January 17, 2008
Embassy of the United States of America
Belgrade

U.S. Launches Two Major New Economic Growth Projects in Serbia

On Friday, January 18, 2008, at 10:00 am in the Belgrade Media Center, U.S. Ambassador Cameron Munter will hold a press conference to officially launch the implementation stage of two new competitiveness projects designed to promote economic growth in key sectors in Serbia. The two projects, totaling almost $39 million, are being funded by USAID with support provided by the American people. William Seas, Director of USAID Competitiveness Project, and Gene Neill, Director of USAID Agribusiness Project will be in attendance to speak about the areas in which the two projects will be engaged.

The two new Projects will build on the foundations of past USAID activities but will provide more targeted assistance in response to the changing circumstances and increasing sophistication of Serbian enterprises. The goal of these projects is to increase sales and exports, attract new investments, and create more and higher value jobs in key Serbian manufacturing, service and agricultural sectors.

The USAID Competitiveness Project is a four-year initiative that aims to promote economic growth by substantially increasing the productivity and competitiveness of Serbian private enterprises in the following sectors: information and communication technology (ICT), tourism, education, film and production, apparel, engineering and construction management, building materials, logistics and transport, auto spare parts, wood processing and furniture, and renewable energy. A comprehensive study assessing the competitiveness of twelve key sectors of the Serbian economy found common areas of need, including: sales and marketing, training and education, and policy reforms. The findings of this study will also be shared with the journalists on this occasion.

The USAID Agribusiness Project will promote economic growth by assisting the Serbian agricultural sector over the next five years to become more competitive in local, regional, and international markets. The project will focus on improving agricultural productivity, expanding value-added agricultural processing, opening new markets for export, and building the capacity of producer organizations and service providers supporting Serbia’s agribusiness sector. The project will work with the following sub-sectors: berry fruit; dairy; herbs, spices and mushrooms; livestock; tree fruit; and, vegetables. The ultimate aim is to develop a Serbian “brand” for export markets, enhancing the competitiveness of Serbian producers and their place in the international markets.

The two projects are soliciting expressions of interest from potential partners (businesses, associations, NGOs…) in the areas identified. Potential partners for the Competitiveness Project should contact office@compete.org.yu. Potential partners for the Agribusiness Project should contact office@agrobiznis.net.

Journalists interested in participating in the press conference should be at the Belgrade Media Center, Sava Centar, Milentija Popovica 9, on Friday, January 18, at 9:45am.

Journalists seeking more information on the Competitiveness Project may contact Ana Brnabic at : abrnabic@compete.org.yu and for more information on the Agribusiness Project, please contact Goran Djordjevic at: goran_djordjevic@agrobiznis.net. For more information on the full portfolio of USAID’s projects in Serbia, please visit our website at http://serbia-montenegro.usaid.gov.

Ambassador Munter and USAID Director Michael Harvey participate in the press conference. FoNet photo

Ambasador Manter i direktor USAID-a Majkl Harvi na konferenciji za štampu. FoNet fotografija

Ambassador Munter and USAID Director Michael Harvey participate in the press conference. FoNet photo

Ambasador Manter i direktor USAID-a Majkl Harvi na konferenciji za štampu. FoNet fotografija

17. januar, 2008
Ambasada Sjedinjenih Američkih Država
Beograd

SAD pokreću dva nova velika projekta za podsticanje ekonomskog razvoja u Srbiji

U petak, 18. januara, 2008. u 10:00 časova, u Media centru u Beogradu, ambasador Kameron Manter, održaće konferenciju za novinare na kojoj će zvanično najaviti početak faze implementacije dva nova projekta za razvoj konkurentnosti čiji je cilj da promovišu ekonomski razvoj u ključnim sektorima u Srbiji. Za realizaciju ova dva projekta, vredna ukupno blizu 39 miliona dolara, sredstva je obezbedila Američka agencija za međunarodni razvoj (USAID), uz podršku američkog naroda. Direktor USAID Projekta za razvoj konkurentnosti Vilijem Siz i direktor USAID Agrobiznis projekta Džin Nil će govoriti o oblastima i sektorima u kojima će projekti biti primenjivani.

Novi projekti predstavljaju nadgradnju proteklih aktivnosti USAID-a i podrazumevaju pružanje usmerenije podrške imajući u vidu promenu okolnosti i rastuću sofisticiranost kompanija u Srbiji. Cilj projekata je povećanje prodaje i izvoza, privlačenje novih investicija i kreiranje novih i više vrednovanih radnih mesta u proizvodnji, uslugama i poljoprivredi.

USAID Projekat za razvoj konkurentnosti je inicijativa koja će primenjivati u naredne četiri godine sa ciljem da podrži ekonomski razvoj kroz uvećanu produktivnost i konkurentnost privatnih preduzeća u Srbiji u sledećim sektorima: informacione i komunikacione tehnologije, turizam, obrazovanje, film i produkcija, proizvodnja odevnih predmeta, menadžment u inženjerstvu i građevinarstvu, građevinski materijali, logistika i prevoz robe, auto-delovi i obnovljivi izvore energije. Sveobuhvatna studija koja je analizirala konkurentnost dvanaest sektora pokazuje da su zajedničke potrebe: prodaja i marketing, obrazovanje i obuka, i usklađivanje zakonodavstva. Zaključci studije biće, takođe, predstavljeni ovom prilikom.

USAID Agrobiznis projekat podstaći će ekonomski razvoj kroz podršku poljoprivredi Srbije u narednih pet godina kako bi ona postala konkurentnija na lokalnom, regionalnom i međunarodnom tržištu. Projekat će se fokusirati na unapređenje poljoprivredne proizvodnje, rast kvaliteta prerade poljoprivrednih proizvoda, otvaranje novih tržišta za izvoz i jačanje kapaciteta proizvođača i uslužnih organizacija koje podržavaju poljoprivredu Srbije. Projekat će raditi sa sledećih šest podsektora: bobičasto voće, mlekarska industrija, aromatično bilje, začini i pečurke, stočarstvo, voće i povrće. Krajnji cilj je kreiranje brenda Srbije za izvoz, poboljšavajući konkurentnost proizvođača u Srbiji i njihovo mesto na međunarodnom tržištu.

U oba projekta biće uključeni partneri (firme, asocijacije, NVO...) zainteresovani za saradnju u identifikovanim oblastima. Potencijalni partneri zainteresovani za USAID Projekat za razvoj konkurentnosti mogu da ostvare kontakt preko office@compete.org.yu. Potencijalni partneri zainteresovani za USAID Agrobiznis projekat mogu da ostvare kontakt preko office@agrobiznis.net.

Novinari zainteresovani da prisustvuju konferenciji za novinare treba da budu u Media centru, Milentija Popovića 9, Sava Centar, u petak, 18. januara, u 9:45.

Za više informacija o USAID Projektu za razvoj konkurentnosti možete kontaktirati Anu Brnabić, savetnika za komunikacije na abrnabic@compete.org.yu, a za USAID Agrobiznis projekat možete kontaktirati Gorana Đorđevića, na goran_djordjevic@agrobiznis.net. Za više informacija o svim projektima USAID-a u Srbiji, molimo vas posetite http://serbia-montenegro.usaid.gov.

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