Through socially responsible actions and initiatives aimed at helping diverse groups in society, such as supporting children and young people, sponsoring cultural and sports events, UNIQA SEE region actively influences the better life of its clients, employees, and the entire community in which it operates.
For the second year, UNIQA was the exclusive sponsor and official insurer of the jubilee 30th edition of the Sarajevo Film Festival. The Sarajevo Film Festival has long since grown into an event of enormous social impact that transcends the boundaries of film, becoming a symbol of cultural vitality, resilience, and international cooperation. The partnership between UNIQA and the Sarajevo Film Festival, forged on the common values of support for culture, togetherness and sustainability, has been further strengthening its impact on the well-being of the entire community.
"The partnership between the Sarajevo Film Festival and UNIQA represents a long-term strategic cooperation in which we have combined responsibility and the desire to promote art and creativity in society. This Festival is a platform for showcasing different cinematic expressions and storytelling, and our support is essential in supporting emerging filmmakers, facilitating cross-cultural dialogue, and encouraging the growth of the film industry. That is why we look forward to directing this story together and celebrating the universal film language that transcends borders and unites communities," says Adel Bahtanović, President of the UNIQA SEE region.
Investing in young talents and in better future, is at the very core of the business of the UNIQA SEE Future Foundation established this year to support young people who stand out with their abilities and talents in sports, culture and sustainability. The UNIQA SEE Future Foundation operates in Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Romania and Montenegro.
The Foundation's first sports talent is Luna Vujović, junior winner of Wimbledon and one of the biggest young hopes of Serbian tennis, who in 2022 won as many as four of the five Tennis Europe finals in which she performed. During the launch of the Foundation in Zagreb in April 2024, Luna played an exhibition match with Goran Ivanišević, UNIQA SEE brand ambassador, who provides support to many young sports talents in his mentor role.
"When it comes to collaborations with brands, I carefully choose who I will collaborate with because I have to be compatible with the values I will promote," stated Ivanišević.
Providing young people with better conditions to maximize their potential and achieve their goals is the guiding idea: "With this move, we have made a step forward in socially responsible business by actively participating in the creation of a more advanced social environment. The goal is to encourage local communities and strengthen inclusion through various support programs in accordance with our brand promise "living better together", which encourages solidarity and cooperation", emphasizes Adel Bahtanović, president of the UNIQA SEE region.
This year, the Foundation also supported the work of the tennis club from Sarajevo and the tennis club in Sofia.
Under the auspices of the 30th edition of the Sarajevo Film Festival, which was held in August this year, UNIQA presented the Foundation's support project for women filmmakers in the region of Southeast Europe. In partnership with the Festival, Slano Film Days and film centres in the region, UNIQA is committed to supporting the realization of film projects aimed at empowering socially engaged topics in three categories: feature, documentary and short film.
In addition, the Foundation will also help the innovative project "Mentorship Initiative" in the field of culture in cooperation with the art collectives Nomad from Zagreb and Nomarts from Vienna. It is a program that is designed to support young artists, especially female artists from Southeast and Eastern Europe. The initiative includes a one-year mentorship between established artists and selected young talents, culminating in an exhibition in the relevant exhibition space and an artistic intervention in the public space.
UNIQA Serbia has been a partner and sponsor of international theatre Shakespeare Festival since its foundation, eleven times in a row. UNIQA Serbia is also official insurance and partner of Arsenal Fest, which has established itself as one of the most interesting, relevant and promising outdoor summer music festivals in Serbia and this part of Europe. UNIQA Bulgaria is an official sponsor of the International Film Festival - Sofia Film Fest and Bansko film fest.
UNIQA Serbia helped to realize the exhibition, Paja Jovanović and Gustav Klimt. One epoch, two artists, three museums, and three female portraits of these two artists are presented in the Matica Srpska Gallery.
In addition to supporting cultural projects, UNIQA SEE countries are also inclined towards sport projects and projects that promote a healthy and active lifestyle, as well as helping in the community. With long-term cooperation with the National Water polo Team of Serbia, UNIQA was investing in developing of the national sport and achieving top results. This year Serbian National team won the Olympic gold medal for the third time.
In 2024 UNIQA Bosnia and Herzegovina supported once again the biggest trail run in SEE, „Vučko trail“ with over 100km across the Olympic mountains Bjelašica and Visočica. The trail is famous not only because of the beautiful landscapes, but because it is also an environmental movement, that engaged over 200 volunteers to clean the forests and trails. The trail run also doesn’t use plastic equipment and requires its runners to have reusable containers for water.
Social responsibility projects in the UNIQA SEE region also include UNIQA Bulgaria’s support to SOS Children's Villages and UNIQA Croatia support to projects of importance to the community through yearly competition for NGOs and schools. This year's theme of the competition was financial literacy, i.e. projects to promote financial literacy for children and young people were sought. Through scholarships for students with disability, UNIQA Croatia promotes inclusiveness and actively supports quality education for people with disabilities.
UNIQA Serbia continues its support to bee protection in cooperation with Bee Center of Belgrade. One joint activity is providing permanent home for the community of 200,000 bees on the roof of the UNIQA in Belgrade.
UNIQA Romania supports M.A.M.E. association by organizing charity fairs at its headquarters in Bukarest and inviting employees to buy items from the association’s charity shop, thus donating for “Centrul Stelutelor” (Little Stars Center), the most important project of the organization. It is the place where, for 4 years, sick or poor children and their families receive the support, counselling and attention they need.
Sofia Film Fest
