7 December 2010

In the period from 2 to 4 December, organized by the National Agency for Regional Development and Belgrade Fair, 9th International Entrepreneurship Fair – the “Business Base” – was held, which gathered together more than 300 exhibitors, national and international, as well as all major institutions in charge of small and medium size companies development.

Companies with various business activities were presented at the Fair, as well as regional centers, agencies, chambers, associations of entrepreneurs, governmental institutions, local self governances, institutes and scientific and research centers.

Motto of the Fair was “the Key of Success”, and besides Serbian exhibitors, also representatives of Holland, Hungary, Italy, India, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Macedonia took part.

The Fair was opened by Mr. Ivica Ezdenci, Director of the National Agency for Regional Development who stated on that occasion that small and medium size companies were mostly affected by the crisis and that they were experiencing hard period. He also announced that co-financing of the entrepreneurship companies projects would be continued next year, the purpose of which is to create strong and competitive export orientated sector by knowledge and innovation.

The Regional Development Association ”JUG“ (the SOUTH) took part, for the first time, at the „Business Base“ Fair and their presentation was designed as an opportunity for showing development potentials of Toplicki, Nisavski and Pirotski Districts.

The major stress was put on presenting developmental potentials of the local self governances in Toplica, Pirot and Nisava Districts (greenfield & brownfield locations, good practice examples – in cooperation with current investors, future plans, etc.) and not on the companies operaing in those local environments.

As co-exhibitors at the Regional Development Association ”SOUTH“ stand, four municipalities were presented at the Fair (the municipalities of Aleksinac, Svrljig, Pirot, Dimitrovgrad) and the City of Nis.

During the Fair, several presentations and meetings were held and there were also new business cooperation opportunities.

The objective of this year Fair was to encourage establishing and development of small and medium size companies with various business activities, to increase competitiveness and innovation of SMS-s, as well as to develop general entrepreneurship culture in Serbia.