{"id":3162923,"date":"2021-05-26T18:37:07","date_gmt":"2021-05-26T18:37:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/webalkans.eu\/ebrd-and-eu-to-boost-competitiveness-of-smes-in-north-macedonia\/"},"modified":"2026-05-05T15:16:28","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T15:16:28","slug":"ebrd-and-eu-to-boost-competitiveness-of-smes-in-north-macedonia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/webalkans.eu\/en\/ebrd-and-eu-to-boost-competitiveness-of-smes-in-north-macedonia\/","title":{"rendered":"EBRD and EU to boost competitiveness of SMEs in North Macedonia"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div>\n\nSmall and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in<span class=\"apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span>North Macedonia<span class=\"apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span>will be able to access \u20ac4 million to help them become more competitive, thanks to a new EBRD loan extended to<span class=\"apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ohridskabanka.mk\/about.nspx\">Ohridska Banka<\/a>. SMEs can also obtain technical assistance, including hands-on<span class=\"apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span>EBRD advisory support. After successfully completing their investment, they will also be eligible for a cashback grant of 15 per cent of the total loan amount, funded by the<span class=\"apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span>European Union.\n\n&nbsp;\n\n<\/div>\n<div>\n\nThe loan to Ohridska Banka is a part of the<span class=\"apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span>Western Balkans SME Competitiveness Support Programme, to which the EBRD provides loans and the EU contributes incentive payments and technical assistance. The goal is to help SMEs modernise their activities and take advantage of trade opportunities in the Western Balkans region and wider European market.\n\n&nbsp;\n\n<\/div>\n<div>\n\nAmbassador David Geer, Head of Delegation of the European Union, said: \u201cAccess to finance is essential for the future growth and development SMEs in North Macedonia. This support is part and parcel of our continuing efforts to promote a positive business climate for SMEs and thereby stimulate the creation of jobs and economic recovery&#8221;.\n\n&nbsp;\n\n<\/div>\n<div>\n\nThe EBRD is a major institutional investor in North Macedonia. To date, the Bank has invested \u20ac2.14 billion through 145 projects in the country, where it focuses on the expansion of the local private sector, the promotion of regional and international integration and the sustainable use of resources.\n\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in\u00a0North Macedonia\u00a0will be able to access \u20ac4 million to help them become more competitive, thanks to a new EBRD loan extended to\u00a0Ohridska Banka. SMEs can also obtain technical assistance, including hands-on\u00a0EBRD advisory support. After successfully completing their investment, they will also be eligible for a cashback grant of 15 per [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3162924,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"area-of-cooperation":[],"country":[249],"opportunity-type":[],"class_list":["post-3162923","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","country-north-macedonia"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>EBRD and EU to boost competitiveness of SMEs in North Macedonia - WeBalkans<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/webalkans.eu\/en\/ebrd-and-eu-to-boost-competitiveness-of-smes-in-north-macedonia\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"EBRD and EU to boost competitiveness of SMEs in North Macedonia - WeBalkans\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in\u00a0North Macedonia\u00a0will be able to access \u20ac4 million to help them become more competitive, thanks to a new EBRD loan extended to\u00a0Ohridska Banka. 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