MINSK, 15 December (BelTA) – The European Union plans to allocate €6 million for the development of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the next four years, Head of the European Union Delegation to Belarus Andrea Wiktorin said at a press conference held to mark five years of work of EBRD's Small Business Support team in Belarus, BelTA has learned.
The EBRD Small Business Initiative has yielded good results. Therefore, the European Union plans to continue participation and allocate €6 million for the development of small and medium-sized private enterprises in the next four years, Andrea Wiktorin said.
The head of the EU Delegation emphasized that small and medium-sized businesses are the bedrock of economic development of any country. When asked which SME projects the European Union is ready to finance in the next few years, Andrea Wiktorin noted that planning is in progress now. “But we would like to support the innovative fledgling companies, small enterprises. We are also going to support women who are engaged in business. A very good project ‘Women in Business' has been launched this year,” she said.
The EBRD Small Business Initiative has turned five years. Since 2011, the Bank has supported 250 small and medium-sized private enterprises. They received €3.2 million in donor funds. The program has helped create more than 1,500 jobs.
The EBRD Small Business Initiative is funded by grants provided by the EU as a key donor as part of the EU4Business initiative and also Sweden, the Early Transition Countries (ETC) Fund, the TaiwanBusiness-EBRD Technical Cooperation Fund and the EBRD Shareholder Special Fund. The program has made a tangible contribution to the development the Belarusian market of consulting services. More than 80 local experts have undergone specifically developed practical courses.
