GERMANY 2021
INTERVIEW
FRANK ALETTER, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF THE GERMAN-SERBIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE (AHK SERBIA)
GROWING OPPORTUNITIES
FOR COLLABORATION
Serbian companies are very well positioned to attract the interest of German investors seeking to diversify their supply chains or find alternative sourcing destinations. This trend mirrors an upsurge in bilateral business relations
T
he Delegation of the German Economy in Serbia and the German-Serbian Economic Association celebrated their 20th anniversary in Serbia this year, while the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce (AHK Serbia), which unites them, celebrated its fifth anniversary this April. “There have always been good business relations between Germany and the Western Balkan countries,” says our interlocutor Frank Aletter, Managing Director of the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce (AHK Serbia). These business relations have increased over recent years, not only in terms of trade, but also with regard to
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How do you see the chamber’s future operations and activities? What has changed, or has yet to change, when it comes to the way AHK Serbia delivers its services? The German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce regularly provides information and networking events for its members. At the same time, it also addresses current economic topics and provides a public-private dialogue. The challenges of doing business have, however, increased over the previous years when it comes to climate and environmental protection, digitalisation and finding the right talents for companies. These topics need to be addressed with strategic partners and stakeholders. The chamber has established working groups in these areas to provide knowledge support for its members. German FDI. This trend started around 2012 and, according AHK data, the COVID situation has only marginally slowed the interest of German investors. “Due to the disruption of the supply chain from Asia, interest of German investors who want to diversify their supply chains has been picking up again. At the same time, companies based in Germany are also seeking alternative sourcing destinations and Serbian companies are very well positioned in this regard,” says Aletter. “These developments are also reflected in the number of members of the German-Serbian Chamber of Commerce, which started with 30 member companies and now stands at 370 corporations.”
The AHK Road Show has been held in cities that are considered as being Serbia’s new centres of innovation, such as Novi Sad and Čačak, for example. How attractive are these centres to German companies that have a higher technical level of operations? During the roadshow to Novi Sad and Čačak, it was particularly interesting to meet Serbian companies in the IT sector or in the field of digitalisation and robotics. These are certainly areas that are very interesting for the German market. In addition to that, there is high demand for skilled and experienced personnel in the field of digitalisation. Thus, companies in these two cities are very attractive for potential partnerships
