Keen Interest In The Serbian Market

We aim to continue fostering exchanges between Italian and Serbian companies, and we take pride in having established a strong network of relationships at all institutional levels in both Italy and Serbia

Serbia and Italy have a long history of economic cooperation, and Italy is one of Serbia’s major trade partners. The historical bilateral trade volume includes intensive exchanges in agricultural products and machinery, infrastructure, green energy and sustainability, and tourism, as well as cultural and academic projects. Those were the main topics of the recent Italy-Serbia Business and Science Forum, which was held in Belgrade this 21st and 22nd March. Since the staging of the Forum, the Italian-Serbian Chamber of Commerce (ISCC) has been contacted by several Italian companies from different sectors and fields, says ISCC Director Annino De Venezia.

How does the ISCC adapt its activities to support its members and promote economic exchange between Serbia and Italy?

Our mission is twofold. On one side, we are promoting the MADE IN ITALY concept on the local market, spreading the quality and values of the Italian economy and production, while at the same time, hopefully, we are building some even more favourable business and working conditions for local companies. Bringing together the realities of Italian and Serbian business, by considering the best possible matchmaking between them, is among our top aims. Potential Italian investors are all interested in learning more about the Serbian market and the quality of services that the country can offer.

Could you provide some examples of initiatives or programmes that have proved successful in this regard?

Our programme is very intensive and varied. As I said, we are bringing our two countries closer from a more economic perspective, so our main activities are concentrated in the domain of organising missions and bilateral business gatherings. On the occasion of the last Roadshow, organised by Assocamerestero, the network of Italian Chambers of Commerce abroad, we were able to present the opportunities to participate in Serbian fairs to around 80 companies from the Italian region of La Marche.

In June we are taking a delegation of the most prominent Serbian start-ups to Rimini, to attend the festival We Make Future, where these Serbian start-ups will have a chance to pitch their projects to investors.

We are also taking part in June’s Annual World Convention of the Italian Chamber of Commerce, which will this year be held in Ascoli Piceno, while it is also in June that we celebrate the national holiday of the Republic of Italy and we will contribute to the national celebrations with a small cultural event called ‘Encounter in Naples’ (APPUNTAMENTO A NAPOLI), at which we will celebrate the songs and traditions of Naples.

In parallel with all of these activities, we are constantly providing webinars and seminars on the most relevant business and legal issues, as well as promoting the interests of our members through tailored activities.

We will have two entrepreneurial missions in October and November, when we will take 10 Serbian engineering and construction companies to two fairs in Bari.

Towards the end of the year, we traditionally organise our MADE IN ITALY fair, which is dedicated to promoting the best Italian food and beverage producers. This year’s event will be our fifth edition, and to date we have had more than 150 exhibitors and more than 1,000 B2B meetings.

How does the ISCC prioritise the needs of SMEs in its activities and initiatives?

We are increasingly turning to even those micro businesses that need our support and our network of connections. Our aim, according to our statute, is to facilitate exchanges between Italian and Serbian companies. We are honoured to be able to say that we have a network of excellent relationships at all institutional levels, in both Italy and Serbia.

ROBERTO CINCOTTA, DIRECTOR OF THE ITALIAN CULTURAL INSTITUTE OF BELGRADE