Continuation of coordination and harmonization of support for the development of SMEs

Continuing the practice of mutual coordination of institutions in charge of creating support policies for SMEs, as well as coordination with relevant international projects and organizations, a workshop on coordination of support for the implementation of SBA in BiH was held in Jahorina on November 16 and 17. Teams from the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Federal Ministry of Development, Entrepreneurship and Crafts, the Ministry of Economy and Entrepreneurship of the RS, as well as representatives of the Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina, participated.

In an excellent atmosphere, on the first day, information was exchanged about the activities and events of the previous meeting/workshop in Teslić on July 13 and 14, 2022, and the way of working on the operationalization of the project task for the creation of a digital platform for monitoring and reporting with an emphasis on indicators/ sources of verification for monitoring the implementation of SME development strategies and the SME Policy Index was agreed. On the second day, also in an excellent atmosphere, the support of UNDP’s projects for SMEs was presented and the possibilities of adaptation to the SBA/strategic framework for the development of SMEs were discussed. In the last part, the content, approach and participation of institutions and projects in the 5th annual conference on supporting the development of SMEs in BiH, which will be held on December 8, 2022 in Sarajevo, were elaborated.

One of the conclusions is that the organization of coordination meetings/workshops of domestic institutions with donors, international organizations and projects that support the development of SMEs should become a regular annual activity, so that synergy is achieved in the planning, implementation and monitoring of policies and instruments in this area, aligned with SBA framework.

The workshop was organized within the project “Advanced implementation of the Small Business Act in BiH2EU – SBA in BiH2EU” implemented by Eda in cooperation with the Sarajevo Economic Region Development Agency SERDA, and financed by Sweden.