Obstacles to investing in the Western Balkans: The view of the private sector ASSOCIATION OF EUROPEAN CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY

Partners for Investment Promotion 18 months (May 2008 – November 2009) CARDS Regional Support Beneficiary countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia Objective: to contribute to the development of a favourable environment for FDI in the region Main activities:  8 cluster partnerships  Survey  Focused training through ECH Academies

ASSOCIATION OF EUROPEAN CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY Survey methodology Qualitative! Interview-based Detailed questionnaires - WB: OECD questionnaire - EU: adapted Responses: 860 WB EU

ASSOCIATION OF EUROPEAN CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY Overview – Climate Increasingly good  EU:  WB:

ASSOCIATION OF EUROPEAN CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY Overview - FDI Obstacles

ASSOCIATION OF EUROPEAN CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY # 1: Corruption EU  majority considers it most important obstacle WB  Investor-State Dispute Settlement System:

ASSOCIATION OF EUROPEAN CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY EU  majority considers it 2 nd most important obstacle, i.e.: -Lack of protection -Lack of transparency WB  unpredicted regulatory changes + lack of info: #2: Legal/regulatory uncertainty

ASSOCIATION OF EUROPEAN CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY Human capital Regional view - WB investors

ASSOCIATION OF EUROPEAN CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY Access to finance + tax incentives Regional view - WB investors II

ASSOCIATION OF EUROPEAN CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY Lack of information -electricity/physical infrastructure -access to land/property & building costs -labour regulations Int’l view - EU investors

ASSOCIATION OF EUROPEAN CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY  Need for more political will + share of EU best practices  Need for full alignment with acquis / EU standards  Need for WB private sector to be consulted in the economic reform + education reform process  Need for EU private sector to be informed about FDI opportunities in WB Conclusion

ASSOCIATION OF EUROPEAN CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY Thank you! Micol Martinelli Senior Advisor – International Affairs 