SERBIAN ASSOCIATION OF SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES

Particular attentive development strategy of EU passed on in 1999 and 2000, was dedicated to local and regional development, and the development of small and medium business organizations. Our desire to integrate our economic initiative with the European ambient initiated founding of SA SME (Serbian Association of Small and Medium Enterprises) in 2000/2001. Integration of our association was accelerated due to good cooperation with OECD, EU and it's members. Their assistance allowed Serbia to get involved in the World's globalization flow. This is an important step in developing business enterprises in Serbia .

We are proud to be a member of the following organizations:

OECD -LEED Partner club - ( Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) - LEED Partner club
UEAPME (European Association of Craft Small and Medium-sized Enterprises)
INSME (International Network for SMEs)
EUSME ( European Association of SMEs)

By becoming a full member of OECD - Leed's Partner Club , we are establishing connections with French Ministry of Industry; Club District Industrials of France Industrialist's District Club; Chamber's and Industry of Italy, Germany, Spain, Austria, UK, Argentina, Brazil, Japan, China - with all those we actively begun cooperation in 2002-2003.
Collaboration with industrialists from France was easy and quick, and therefore we already begun really important joint projects. We also have projects with Italy , Germany and Austria.
Formation of Serbian - French Chamber of Small and Medium Enterprises is already in the process.
Our membership in UEAPME (headquarters in Brussels) and INSME (headquarters in Rome) is of mutual satisfaction, and we have few joint projects working on development of local, European and World chambers and associations of SME's.
Our optimism is based on the fact that business organizations from Serbia can also become members of EUSME even though Serbia is still not a member of the European Union - it is precedent but a nonetheless a great chance. We even had an active involvement in founding of EUSME. It is our belief that business organizations are direct members of associations EUSME, no matter what country they originate from.
This is an opportunity to equally cooperate with EU countries. EUSME agency was established in Brussels but the headquarters was located in Munich . It was agreed that the first agency to be opened would be located in Belgrade, followed by offices in Vienna, Lisbon, London, Madrid, Paris, Rome - all should be established next year.
We have very important cooperation with American investors and as a result of that successful cooperation we expect to get great flow of investments into Serbia from American businessman.
We also have great collaboration with the American EX- IM bank, which approves credits for import of equipment from United States .
We have successful cooperation with Stability Pact, Central European Initiative, European Bank for reconstruction and the World Bank.
The confidence given obligates us to the best results and the certain place in the Serbia development.
One of our mains cooperations with world's and Europeans organisations is our cooperation with OECD - Leed's Partner Club.
We were present at the opening of OECD center for local and regional development of SME, in Trent 2003. On that occasion it was agreed that OECD would invite for training in Trent, our businessmen and government employees who are involved with SME. We also agreed that OECD would directly get involved in organization of round tables; training and education of businessmen in Serbia who have foreign investors; investors arrival to Serbia will be organized by OECD.
OECD will organize our first round table and training in Serbia by mid Mars. We are expecting attendance of professors from Japan , U.S.A. and European Union who will give lectures on this occasion. We will also host foreign businessmen from Italy , Germany and France who are willing to invest in Serbia . Host of this project will be the city of Indjija (Vojvodina province ), where we intend to open our first big training center in Serbia.
City of Indjija offers great infrastructure because it is a well know industrial zone. We have in mind few other possible locations in Serbia that will offer to our investors great business perspective and legal stability to invest in Serbia .
Indjija is a great example of how the city should get prepared for foreign investment.
This is our initial step but yet a great example to our other community. Our plan for the end of 2005 is to open local offices in over 50% boroughs around Serbia . Their aim will be to establish solid partnership with local businessmen that will aid the development and growth of our industry.
We are currently working on introducing few of our industrial areas: Indjija, Stara Pazova, Vrsac etc. We are offering following services to our investors:

Space
Infrastructure, space and workshop hall's
Infrastructure, space, hall, program and workforce
Space, legal regulations, infrastructure, hall, program and workforce

Thus the investor can avoid "birth pains", while a domestic investor can realize its assets to convert its property and potentials into money.
This is only a start of our activities and contribution to the success of the development strategy for our country through small and medium size enterprises which is in accordance with the European Charter.
If we want to achieve complete success, it is necessary that all of us participate and contribute to our mutual aim: to create a good business atmosphere in Serbia and welcome foreign investors. If we want Serbia to develop in a European way, we need to overcome classical projects which are not competitive in Europe; we also need to modify our potentials in the entrepreneurship sector according to the standards of developed world and global market. The leading idea is to create a strong "magnetic" field of our country and then initiate crystallization points of entrepreneurship energy, high-quality supply of interesting programs, optimistic atmosphere and clear development course.

