HISTEK project aims at establishing a new cross-border cluster in the field of education in order to promote cross-cutting innovative communities that contribute to effective cooperation between companies, educational institutions and training centers, which makes the internal process of developing modern skills of young people compatible with the needs of the economy. The basic product of HISTEK project will be the definition and adoption, in educational systems, of a new educational profile at a tertiary level based on the previously identified needs of small and medium enterprises for specialized technicians capable of mastering key technologies.The goal set by the project will be achieved precisely through the establishment of a new cross-border cluster (its composition should include a small and medium-sized company, educational institution and competent state authorities) that will work together to define unified standards for profiling new occupational profiles and setting criteria in order identifying the needs of small and medium-sized enterprises for human resources.

The annual meeting for the above mentioned project was held on December 25, 2018 in the premises of the Chamber of Economy of Montenegro in Podgorica and it included representatives of all partners working on this project. 

Summarizing the work accomplished on HISTEK in 2018, Montenegrin partners were devoted to the development of a strategy to overcome all obstacles in the implementation process, such as project structures, and work on improving communication between project partners. The discussion covered topics of financial management and resource allocation, budget of Montenegrin partners and current expenditures (balance between execution and budget expenditures), tax exemption and introduction to VAT refund procedures. The results achieved so far in the process of implementation and emphasis on the need to accelerate the work on the implementation of project activities have been presented, in accordance with the precise planning of activities for 2019 related to technical meetings, goals, tailored events, press releases and alike.

The Chamber of Economy and the Ministry of Education paid special attention to activities to determine the company's needs for establishing educational profiles and creating a new educational program that should be the basic product of the HISTEK project. In line with this, a questionnaire was developed and a survey was conducted among companies that, in the framework of other analyzes, should show that project partners can be supplemented by their new institutional response and interest in the development of the Montenegrin economy and increase in employment of young people based on their institutional roles. It should be emphasized that the creation of a new educational profile shall focus on acquiring competitive knowledge and skills, as well as mastering a range of social competencies through which students are given the opportunity to adapt to a dynamic business environment more quickly. High competitiveness is associated with new ideas, knowledge and technologies, or with high quality human resources that come with appropriate and sustainable investments in education.

In order for young people to acquire competitive knowledge, it is necessary to increase the number and quality of educational offers, as well as the number of users, which is the goal of the HISTEK project. The achievement of these goals stands in the way of a number of obstacles, of which the most significant is the absence of an adequate assessment of the needs of the economy and the inadequate qualification structure of the employees. The possibility of removing these obstacles is, among other things, in modernizing content and methods of education towards the development of competences, depending on the estimated future needs, the increase in the passage of the education system, the increased number of students in the field. A Communication Plan has been developed which, with its modern approaches, should contribute to a wider participation of users in the field of education and economy.

Finally, strong emphasis was put on the importance of cooperation between the Ministry of Education and the Chamber of Economy on the development of new curricula and reforming the education system as a whole in order to achieve a balance between market, social and individual needs and interests.