photo: wikipedia
On 29 September 2021, the city of Banská Bystrica (Slovakia) became the fifth certified ‘Authenticity’, following the Authenticities of Thessaloniki, Sofia, Plovdiv and Mykonos.
Authenticities is an initiative designed to empower authorities at a local level to engage citizens and partner Organisations across the EU in the fight against counterfeiting, with a view to creating a European Network of Authenticities.
Through this European Cooperation project, the Industrial Property Office of the Slovak Republic, in cooperation with the Municipality of Banská Bystrica and the Financial Administration of the Slovak Republic, aims to combat counterfeiting and simultaneously raise awareness of both the value of IP, and the damage caused by counterfeiting on a local level.
A series of IP-related awareness-raising activities will take place over the next 2 years in the newly certified Authenticity, following a Memorandum of Understanding signed between the Industrial Property Office of the Slovak Republic, the Municipality of Banská Bystrica and the Financial Administration of the Slovak Republic.
Banská Bystrica is the sixth most populated municipality in Slovakia. It was a candidate in the competition for the title of European Capital of Culture 2026 and proud owner of the title of the European City of Sport for the year 2017.
Banská Bystrica was an important mining centre from the 13th century when the silver and copper mines supplied much of the European market. The most important sectors of the local economy are now timber, manufacture of textiles, paper, metal products and cement. The city’s strategy of economic development envisages Banská Bystrica as a regional centre for tourism, services, administration and entrepreneurship.
Find out more info at the new European Network of Authenticities website.