Today, 18 April 2024, the Economic Chamber of North Macedonia, under the Private Sector Regional Integration Support Activity implemented in partnership with USAID, took part in the regional event PIT North Macedonia 2024.
The aim of this event was, through presentations and discussions organized in several panels with member companies of the Economic Chamber of North Macedonia and the chambers from Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, to emphasize the use of potentials for greater regional cooperation. The importance of uniting production and industrial sectors in the region was also highlighted as a basis for increasing production volume and supply and for joint market presence, primarily in the markets of the European Union. Summit participants also conducted B2B meetings aimed at fostering new partnerships and deepening existing cooperation within regional frameworks.
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Derrick Pfeffer from USAID emphasized that enhancing regional economic ties will help build a connected and prosperous Western Balkans. USAID works on strengthening competitiveness by supporting the private sector to invest in their value chains, for modernization, and adapting to new market trends, and such regional events ensure precisely that.
Biljana Peeva-Gjurikj, project manager of the Private Sector Regional Integration Support Activity and operations director at the Economic Chamber of North Macedonia, pointed out in her address that since the beginning of the project, they have been working on delivering specific support to a large number of export-oriented companies. This was done by providing technical and expert assistance in implementing international quality standards, developing and implementing new digital solutions and tools, creating project applications for accessing finance for investment projects, and in developing marketing strategies for exports to build capacities for accessing new markets. These activities will continue in the coming period. Additionally, they have organized visits to several fair events, facilitated business linkages for their companies with partners from the region and the EU, and are currently implementing a new digital tool that will serve as a primary roadmap and information source for their exporters.
PIT North Macedonia 2024 is in a way a continuation of the cycle of regional events that began last year with the PIT Adria Summit 2023 held in Belgrade. Summit participants concluded that both the local and regional environments require significant support and stimulation, as well as timely and comprehensive presentation of the overall challenge in a broader sense. The business models Lean, Green, and Digital are prerequisites for the future. Keeping this in mind and following up on the innovation and advanced technology trends with an eye to increasing the competitiveness of Western Balkan companies, the key themes of this event are essential preconditions for sustainable and profitable competitiveness.
The PIT North Macedonia 2024 Summit continued with several panel discussions focusing on competitiveness, innovativeness, and new technologies aimed at enhancing company competitiveness, fostering greater regional cooperation, and intensifying collaboration between Western Balkan companies and EU markets, which is one of the key goals of regional business integration.
The activity is organized by Bravaria Industrial Marketing in cooperation with PIT Events and the partners MAMEI, Infoverse, ZAVAR, NL Chamber North Macedonia, TARGER E&C, AHK, Chamber of Economy of the Federation of BiH, Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia, and the World Bank.
Through the Private Sector Regional Integration Support Activity, USAID supports the Economic Chamber of North Macedonia in better integrating businesses into regional and global value chains and strengthening their capacity to be competitive in the Western Balkans and more broadly in the EU. The idea is to create tools for public-private dialogue, promote the benefits of regional economic integration to the business community, research and enhance export opportunities, and provide sustainable export services to exporting companies.
