Kraljevo, April 29, 2012 - Sustainable Local Development Project (SLDP) and Business Enabling Project (BEP) organized a regional conference on April 20 in Kraljevo on the New Legal Framework for public-private partnerships (PPPs) and its Implementation Challenges.

At the conference, SLDP presented three PPP manuals on infrastructure financing, parking services and energy efficiency.  These manuals will assist local governments to establish new PPPs under the 2011 Law on PPPs and Concessions.  This new law expands opportunities for PPPs in the areas of municipal services and financing of local infrastructure. 

Local government officials and public utility managers from the SLDP-supported Kraljevo, Novi Pazar and Uzice–led inter-municipal cooperation (IMC) areas participated at the conference, as did representatives from regional development agencies and the civic sector. 

BEP used this opportunity to showcase their support to the National Commission for PPPs and for the preparation of by-laws that guide local authorities in determining ‘value-for-money’ with regard to PPPs.  Participants expressed interest for support to identify potential PPP opportunities, particularly in the areas of solid waste management and energy efficiency. 

SLDP and BEP will also co-sponsor an upcoming regional conference on PPPs in Novi Sad during the last week of May.

Serbia, April 26, 2012 -  Sustainable Local Development Project (SLDP) and Smart Kolektiv (via the Youth Business Serbia program), called for applications from young Serbian entrepreneurs interested in a year-long program inclusive of mentoring and specialized training aimed to strengthen their start-up business operations. 

This program targets 80 entrepreneurs who started their businesses after 2010, and will provide business marketing, sales, finance and networking support.  The young entrepreneurs will be selected through inter-municipal cooperation (IMC) panels established in four SLDP-supported IMC areas (Sombor, Novi Sad, Nis and Kraljevo). 

The panels will consist of IMC representatives, Smart Kolektiv regional coordinators and SLDP regional staff.  The deadline for applications is May 20, and details are posted on Youth Business Serbia’s website (www.biznismladihsrbije.org).

Kraljevo, April 19, 2012 - A $38,000 Sustainable Local Development Project (SLDP) grant to promote modern design technologies among manufacturers in the Kraljevo-led inter-municipal cooperation (IMC) area will leverage another $1 million in EU funding to spur new product development, align university research with industry needs, and establish a business innovation center to serve small and medium enterprises (SME) in the Kraljevo-led IMC. 

The grant to the association Initiative for Local Development will be used to purchase basic portable IT equipment and software to deliver presentations on new technologies at the center and at participating SME in three districts throughout the IMC area and beyond (Morava, Raska and Rasina Districts). 

This effort is part of the larger Innovation Management for New Product program (IMPuls), which brings together academics from the Kraljevo Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and industrial development professionals to facilitate innovation and improve competitiveness to build a stronger knowledge-based economy.