AGRO-START “Transnational network for SME support in the animal breeding and horticulture sector”

The project is financed under the South East Europe Transnational Cooperation Programme (SEE), Priority Axis 1 “Facilitation of innovation and entrepreneurship”, Area of Intervention “Develop the enabling environment for innovative entrepreneurship”.

The project total budget is 1,713,000.00 EUR. The duration of the project is 24 months and the implementation period is from December 2012 until November 2014.

The project overall objective is to increase the SMEs competitiveness, to promote and facilitate innovative entrepreneurship in order to meet the need of specific support services for SMEs in the horticulture and animal breeding sector, using an integrated transnational approach.

The specific objectives of the project are the following: implement and pilot the SEE Support Service Protocol in the participating partners entities; pilot support tools that will help to improve the business support services provided; increase the competitiveness of SMEs in the horticulture and animal breeding sector through the development of a transnational database; provide better assistance to SMEs in order to increase the internationalization; raise awareness on the need for innovation; provide better innovation diagnostic and assessment services; facilitate the environment for innovative entrepreneurship by developing the SEE Kit with information for entrepreneurs and by implementing an e-learning course for them; transfer the SEE Support Service Protocol and the support tools and capacitate employees of business support service to implement it.

The consortium includes partners with broad experience in terms of transnational cooperation projects, with potential and competences to implement, distribute the project results and to create synergies. The South-East Regional Development Agency of Romania (SE RDA) implements the AGRO-START project as a partner in a consortium of 12 partners from 7 countries: National Federation of Labor Union in Agriculture, Food, Tobacco and Related Areas and Services (AGROSTAR)/Romania (Lead Partner), Centre for Research and Technology Hellas (CERTH)/Institute for Research and Technology – Thessaly (IRETETH)/Greece, Business Support Centre for Small and Medium Enterprises – Ruse (BSC SME)/Bulgaria, Bulgaria Economic Forum (BEF)/Bulgaria, Chamber of Agriculture and Forestry of Slovenia (KGZS)/Slovenia, Regional Federation of Farmers Puglia (CONFAGRICOLTURA PUGLIA)/ Italy, European Regional Framework Co-operation (ERFC)/Greece, University of Molise (UNIMOL)/Italy, Molise Region – Presidency – Regional advocacy, legal and juridical affairs and institutional relations (Molise Region)/Italy, Centre for Business and Parliamentary Dialogue/ Albania, Federation of the Farmers in the Republic of Macedonia (FFRM)/Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

The role of SE RDA within the AGRO-START project is: detection and transfer of good practices in the field of horticulture and animal breeding; design and elaboration of the self-assessment tool for the SMEs acting in the field of horticulture and animal breeding; training of innovation actors to implement the SEE Protocol and the support tools developed within the project; tutoring of e-learning courses for entrepreneurs and business support services employees; contribution to the content of the SEE Kit for entrepreneurs and of the transnational database of service and product providers; contribution on implementing and organising the virtual fair for promoting the product and services suppliers; carry out a diagnostic of training needs for employees of SME support services at regional level; participation in project coordination meetings; participation in/organizing of local/regional/national/international meetings; identification and involvement of stakeholders in different project activities; dissemination of project results based on the project communication plan.

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