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A:
Fourth round of financial assistance to exporters ends
Belgrade,
9 May 2008
Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Bozidar Djelic stated that the SME sector is one of the most liquid segments in the Serbian economy accounting for 40% of total exports, and is a solution for reducing unemployment.
Bozidar Djelic
Author:
Tanjug
At the closing ceremony of the fourth round of the programme to internationalise domestic companies held at the Belgrade City Hall, Djelic explained that within the programme the Serbian Investment and Export Promotion Agency (SIEPA) granted RSD 43 million in non-refundable assistance to 83 exporters in Serbia.
He announced that there will be a new round in August and invited all companies to apply.
Last year in Serbia, SMEs increased the number of employed people by 22% and this year we expect this number to go up by 16%, stressed Djelic and added that unemployment and exports are Serbia’s key problems, and through its programme, SIEPA is trying to stimulate exports, thus reducing the number of unemployed.
SIEPA deputy director Bojan Jankovic explained that the funds were allocated to export-oriented SMEs which at the moment do not have a big presence in international markets but have good projects.
According to him, funds were allocated through a public competition. Individual companies were granted between RSD 150,000 and 1.5 million, which is 50% of the projected costs for the chosen activities excluding VAT.
A total of 111 companies applied in this round, of which 28 either submitted incomplete applications or did not have the sufficient number of points.
Twenty-nine companies from the food industry sector applied, 12 from the textile industry and nine each form the timber and IT industry. The largest numbers of applicants were companies from Belgrade (27%), Novi Sad (11%) and Uzice (6%), and a smaller number of companies were from Cacak, Kragujevac, Loznica and other towns.
A total of RSD 165 million was allocated in the previous three rounds. Funds were allocated to 269 companies out of 530 which applied.
The large number of interested companies shows that domestic exporters are very interested in the programme.
Assistance will primarily focus on marketing activities which is usually the lowest priority for Serbian companies, and also on production and sales organisation.
Marketing activities are of huge importance for all companies because without a good marketing plan and accompanying activities, there can be no significant success in foreign markets.
The list of companies which have been granted non-refundable assistance can be viewed in the table below.
He announced that there will be a new round in August and invited all companies to apply.
Last year in Serbia, SMEs increased the number of employed people by 22% and this year we expect this number to go up by 16%, stressed Djelic and added that unemployment and exports are Serbia’s key problems, and through its programme, SIEPA is trying to stimulate exports, thus reducing the number of unemployed.
SIEPA deputy director Bojan Jankovic explained that the funds were allocated to export-oriented SMEs which at the moment do not have a big presence in international markets but have good projects.
According to him, funds were allocated through a public competition. Individual companies were granted between RSD 150,000 and 1.5 million, which is 50% of the projected costs for the chosen activities excluding VAT.
A total of 111 companies applied in this round, of which 28 either submitted incomplete applications or did not have the sufficient number of points.
Twenty-nine companies from the food industry sector applied, 12 from the textile industry and nine each form the timber and IT industry. The largest numbers of applicants were companies from Belgrade (27%), Novi Sad (11%) and Uzice (6%), and a smaller number of companies were from Cacak, Kragujevac, Loznica and other towns.
A total of RSD 165 million was allocated in the previous three rounds. Funds were allocated to 269 companies out of 530 which applied.
The large number of interested companies shows that domestic exporters are very interested in the programme.
Assistance will primarily focus on marketing activities which is usually the lowest priority for Serbian companies, and also on production and sales organisation.
Marketing activities are of huge importance for all companies because without a good marketing plan and accompanying activities, there can be no significant success in foreign markets.
The list of companies which have been granted non-refundable assistance can be viewed in the table below.
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