Project Information

USAID's Business Enabling Project, implemented by Cardno Emerging Markets USA, is a fiveyear initiative launched in January 2011. The purpose of the Project is to help the Government of Serbia improve the competitiveness of the Serbian economy and its private sector businesses. The Project will provide technical assistance, training, and other support to improve the business enabling environment, maintain macroeconomic stability, and further develop financial markets. The Project is demand driven: all activities are based on the priorities of the private sector and Government.

The Business Enabling Project consists of three major components:

Component 1, Business Regulation and Economic Governance, will streamline laws, regulations, and institutions; improve regulators' capacity to implement laws; and improve analysis and public-private dialogue.

Component 2, Macroeconomic Policy and Public Financial Management, will help the Government implement new budget and fiscal responsibility laws, improve budgeting, increase public disclosure and transparency, strengthen public debt management, and improve economic analysis and forecasting.

Component 3, Financial Market Development, will improve regulatory frameworks for non-bank institutions, develop capacity to strengthen and expand capital markets, and improve conditions for debt market development.

The project's approach to achieving reforms is to help the Government work closely with the private sector and outside experts to make reforms that improve business competitiveness. The steps in this collaborative reform process include:

- Determine priorities by engaging with businesses, including surveys of businesses, and using tools to measure the benefits of reforms
- Build demand for reforms through outreach and education
- Partner with the Government to plan and implement various priority reforms
- Build Government and private sector capacity to properly implement and sustain reforms
- Help the Government and private sector to monitor reform efforts.

These activities will reduce the time and money spent by Serbian businesses to comply with laws and regulations and will help the Government to be more efficient. The activities will also enable businesses to attract necessary investment at an appropriate cost. As result, Serbian businesses will be able to aggressively compete in the global economy. This will lead to exportled economic growth and increased employment.

The project team includes 18 Serbian and two expatriate professionals with wide-ranging expertise in all areas of the project. The team has lengthy experience in economic and legal reforms in Serbia and has assisted reforms in over 30 other countries, including long-term consulting in Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Macedonia, and Romania.