Geneva, 15 June 1999
ECE/TRADE/99/10
THE UNITED
NATIONS ECONOMIC COMMISSION FOR EUROPE TO SUPPORT ENTERPRISE
DEVELOPMENT IN TRANSITION ECONOMIES
The United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe (UN/ECE) is launching a new programme to
support the development of the private sector in transition
economies. The programme will cover three main areas:
- best practice in enterprise
development, focusing on the dissemination of the wealth of
experience gained during the past years by international,
bilateral and national support institutions. This will include
the use of the Internet in enterprise development.
- restructuring the
entrepreneurial fabric, focusing on the use of such well-tested
instruments as science and technology parks, as well as business
incubators. Particular attention will be paid to enterprise
development in single-industry towns in the Commonwealth of
Independent States (CIS).
- development of SMEs through
training programmes, workshops, capacity-building seminars and
guidelines.
This new cross-sectoral
enterprise development programme was adopted last week at the
third session of the UN/ECE Committee for Trade, Industry and
Enterprise Development in Geneva (8 - 10 June).
The programme will be
implemented utilising the industry contact networks of UN/ECE and
in close cooperation with European sub-regional groupings, such
as the Central European Initiative and the Southeast European
Cooperative Initiative. The goal will be to build public-private
sector partnerships to encourage governments to create the most
conducive frameworks for entrepreneurship.
For further information,
please contact:
Mr. Mika Vepsäläinen
Trade Division
United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe
Palais des Nations
CH - 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Tel: + 41 22 917 3197
Fax: + 41 22 917 0178
E-mail: [email protected]