09.12.2021 BDB and the Bulgarian Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion Agency host the annual forum of the International Network for Small and Medium Enterprise

The Bulgarian Development Bank and the Bulgarian Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion Agency hosted the 17^th Annual Meeting of the International Network for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (INSME) under the title of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises: Drivers of Sustainable Recovery. The hybrid event opened today at the Millennium Grand Hotel in Sofia and online, and will take place over two days. The INSME conference focuses on business recovery after the pandemic, the role of development banks in supporting SMEs, the SME sector in South East Europe and more.

"At these unprecedented times, when economic recovery must be both rapid and sustainable, adopting the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)’s policies, standards and practices is not just a matter of good intentions, it is a necessity," said Valentin Mihov, Chairman of BDB’s Supervisory Board, at the opening of the INSME Forum.

He said OECD policies have proven to be good for the business, environment and investors. But we have other urgent tasks. The pandemic has reduced investment many times over, especially in small and medium-sized businesses.

"Small and medium-sized businesses are the lifeblood of the economy, and getting investment and access to finance back is vital not only for economic recovery, but for sustainable transformation and  maintaining innovation in the years ahead. At BDB, we take this as a mission and an obligation," Valentin Mihov stressed.

He shared the Bank's experience as a national financial group promoting small and medium-sized businesses. This activity includes not only access to finance, but also comprehensive support in the process of creation and growth of small businesses. Part of this support is the Bank's new digital platform that will allow SMEs to receive this support and maximize their business potential.

The INSME conference is attended by the President of the International Network for SMEs, Sergio Arzeni, former Prime Minister of Belgium, the current Deputy Secretary-General of the OECD, Yves Leterme, Deputy Mayor of Sofia, Doncho Barbalov, foreign guests, representatives of government and business organizations, development banks and academia. The Minister of Economic Development of Italy, Giancarlo Giorgetti, also participated online.

A discussion on the role of development banks in supporting small and medium-sized enterprises was moderated by Ilia Lingorski, Chief Economist at the Bulgarian Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Sofia Kasidova, Head of Strategic Analysis and Development at the Bank, also participated in the discussion of important topics.

The International Network for SMEs (INSME) was established in 2000 in Italy at a meeting of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) as an initiative to support small and medium-sized businesses. INSME's role is to liaise between organizations that support SMEs as well as those that create policies to finance them. Currently, 65 governmental and non-governmental organizations and financial institutions from 34 countries working in internationalization, innovation and technology transfer for SMEs are members of the organization.

BDB's accession to INSME is part of the Bulgarian government's efforts to make Bulgaria a full member of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)’s global community.