The 4th annual online conference on the topic “Innovation and Greening of SMEs in BiH: Do We Know Where We Go and Where We Start From” was held yesterday. The conference was organized by Eda with the support of the Embassy of Sweden, within the project “European framework for the development of strategies and policies for small and medium enterprises in Bosnia and Herzegovina – SBA in BiH”.
More than 70 participants from the private, governmental, educational and non-governmental sectors, as well as representatives of international organizations and donors in BiH attended the conference.
The conference was organized with the aim of contributing to finding answers to current questions – the challenges we face:
- What is the long-term orientation of SME development in regard to innovation and green economy and how much are our companies and support institutions prepared for it?
- What progress can be made in the short term?
- What kind of support is needed for that?
The conference was opened by Ms. Eva Smedberg, Head of Development Cooperation at the Embassy of Sweden in BiH, with whose support the project “European Small Business Act as a Framework for Strategies and Policies for SMEs in BiH – SBA in BiH” is being implemented.
The introductory speakers on the topic “what is (are) the main direction(s) for SME innovation and greening in BiH from a global, EU, regional and BiH perspective” were Mr. Frank Waeltring from (Mesopartner) and Mr. Mirza Kušljugić (ReSET).
In the second part of the conference, it was discussed on the topic “where we start from and what could be potential for change: experiences and examples from pilot projects”. The introductory speakers were Ms. Sanela Dževlan from SERDA, who presented the Challenge to Change project and its results, Ms. Jasna Hivziefendić from ReSET, who presented the project “Energy Efficiency Network(s) in Industry” and earned experience, as well as Mr. Goran Janković from Eda, who spoke about the “NOVALIS” project and innovation voucher schemes.
Participants of the conference – policy makers, representatives of SMEs, consultants, representatives of international organisations in BiH and donors had very intensive and meaningful discussions on how to address and promote strategic direction(s), what progress can be made in the short term and how to adjust policies and support instruments. The moderator was Mr. Zdravko Miovčić.
All conference participants had the opportunity to share their experiences, opinions and suggestions with others and thus contribute to finding effective answers to key questions of the conference. Many valuable ideas, proposals and recommendations were obtained, which will be used in creating policies and support instruments that will guide the future of SMEs in key areas.
Key highlights of the conference are available here: https://bit.ly/3yAwZRq
The materials used during the conference are available here: https://bit.ly/3FiSKrt
We once again thank the introductory speakers and all participants of the conference for their cooperation and active participation, as well as the Embassy of Sweden in BiH for their understanding and support.