Following the content of the project ENTREPUBL, another face-to-face meeting of the project partners was planned for September. On 19th and 20th September, almost all project partners gathered for our 4th Transnational Project Partners Meeting in the charming city of Žilina, Slovakia.

Slovakia, long form Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in central Europe. It is a member state of the European Union and NATO. It has an area of approximately 49 km² and a population of approximately 5.5 million. It is bordered to the north-west by the Czech Republic, to the south-west by Austria, to the north by Poland, to the east by Ukraine and to the south by Hungary. The country is mostly mountainous, as most of its surface is covered by mountains and forests. The capital and largest city is Bratislava.

Žilina is a regional and district town in northern Slovakia. In terms of population, Žilina is the fourth largest city in Slovakia. It is the administrative, economic, transport and cultural centre of north-western Slovakia. It lies at the confluence of 3 rivers and surrounded by 2 national parks with beautiful nature. The centre of the town is one of the longest and most beautiful pedestrian zones in Slovakia with a number of restaurants and stylish cafés. Find out more about city Žilina here.

Host partner was ICEP – Institute of European Certification of Personnel. The meeting place was in heart of the historical part of city Žilina, in the conference room of the Faculty of Security Engineering of University of Žilina. The agenda of the project partners meeting was set on one full workday and one half-day. Over these two productive days, we reviewed our progress together, checked the status of all planned activities and tasks and prepared for the exciting activities ahead. We also discussed a lot about other activities in the upcoming work packages and next steps how to support trainers and engage new public employees to our online courses in ENTREPUBL learning platform.

There were also less work and more team-building activities at our transnational project meeting. We believe that the concept of work-life balance should apply everywhere. Our first day we started will small but very nice ice-breaker activity, since we don´t see each other from the beginning of February. Our agenda also includes common lunches with a relaxed and friendly atmosphere and of course a social dinner with lots of local delicacies. As a bonus, ICEP organized for all project partners a cultural visit with exploring city Žilina and a presentation to learn more about Slovakia – history, traditions, habits, foods and more…

It was a great pleasure to welcome you here and we hope you enjoyed your stay here😊

By Adelaida Fanfarová. Project Manager ICEP – Institute of European Certification of Personnel