In the framework of its project activities the Centre for Strategic Economic Studies “Vojvodina CESS” will participate in the implementation of a project approved in the Hungary – Serbia Cross-border Cooperation Programme.

The main idea of the project is to map the possibilities for cluster development of small and medium size enterprises and entrepreneurs in the cross-border region engaged in food production and renewable energy sectors in order to enhance long term competitiveness and sustainable development of the cross-border region of Hungary and Serbia. The project is intended to help in the creation of an environment in which enterprises cooperate with their cross-border counterparts in order to learn from good practices and experiences of others and to have joint access to bigger and more developed markets.

The project envisages conducting a research that will help to define the basic factors which are essential to the establishment and development of clusters in the food production and renewable energy sectors and also to draw up the necessary activities for improvement of their actual functioning. The conducted research will map the concentration and systemic relationships among food industry enterprises in the cross-border region as well as possibilities to create efficient cross-border clusters in the field of food production and biomass. The results of the research will be published in a form of a trilingual (Serbian, Hungarian and English) study which will serve as a guideline and a practical tool for policymakers and stakeholders in the region for generating and implementing cluster initiatives in the food production and renewable energy sectors. Once the study is published an awareness raising campaign will be conducted on both side of the border to present the possibilities and benefits of cross-border clustering in these sectors. Therefore, two seminars will be organized in each country and workshops will be organized in order to strengthen the capacities of employees in the chambers of economy for supporting clustering initiatives of their member enterprises. Moreover, an exchange of experience and good practice will be available through two study visits which will be organized for Serbian stakeholders to establish business contacts with the representatives of the food production sector and to visit an existing biomass cluster in Hungary. At the end of the project Hungarian stakeholders will visit Serbia and participate in an international conference on clusters.       

The project will be jointly implemented by the Chamber of Economy of Vojvodina, as the lead partner, the Centre for Strategic Economic Studies “Vojvodina-CESS” as its partner and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Csongrad County, as the cross-border partner. The project is intended to last for 16 months and the main target groups that it encompasses are entrepreneurs and SMEs from the food industry and renewable energy sectors in the cross-border area. The signing of the subsidy contract is expected for September 2010. 

Strategic Partnership in Support of the Integrated Regional Development Plan of AP Vojvodina

 „Strategic Partnership in Support of the IRDP of APV“ is a joint project of Executive Council of AP Vojvodina and Austrian Development Agency - ADA which is being realized in the period betwen the year 2007 and 2009. 

CESS is one of six measures supported by „Strategic Partnership in Support of the Integrated Regional Development Plan”in order to improve the process of economic and regional planning.

The aim of strategic partnership is strengthening structures that implement measures within the IRDP APV in order to achieve its specific goals, and establishment of sustainable bilateral cooperation platforms and transformation of IRDP APV into a possible future pre-accession program for obtaining support of the EU.

The aims of the Austrian support related to CESS are improvement of institutional capacities and capacities for regional economic studies and analyses through support of creating methodological instruments and tools.

Expected results of the project will be: creation of macroeconomic model for Serbia and business barometer for Serbia.

Macroeconomic model for Serbia will be used for forecasting of economic developments and simulation of effects of the measures of economic policies and external shocks. It will be updated on quarterly basis and the results will periodically be presented to the public.

Business barometer for Vojvodina is an instrument which will provide an overview of business expectations and assesments of enterprises registered on the territory of Vojvodinua with the aim to use these information for creating short-term forecasts, business planning and economic research.

CESS partners on this project are IHS - Institute for Advanced Studies (www.ihs.ac.at) and WIIW - Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies (www.wiiw.ac.at).

HELP – Higher Education Learning Partnerships

CESS participated in creation of the MA studies programme with the aim to educate and train highly professional and innovative experts for questions of regional development. These specialists will be able to understand conditions, determinants and methods of sustainable regional development of Serbia and Europe and create and implement development programmes. MA studies, planned to start in October 2009 will give students practical knowledge and skills necessary for managing processes of planning regional development as well as improving administrative capacities on the national, regional and local level. Experts from CESS will give lectures within certain modules of the MA studies.

MA studies „Regional Policies and Development“ will be established with the support of WUS Austria – World University Service Austria.

Partners:

University of Graz, Austria

University of Novi Sad, Serbia