BACKGROUND

USAID’s Private Sector Development Project (PSD) is a three-year, $4.2 million activity to strengthen private sector firms in 12 municipalities in the economically disadvantaged regions of south and southwest Serbia.  The project is a is direct partnering with the Government of Serbia and is implemented by the government’s Development Agency of Serbia (DAS) through its network of Regional Development Agencies (RDAs). The RDAs will help growth-oriented companies and business clusters increase sales and exports and create jobs.  

ACTIVITIES

Through PSD, USAID provides DAS and the RDAs assistance that improves their program management, monitoring and evaluation, and market assessment capabilities.  This in turn allows DAS and the RDAs to support private sector development by working with businesses in high-potential sectors, helping the businesses to:

• Understand and serve local/regional markets better;
• Improve the quality of existing and traditional products, as well as develop new ones;
• Lower their cost of production;
• Broaden the network of suppliers, increasing the profitability and size of their operations.  

RESULTS

• One hundred twenty-two SMEs and eight associations/clusters benefited from various forms of project assistance;
• Entrepreneurship training was provided to 318 beneficiaries, of whom 190 were women and youth;
• Two new business services were introduced for client SMEs that help them maximize their participation in and use of international trade fairs to attract new clients and foreign investment;
• With DAS/RDA support, a total of 43 SMEs exhibited at five international fairs;
• Nine client SMEs introduced new international standards and 15 SMEs adopted new technology and/or management practice;
• Client companies in targeted regions reported $123 million of additional revenue in the first year of the project;
• Client companies reported additional exports in the total value of $6 million to the EU and regional markets in the first year of the project. 

Project funded by:

U.S. Agency for International Development; USAID/Serbia

Project implemented by:

DAS and RDAs in Zlatibor, Novi Pazar, Kraljevo, Leskovac.

Key counterparts:

Small and medium – size enterprises (SMEs), associations, clusters, youth and women owned businesses, others.

Where we work:

Twelve cities and municipalities: Novi Pazar, Sjenica, Tutin, Priboj, Prijepolje, Nova Varoš, Raška, Vranje, Leskovac, Medveđa, Preševo, and Bujanovac.

Total amount: 

$4,159,987 

Project duration:

July 2013 to December 2017

Contact:

RAS Belgrade Office
Resavska 13-15, 11000 Belgrade
Phone: +381-11 3398 510
Fax:     +381-11 3398 550
E-mail:  office@ras.gov.rs
Website: www.ras.gov.rs