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ECONOMIC CHAMBER OF MACEDONIA

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СТОПАНСКА КОМОРА НА МАКЕДОНИЈАFS549642
Osnovana 1922
years
ECONOMIC CHAMBER OF MACEDONIA
1922 - 2016 Founded 1922

Presidents of Chambers of Commerce - Members of the Chamber Investment

Forum (CIF): Activities to improve regional business climate, increase business

community’ involvement in the Berlin process, and encourage sustainable

growth for regional prosperity

On Saturday, 20 August 2016, the President of INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
the Republic of Macedonia Dr. Gjorgje Ivanov
welcomed a high-level delegation comprising
representatives from chambers of commerce
- members of the Chamber Investment Forum,
in Ohrid. The CIF was established in 2015
as a platform of regional networks aimed
at supporting chambers of commerce in
achieving the goals of the Berlin process. The
delegation of representatives from several
chambers of commerce was led by Mr. Branko
Azeski, President of the Economic Chamber of
Macedonia, and his counterparts from Serbia
and Kosovo, Mr. Marko Cadez and Mr. Safet
Gerxhaliu respectively.

At the meeting, the presidents of the three chambers of commerce informed Mr. Ivanov about their institutions’

engagement in supporting the Berlin process. More specifically, the meeting was focused on the range of activities

undertaken so far and their implementation, in accordance with the CIF’s Action Plan. The implementation takes

place through several working groups, and its objectives are:

• To establish a common e-platform containing relevant information The CIF was established by the Union of
and a list of services provided by chambers of commerce to Chambers of Commerce and Industry of
companies from this region and beyond; Albania, the Foreign Trade Chamber of
Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Chamber

• To establish a common investment fund to support and encourage of Commerce and Industry of Serbia,
innovative start-ups and SMEs in Western Balkan countries; the Kosovo Chamber of Commerce, the
Chamber of Economy of Montenegro,

• To form a CIF Innovations and R&D platform, to serve as a point of the Economic Chamber of Macedonia,
convergence for science and businesses; the Croatian Chamber of Economy, and
the Chamber of Commerce and Industry
• To form a consortium for accessing large export-friendly markets of Slovenia. On 27 August 2015, these

and to encourage joint application to tenders; chambers of commerce signed the CIF

• To offer regional tourism products as a joint effort; constitutive agreement at the second
meeting of WB chambers of commerce, in

• To have all stakeholders united in the implementation of a dual the framework of the Vienna summit, part
education system, which would help the CIF countries put an end of the Berlin process.

to the discrepancies in labor supply and demand, and The CIF, complemented by the plans

• To form a joint Regional Education Center through encouragement to develop a regional platform uniting
and promotion of entrepreneurial education and close the eight chambers of commerce from
cooperation with the Zagreb-based South East European Centre the region (from Macedonia, Serbia,
Kosovo, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina,
for Entrepreneurial Learning (SEECEL). To this end, in 2015 the
Montenegro, Croatia and Slovenia), is a

countries signed a contract on cooperation and participation powerful embodiment of these countries’
in joint projects with the South East European Centre for economies as it unites over 350,000
Entrepreneurial Learning. SEECEL was founded on the request of companies.

eight SEE countries (Albania, B&H, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia,

Montenegro, Serbia and Turkey), with a 30-million-euro worth of financial support from the EU. The funds were

earmarked for the promotion of entrepreneurship and life-long learning in accordance with EU policies and

practices.

(Jelisaveta Georgieva PhD, Executive Director of the Economic Chamber of Macedonia)

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