We suggest concrete activities so that SME's could really become the functional /power of our country:
Better interrelation and organization - Clusters
More important role in social development of the country - Local regional development
Stimulation and support mechanisms in the country - Balkan Business Network
Export orientation according to strategic concept of our government - Treasury
Projects and mechanisms of incubational canals of Europe - Integral projects
General mobilization of labor through completely new philosophy of business partnership - incubators
Competitiveness development through completely new development philosophy - Creative industry

ECONOMIC RENAISSANCE OF SERBIA is a constructive partnership between the state and private economy. Good projects and optimistic intentions will be presented through interesting ideas, business transactions, old and new programs and through calendar of planned activities. It is a big catalogue of partnership through which the local government tries to attract investors, Diaspora and all potential partners and - through cooperation - make them participate in mutual development.
The two greatest assets of developed world in the local government are:
Cluster activities
Creative industry

The greatest assets of economic rise are:
1. LOCAL and REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Defining a creative picture as a form of an attractive idea of the development of the whole area
2. CREATIVE INDUSTRY as a support Making a new quality in economy
3. CLUSTERS Pooled companies whose partnership improves competitive advantages

CHARM is a strategic development model for local communities through united resources in the form of an attractive idea and recognizable picture of the area. It is a conjoint performance of economic leaders, creative people, local government, the state and strategic partners under the colors of tourist product for the purpose of obtaining greater competitiveness.
One of the great assets for development is creative industry.
On the Second World Creative Forum, it has been said that the age of creativity follows that of industry and informatics. Elite services such as marketing, design, film, architecture, music and digital art are becoming the power of social development. Appropriate application of that power is a chance for countries in transition because it provides fast improvement of service quality through human resources. It gives us a chance to make a big step and enter right into the age of creativity. It means that we should give a chance to marketing, design, film and services in general and enrich that what we now have with innovation and beauty, because the world pays good money for that.
Local creative industry development, i.e. local services, has a task to put a little make up on all our products and services that are being marketed at home or abroad. Serbia already has educated professionals. All we need to do is change established criteria and turn to marketing, to non-classical, culturally refined and artistically valued principles; we should also prioritize development of local brands and new attire for our products. It can open thousands of new jobs for the most elite young labor force. It will make current production attractive and bestow charm on clusters that will be competitive on world market.
One important step is location marketing which is most efficient in the form of tourist product, so that all the local powers should be pooled together and appropriately oriented. Local creative industry development will make the location even more attractive.

CLUSTERS and their activities
Grouping or mutual performance is a good synergy for team work. Special value of clusters lies in the fact that, through their activities, until-recent rivals can become partners with the aim to secure better contractual terms, prices and the like, and create their own markets.
Cluster (grape) is the answer to challenges posed by globalization process. In fact, it is a matter of domestic system being transformed for the purpose of achieving compatibility with the EU system. Clusters that have been created around a big company are particularly attractive to foreign market. At the same time a great number of small dependent firms have a great influence on high competitiveness and entrepreneurial power of the whole system.

Integral projects
One of the efficient model for integration of our enterprises into EU are the Integral projects. It is a stimulant integration of different firms into a mutual development course for the purpose of better cooperation.
We will try to strengthen our enterprises and the whole system and then systematize all our efforts through Balkan Business Network. It will be the communication line of all the participants interested in local development.
Business network gives the economists constant inflow of information, insight into potential and existing projects and knowledge necessary for modern business performance. Business network will include voluntary certification according to modern business criteria (maximum 100 points). Thus we will assess a firm's management, cooperative image, promotions, business reliability, marketing and the like.
An important project in the function of local development is called "The Treasury of Serbia" which helps our municipalities to prepare themselves and attract investors.

Local and regional development through the tourist product is a strategic development model for local communities through pooled resources and mutual performance of economic leaders, creative people, local government, the state and strategic partners under the colors of tourist product, good image that should attract and charm the consumers for the purpose of obtaining greater competitiveness. TREASURY is a project that should stimulate competition between local government and the inhabitants. This project will show how much each community tries to influence its own destiny and improve the transition results, using that what it has to attract strategic partners and investors.

STIMULANT MUNICIPALITY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM is aimed at helping local government to represent available resources, assess their market value and decide on their presentation form. Local governments will meet on 16-17 February 2005 in Novi Sad where they should be encouraged to recognize their own riches which - if used correctly - can be a profit-compass in this hard economic situation.
The leading idea is to create a strong "magnetic" field of our country and then initiate crystallization points of entrepreneurship energy, high-quality supply of interesting programs, optimistic atmosphere and clear development course.
Complementary relationship between good host-like atmosphere and clearly initiated activities - the result of which are permanent forms of market performance - is the best way to revive some area with minimal investments. For example: Tourist products for Corridor 7 - marina in the town of Sremski Karlovci The ecological town of Coka

TREASURY OF SERBIA in Pozega: Raspberry is one of most attractive and profitable products of Serbia, largely in the feedstock form. This attractive product needs to be applied in higher processing forms, which will greatly increase the manufacturer's profit and make the country more attractive. We propose making raspberry production a tourist attraction that will haul a great number of guests and contribute to economic promotion of the municipality.
The municipality of Pozega will apply the proposed approach as a concrete program called SWEET RASBERRY DAYS.

Congresses, round tables and other meetings organized by the Association will show the possibilities, plans, ideas, projects and available resources.
Moreover, the Association offers special stimulation measures for its members and strategic partners, while economists will have a chance to present their potential and explain why some enterprise should chose them of all other potential business partners.

How should you appear?
We are inviting you to take part into the Business network:
Clear definition of your potentials
Integration in integral projects
Mutual market research
Learning about municipality strategies and plans
Contacts with investors and banks
Permanent electronic news as the image of trends
Personal promotion


Velimir Vukadin

President