Issue 16

ERENET Profile Vol. IV, No. 4.
www.erenet.org
• University of Miskolc (Partner), Hungary
• Technical University of Kosice (Partner), Slovakia
COOPERATION WITH OTHER NETWORKS
International organizations and initiatives have been discovered ERENET. Discussions have been
started in order to create synergy among few initiatives in CEE.
1. European Small Business Alliance (ESBA)
http://www.esba-europe.org/
ESBA is a non-party political group which cares for entrepreneurs and the self-employed and
represents them through targeted advocacy and profiling activities. ESBA also works towards the
development of strong, independent advocacy and benefits groups in all EU countries. ESBA is welcomed the
Entrepreneurship and Research and Education Network of Central European Universities (ERENET) as a
new Pan-European Member.
ESBA and ERENET agreed to exchange information and send to each other all relevant information.
We highly appreciate the issue of the ESBA Bulletin with ESBA views on EU news and views on
entrepreneurship.
The ERENET Secretary send to its members the most important documents published by ESBA. We
also provided contact information for ESBA for exploring the cooperation with Croatia, Poland and Serbia. In
consequence of our activity ESBA prepared a country study on Croatia and UMIS became a member of the
ESBA.
Tina Sommer, Chairman of European and International Affairs of the Federation of Small Businesses
(UK) invited ERENET to participate in the FSB Annual Meeting held on 13-15 March 2008 in London.
Due to lack of financing, the ERENET Secretary could not participate at the ESBA Executive Board
Meetings. However, the two secretaries frequently change information.
2. Permanent International Secretary of the organization of the Black Sea Economic
Cooperation and the Turkish Representative of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.
BSEC Workshop on Development of Youth Entrepreneurship and SMEs
1-3 April 2009, Istanbul
Since 1997, as Regional Adviser on Entrepreneurship and SMEs of the UNECE, the Scientific
Director of ERENET developed and established special relationship with the Permanent International
Secretariat of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC PERMIS) and the
Representation of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (Foundation) (KAS) for Turkey. The KAS regularly
organizes SME-.related workshops and events in the BSEC region. The programmes of these workshops are
designed by the Scientific Director of ERENET including nomination of keynote speakers. This fact provides
good opportunities to include appropriate and highly specialized ERENET Members.
In the line with the abovementioned, the Workshop on “Development of Youth Entrepreneurship
and Start-Ups” was held in Istanbul, the Republic of Turkey, on 1-3 April 2009. It was jointly organized by the
Permanent International Secretariat of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC
PERMIS) and the Representation of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (Foundation) (KAS) for Turkey, in
cooperation with the Turkish Foundation for Small and Medium Business (TOSYÖV).
In spite of the fact, that ERENET was not among the co-organizers of this event, it provided a
significant contribution to the success of the workshop. On the second day of the Workshop, Mr. Dieter
IBIELSKI, Presidential Counselor of the Union of Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (UMU), Germany;
Prof. Dr. Hans-Jürgen WEISSBACH, University of Applied Sciences Department of Economy and Law
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