of the Meljine hospital, and emphasised that she is following these processes with great care.

Katić stressed that it is in the interest of the citizens of Herceg Novi that these institutions retain their focus on health tourism and improve their activities.

The Institute for physical medicine, rehabilitation and rheumatology “Dr. Simo Milošević” in Igalo, Herceg Novi is the largest and most important multidisciplinary health and recreational centre in Montenegro and in the region, with a majority stake owned by the State of Montenegro. The Institute is a pioneer of the modern physical and preventive medicine, rehabilitation, thalassotherapy and wellness, and it has become one of the leading international centres for rehabilitation of children, adults and seniors. It is located on the attractive coastal region of Montenegro, famous for springs of mineral water and healing mud, warm, crystal clear sea and lush vegetation full of healing herbs.

21 January 2019 - An Unprecedented list of priority infrastructure projects, supplemented by projects in the field of digital infrastructure, was approved at the last session of the Government of Montenegro. Among the priority projects worth hundreds of millions of euros, several are linked to Herceg Novi. As reported by Montenegrin daily newspapers “Dnevne novine”, “the implementation of these projects requires either the completion of planned or project documentation or solving possible property-legal issues”.

The most valuable project is the construction of the coastal “version” of the Adriatic-Ionian highway along the Montenegrin coast. This project will include seven segments, i.e. the development of bypasses in coastal municipalities within the country. The bypass around Herceg Novi, i.e. the section from the border on Debeli brijeg to Bijela, should be 17 kilometres long (8 kilometres of the bypass and 9 kilometres of Herceg Novi-Bijela road). The estimated construction value is 193,2 million EUR. According to the Methodology for the selection and prioritization of infrastructure projects, the project is rated with a score of 2C, which means that the project either has flaws in spatial planning documents or unresolved property-legal issues.

The construction of a bridge over the Bay of Kotor, with viaducts and access roads, was estimated at 67,9 million EUR.

The "Verige" Bridge is planned at the site of Cape St. Nedjelja/Cape Opatovo and is an integral part of the highway along the Montenegrin Coast. The total length of the bridge amounts to 981 metres, of which the span between the main supports is 450 metres. The main bridge structure will be built as a "Cable Stayed System". The length of the access roads to the bridge from both sides amounts to totally 1800 m. A 200 metres long viaduct is planned on the access road towards Tivat. The construction of the "Verige" Bridge will make the road from Tivat to Herceg Novi considerably shorter, improve the traffic conditions and the complete tourist offer of Montenegro.

This project is assessed by Methodology as 1b, which means that it is a project for which the preparation of technical documentation is in progress, which precedes the tender procedure, i.e. a project that lacks certain final consents/permits.

Within the framework of the Waste Management projects, the estimated value of construction of the Sanitary Landfill Duboki do was projected at 7.4 million EUR.

January 21, 2019 - The Tourist Organization of Herceg Novi scheduled a meeting with the workers in the tourist business of the city. The topic of the meeting to be held on Wednesday, 23 January, will be the presentation of the marketing system and the creation of city tourist offer for the 2019 season with a focus on the events.

19 January 2019 - Consortium of the Czech Philibert and Villa Oliva offered 10 million EUR for the purchase of 56.4806% of the share capital of the Institute for Physical Medicine Rehabilitation and Rheumatology Dr Simo Milošević and an investment programme amounting to 27.944.380 EUR.

In line with the 2018 Privatisation Plan, the Tender Commission for Privatisation started activities on drafting and implementing the tender for the sale of the share capital of the Institute. During 2018, several letters were delivered about the intentions of potential investors for the privatisation of the Institute, three bidders were registered in the public tender (purchased the tender documentation and signed the Confidentiality Statement), but only the bid by the consortium of the Czech Philibert, which is part of the Cimex Group, and Villa Oliva was submitted within the set deadline.

The consortium's bid, the only one that had been submitted in the public tender, was opened earlier today at the session of the Tender Commission for Privatisation, which took place at the Ministry of Economy in the presence of the representatives of the bidder.

The Tender Commission will, in compliance with the legal procedure, examine the formal validity of the bid, after which, if it determines that the bid is formally correct, it will examine whether it meets the qualification requirements and the minimum requirements of the tender and, within 15 days from the opening date, it will examine the bid in terms of quality.

Upon the completion of the tender, the Commission will submit the report to the Privatisation and Capital Projects Council for adoption.

Public tender for purchase of 56.4806% of the share capital of the Institute Simo Milošević was announced on 16 October 2018.

January 19, 2019 - The Little Fiesta of Orange will "spice up" the Jubilee 50th Mimosa Festival with salty and sweet delicacies. Organization members and their guests have prepared rich gastro content devoted to orange. NGO Hands from Herceg Novi is organizing the Little Fiesta for the fifth time.