USAID Serbia Cooperation for Growth Project Quarterly Progress Report: Quarter 3, FY 2019

The project aims to address regulatory and market barriers that hinder the growth of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs). CFG's implementation strategy focuses on improving access to finance, technology, and digitalization, as well as reducing the costs of compliance with business and tax inspections for MSMEs. During the quarter, CFG spent considerable effort with its partner, DNA Communications, to further hone its strategic vision and develop messages to communicate this vision to stakeholders and the public. The overall message through which CFG will communicate its strategic vision is that Serbian MSMEs contribute substantially to the Serbian economy but can make a greater contribution to improve Serbia's economic growth rate by improving the business environment in which they operate. CFG's implementation strategy requires addressing both regulatory (Reg) and market/knowledge (Mkt) barriers within the business environment in three key directions that currently hinder MSME growth. These directions include improving the enabling environment for the adoption and expansion of financial products and services targeted toward MSMEs, improving the enabling environment for the adoption and expansion of technology and digitalization to improve MSME business processes, productivity, and market access, and improving the enabling environment to reduce the costs of compliance with business and tax inspections for MSMEs. To implement activities designed to achieve project objectives, CFG employs the expertise of project staff and subcontractors who respond to CFG competitive requests for proposals. The project has also issued an annual program statement (APS) to solicit expressions of interest (EOIs) from stakeholders wishing to participate in CFG programming. The CFG Lab has awarded subcontracts to several private sector and NGO partners to implement pilot programs that will promote desired results with identified target groups. The table on the following pages provides a snapshot of CFG's primary project activities to date, listing those that are delivered through each of the above channels, the service provider, and the primary counterparts. Since activities are designed to either effect change in the regulatory environment, build market/knowledge capacities, or both, the goal of the activity is labelled (Reg), (Mkt), or (Reg/Mkt). The project has selected CFG Lab pilots that offer demonstration models for public-private or private-private cooperation, changes in behavior and attitudes about issues such as taxes and access to finance, the power of advocacy to effect change, and the adoption of digital business models to compete effectively in the global market. CFG has also selected pilots that offer substantial opportunities for promotion of before-and-after scenarios and success stories that will be circulated through strategic communications channels including social media, video, conferences, and public forums and other means. The CFG project has made significant progress in its first quarter, with a focus on developing its strategic vision and implementation strategy. The project has also launched a broad-based public awareness campaign to stimulate overall public discussion of CFG's key messages. The project's activities are designed to create an enabling environment for MSMEs to make greater contributions to Serbia's growth, and the CFG Lab has awarded subcontracts to several private sector and NGO partners to implement pilot programs that will promote desired results with identified target groups. The project's objective is to create an enabling environment for MSMEs to make greater contributions to Serbia's growth. The project's activities are designed to either effect change in the regulatory environment, build market/knowledge capacities, or both. The goal of the activity is labelled (Reg), (Mkt), or (Reg/Mkt). The project has selected CFG Lab pilots that offer demonstration models for public-private or private-private cooperation, changes in behavior and attitudes about issues such as taxes and access to finance, the power of advocacy to effect change, and the adoption of digital business models to compete effectively in the global market. The project's progress is reflected in the table on the following pages, which provides a snapshot of CFG's primary project activities to date. The table lists the project activities, partners/counterparts, subcontractors, and the goal of the activity. The project's activities are designed to create an enabling environment for MSMEs to make greater contributions to Serbia's growth, and the CFG Lab has awarded subcontracts to several private sector and NGO partners to implement pilot programs that will promote desired results with identified target groups.