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"The new government is ready to push ahead with strategically-considered privatisation," Prime Minister Miro Cerar told the annual conference. While key infrastructure will remain in state ownership, business stakes will be sold based on an asset management strategy that is being drafted.

The document is expected to be put to public debate in early November. "It is meant as a clear political commitment that the way forward will be more systematic," State Secretary at the Finance Ministry in charge of privatisation Metod Dragonja told the panel about the strategy which will lay out the plans for state assets.

Moreover, Cerar announced that the government was committed to reforms which will make Slovenia a more appealing destination for foreign investors. The government priorities include balancing public finances and completing bank restructuring to provide for a stable financial system.

Expanding on this, Finance Minister Dušan Mramor said the government was planning sweeping measures to help companies and improve the business environment, although it would first focus on sorting out public finances in line with EU debt and deficit rules.

The minister said that the government's first task would be to make "Slovenia a macroeconomic success story". A lot has already been done but Slovenia must still fulfil requirements under the EU's procedures on macroeconomic imbalances and excessive deficit.

"When we complete these procedures we will have more economic freedom," he said. While Mramor acknowledged that the majority of economists think the fiscal policies imposed by the EU were wrong, he said that Slovenia would abide by the rules. "This is what Europe chose, we have to be part of it."

The pledges by government officials were welcomed by business representatives attending the event, who called on the government to have a clear message about the desirability of foreign direct investments, focus on improving competitiveness and act rapidly.

"Decide what you want to be famous for and act with speed," David La Rose, IBM general manager for Central and Eastern Europe told the morning meeting organised by AmCham.

"There is a clear need to make decisions quickly, speeding up administrative procedures, so as to increase certainty for business," general manager of Lafarge Cement in Slovenia Haimo Primas told a panel examining the role of foreign capital.

Ensuring that rules do not change too often means greater certainty, added Primas, who raised the need for bolstering the operational part of government, which should not be reliant on the ruling coalition but rather on a broad development strategy.

What is required is "clear communication about openness to FDI" and making sure that the administration behind attracting foreign investors is "flawless", added Aleksander Zalaznik, general manager of Danfoss Trata.

Slovenia needs to have an open discussion at the political level and say "yes, FDI is welcome and we will do the utmost as a country to support it," according to Zalaznik.

Meanwhile, Vojmir Urlep, the CEO of Novartis-owned pharma company Lek, said Slovenia must reduce labour costs, continue privatisation, and reduce the complexity of processes.

Listing some of the measures that the government plans to undertake, Minister Mramor said the public sector needed to become more efficient, as it is slated to play a key role in measures designed to improve the business environment.

He also said the government would tackle land permits, which have for years been highlighted as a major obstacle to development. "This is a real problem, not just for foreign investors but also for Slovenian companies...I will try to get everyone involved to make this as transparent and efficient as possible."

Meanwhile, Primas highlighted the need for Slovenia to develop a brand like other countries in Europe to target investors. Echoing the sentiment of thinking big, chairman of the SIJ steel group Anton Chernykh said Slovenia should utilise the potential it has to establish a highly-appealing economic zone.