ON THE RECORD

EXTRA EU FUNDING FOR HUNGARY TO EASE THE PANDEMIC

The European Commission (EC) has approved EUR 654 million to Spain and Hungary under REACT-EU following the modification of two European Social Fund (ESF) Operational Programs (OP). According to an EC announcement at the end of November, in Hungary, the national OP 'Human Resource Development' will receive an additional EUR 250 million for purchasing 13 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines authorized by the European Medicines Agency. The additional funding will also be used to provide financial compensation to around 7,000 doctors and nurses who worked extra hours during the pandemic. REACT-EU is part of NextGenerationEU and provides EUR 50.6 billion additional funding (in current prices) over the course of 2021 and 2022 to Cohesion policy programs. Measures focus on supporting labor market resilience, jobs, SMEs and low-income families, as well as setting future-proof foundations for the green and digital transitions and a sustainable socio-economic recovery.

PLANET BUDAPEST 2021 SUSTAINABILITY EXPO

Responsibility for a common future is the main reason for the creation of the Planet Budapest 2021 Sustainability Expo and World Summit, Hungarian President János Áder said at the opening of the event at the end of November.

The one-week event featured 185 exhibitors from the smallest start-ups to the largest companies, on an area of around 20,000 square meters. More than a third of them came from the Visegrád Four (V4) countries. They showcased how Central Europe is making progress in areas such as agriculture, waste management, smart cities, energy and transport. One of the highlights of the Expo was the exhibition 'Your Planet', where 66 installations on 12 islands showcased the negative trends shaping the future of the Earth and possible solutions.

SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT BOWS TO BOAT TRAGEDY VICTIMS

The President of the Republic of Korea, Moon Jae-in, who arrived in Hungary for an official visit, paid a tribute to the victims of the Hableány (Mermaid) cruise ship disaster at the Budapest memorial of the 2019 tragedy, a granite block with the names of the victims engraved on it the Pest end of the Margaret Bridge. A group of South Koreans visiting Hungary also attended the memorial and enthusiastically greeted President Moon Jae-in and his wife, who accompanied him. The small cruise ship sank in the River Danube on May 29, 2019 near the Margaret Bridge in Budapest after colliding with the Viking Sigyn hotel ship. The Hableány was carrying 35 passengers, 33 South Korean tourists and the two-member Hungarian crew. Seven tourists were rescued, the bodies of 27 victims have been recovered and one South Korean passenger is still missing.

In the case, the prosecutor's office holds the Ukrainian captain of the hotel ship Viking Sigyn responsible for the tragedy. He was charged in November 2019 with the offences of reckless endangerment of water transport causing a fatal public accident and failure to render assistance.

HUNGARIAN CURRENCY AT HISTORIC LOW AGAINST THE EURO

Despite the National Bank of Hungary (MNB) raising the policy rate by a total of 70 basis points in two steps the week before, the Hungarian forint (HUF) fell to a new historic low against the common European currency (EUR) on November 22. Within one day, the euro exchange rate broke through the psychological barrier of HUF 370 twice: first on Monday morning, then by early evening it broke through this unprecedented level again and weakened to HUF 370.2. The forint was almost constantly above 369 on Monday, but by the end of the day it surrendered. Around 5 p.m., the HUF/US dollar exchange rate was also at its low for the year, at HUF 329.17, while the Swiss franc was also at a historic low of HUF 353.3. According to hvg.hu, the reasons are both foreign and domestic: on the one hand, the dollar is strengthening, which is never good for emerging currencies, and on the other hand, the market believes that the MNB's reintroduction of the dual interest rate regime last week has failed to increase transparency and predictability. The worsening pandemic data were also to undermine the performance of the Hungarian economy.

UPCOMING NATIONAL DAYS December 1 Romania 2 Laos 2 UAE 5 Thailand 6 Finland 12 Kenya 13 Malta 16 Kazakhstan 16 Bahrain

January 18 Qatar 24 Libya 29 Mongolia 1 Cuba 26 Australia National day National day National day National day National day Independence day National day Independence day Independence day National day Independence day Independence day National Day National Day

TREE PLANTED TO HONOR ÁNGEL SANZ BRIZ IN BUDAPEST

On the occasion of Ángel Sanz Briz Day (November 11), the Spanish Ambassador to Hungary, Anunciada Fernández de Córdova and the mayor of Budapest's District 3, László Kiss, planted a tree to remember him as well as the victims and survivors of the Holocaust, next to the monument at the Avenue that bears the name of the Spanish diplomat who saved the lives of thousands of Jews in Hungary during World War II. Ángel Sanz Briz witnessed the start of the deportations in 1944 as the Spanish Embassy's Chargé d'Affaires in Budapest. The young diplomat, like Sweden's Raoul Wallenberg, dedicated his efforts to saving as many lives as possible. In fact, he managed to save over 5,200 Hungarian Jews from deportation in that year. In her speech, Ambassador Anunciada Fernández de Córdova said that "it's always a pleasure to see the younger generations here, because in today's world, dominated by Instagram and Tiktok, which is mostly about appearances, the human values of solidarity, humanity and the will to help, which Sanz Briz is a good example of, will hopefully be a model for the generation that comes after us." Mayor Dr László Kiss was of the view that "the tree is a symbol of life, of renewal, and also a symbol of the future because when the tree planted now becomes strong and proud, the young people here today will be as old as I am now. We say, as we do every year, a resounding ‘no’ to death and lack of solidarity, and a ‘yes’ to life."

HUNGARIANS OPTIMISTIC ABOUT 2022 TRAVEL PLANS

Slightly more than half of Hungarians are currently optimistic and will not change their travel plans for the summer of next year, according to a new survey. Although the coronavirus epidemic is seasonal and there are typically fewer people infected in the summer, many people cancelled trips – mostly abroad – last summer and this summer, just to be on the safe side. The summer of 2022 is still a long way off, but the epidemic is on the rise again, the vaccination rate in Hungary is practically stagnating and there is no guarantee that in six months we will be able to live our lives without restrictions. According to a representative survey conducted by Pulzus Research on behalf of napi. hu, 53% of Hungarians have not changed their travel plans, despite the fact that the epidemic indicators have clearly worsened in recent days around the world - and the epidemic reproduction rate in Hungary has reached a very high level in comparison to the rest of the world. Only 15% of those surveyed said they would prefer to travel to domestic destinations, and 8%, even if they did travel abroad, planned to do so for less time than in previous years. 24% of respondents say they will not travel at all, but this is not necessarily a result of the new coronavirus.