Partners for Investment Promotion

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Partners for Investment Promotion

• Partnership Scheme
• Kick-off meeting
• Belgrade, 4-5 December 2008

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The background - FDI in the Western Balkans

• A growing market of over 150 mln consumers close
  to EU, low labour costs, competent workforce
• but
• The gap btw potential actual FDI goes as high
  as 82 in BA
• (2003 IMF study)

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Introduction

• EUROCHAMBRES
• Organisation Objectives
• Focus on Enlargement
• CASE
• EU-Turkey Chambers Forum
• Partners for Investment Promotion

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Partners for IP - Overview

• Project launched May 2008
• Beneficiary countries Albania, Bosnia and
  Herzegovina, Croatia, fYRoM, Montenegro, Serbia
• Total budget ca 1 180 000 (CARDS 2005
  Regional)
• Duration 18 months
• Organisation ECH (Leader) 6 partners EU
  W.B. Chambers involved in the partnership scheme

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The precedent PARTNERS (2004-2005)

• Duration 2 years
• Budget EUR 2.15 Mio
• Results
• 700 Chamber staff trained
• 2 studies on the state of regional
  competitiveness (2,000 companies each year)
• 15 Partnerships EU-W. Balkan Chambers
• 25 scholarships for Eurochambres Academies
• Excellent visibility!

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Partners for IP - Components

• EU-Western Balkan Chamber partnerships (clusters)
  ?
• Survey on FDI obstacles ?
• EUROCHAMBRES Academies Participation

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I. Chamber partnerships

• 8 clusters of EU and Western Balkan Chambers
• Focusing on FDI-promotion areas (tourism, food
  beverages, renewable energies)
• Duration 10 months
• Average budget 90 000
• Participation of relevant public authorities /
  local actors

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Partnerships - interest

• 28 WB CCIs interested in participating
• 36 EU CCIs interested in participating

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Partnerships - Overview
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Partnerships Timeline

• Beg. Nov. 08 ? confirmation guidelines
• Mid-end Nov. 08 ? inception visits action plans
• 4-5 Dec. 08 ? kick-off meeting
• Dec. 08 ? partnership agreements (ECH 1 EU
  CCI/partnership)
• Dec. 08 mid-Sep. 09 ? implementation of AP
  activities
• Oct 09 ? final reports (tech. finl)
• Nov. 09 ? final event / presentation of results

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Partnerships Eligible costs

• Fees
• Real salary costs
• Co-financing
• DSA
• Forfeit base
• Travel
• Not local travel
• Economy flight tickets
• Office costs/consumables
• Monthly contribution

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Partnerships Financial rules (I)

• EC financial rules apply
• 1 EU CCI in charge of collecting verifying all
  doc.s/invoices
• Advance payment (ECH to 1 EU CCI) 50 of
  requested grant
• Balance settlement after EC final payment

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Partnerships Financial rules (II)

• Requests for payment (1 EU CCI only)
• Use rfp template prepared by ECH
• Print it on the letterhead of your Chamber
• CCI full bank account details

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Partnerships Financial rules (III)

• Supporting doc.s
• Contract annual salary sheet other
  remuneration-related benefits excel table to
  calculate daily salary costs
• Hotel invoice
• Travel agent invoice boarding passes ticket /
  mileage calculations
• Administrative costs proof by accounting /office
  management dept.s

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Partnerships Responsibility (I)

• ECH overall coordination, guidelines
  templates, monitoring, liaison with the EC,
• National CCIs (LOs) country-specific
  coordination, collection aggregation of FDI
  survey results
• EU CCIs 1 for budget admin. management all
  for best practice share
• WB CCIs activity implementation, event
  organization, liaison with local actors

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Partnerships Responsibility (II)

• ALL
• Respect the deadlines
• Promote widely

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NOTA BENE on visibility

• Any notice/publication must specify that
• Partners for IP is a EUROCHAMBRES project
• The project has received EU funding

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Reporting requirements

• Interim report (techn. finl) Apr 09
• Final report Oct 09
• ?1 EU CCI to ECH

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II. Survey on FDI obstacles

• Consultation of 1,000 companies in the
  beneficiary countries 1,000 companies in the EU
  ? 250/partnership, ca. 60/Chamber
• Publication of a comprehensive report (how to
  improve the investment climate in the Western
  Balkans)
• Provision of private sector input for OECDs
  Investment Reform Index 2009

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Any doubts?

• Dont be afraid to ask!
• EUROCHAMBRES Team
• Dirk Vantyghem (Project Director)
• Micol Martinelli (Project Manager)
• Marie Lèbre (Project Assistant)