The visit to Savinjsko, which has a population of 250,000 and is mostly driven by the municipalities of Celje and Velenje, will commence with stops at several of the region's successful companies.

Prime Minister Miro Cerar will for instance visit the Pivovarna Laško brewery, which was acquired by Heineken in 2015, and wood processing company Tajfun. A basketball game featuring cabinet members is scheduled in the evening.

The central part of the visit is planned on Wednesday and will start in the morning with a working meeting in Rogaška Slatina.

Rogaška Slatina Mayor Branko Kidrič announced the mayors would raise the problems of underfunded municipalities and of priority projects, in particular in infrastructure, which have been proposed by the region but have so far not been backed with government funding.

Savinjsko's development agency has been highlighting the region's potential related to its location, thermal springs and wood biomass.

Cerar will, meanwhile, also visit on Wednesday tool maker Unior, which remains on the government's privatisation list, and BSH Hišni aparati, the Slovenian subsidiary of the Bosch and Siemens Home Appliance Group. He will conclude the visit with a development discussion in Celje.

Savinjsko, which consists of 31 municipalities, had an unemployment rate of 12.2% in February, which was higher than the national average of 10.9%, but it was also 1.7 percentage points lower than a year ago.

The average pay in Savinjsko is EUR 955 net, which compares to a nation average of EUR 1,039. The region has the highest at-risk-of-poverty rate in Slovenia.

Tourism is one of the most important industries in Savinjsko, which has several spa resorts. Agriculture also features strongly, in particular hops growing.