January 28, 2011 – January 12, 2011 the Hungarian mint has issued a new commemorative coin on the occasion of the Hungarian EU-Presidency 2011.
Hungarian EU-Presidency 2011 – 3.000 HUF – Ag .924 – 10 g – diameter 30 mm – 3.000 BU & 5.000 Proof – designer: RONAY Attila – date of issue: January 12, 2011.
From 1 January to 30 June 2011 Hungary will hold the Presidency of the Council of the European Union for the first time since joining the Union on 1 May 2004. Not only does the rotating presidency represent a challenge for Hungary because this is the first time, a new institutional framework must be put into practice as a result of the Treaty of Lisbon entering into force.
The presidency rotates between Member States every six months. With the Treaty of Lisbon, the trio of presidencies has become an institutional framework, the essence of which is that a “trio” of three countries holding consecutive presidencies works closely together in an 18-month programme. The current trio consists of Spain, Belgium and Hungary. The three countries developed a shared logo for the presidency, helping to express the common responsibility borne within the framework of the trio of presidencies. The logo selected by the international jury was designed by Antoine Durieux, a Belgian applied arts student.
The Hungarian presidency wishes to build its political agenda around human factors, concentrating on four main areas: growth and employment to secure the European social model; a stronger Europe; a Union close to its citizens; and enlargement and regional policy. The first priority is job creation, boosting employment and promoting competitiveness. Strong emphasis is placed on the basic principles of the Union, and strengthening solidarity and cohesion between the Member States. In additional to traditional community policies, the issue of energy policy will be a topic that fundamentally influences the agenda of the Hungarian presidency, and one of the key political objectives is approval of the Strategy for the Danube Region under the Hungarian presidency.
The Magyar Nemzeti Bank is proud to issue a silver commemorative coin in honour of Hungary’s first presidency of the European Union, designed by artist Attila Rónay.