European MobiliseSME project consortium meets in Serbia

On the past 3rd and 4th of November, the consortium of the European MobiliseSME programme met again physically, this time in Novi Sad, Serbia.

During this two-day meeting, the project partners had the opportunity to review the program’s implementation and the project’s objectives, exchange ideas, and share lessons learned and best practices to support European SMEs.

The Consortium has started to plan the last months of the programme and the next final conference that will be held in Brussels in March 2023.

MobiliseSME is a pilot programme co-funded by the European Commission, and coordinated by the Chamber, that provides practical and financial support to SMEs and entrepreneurs to find partners at the European level to collaborate with from one to six months through the mobility of their employees, managers, or owners.

Sending and Host Companies have the opportunity to access new markets or consolidate their business in Europe, meanwhile, the seconded staff can acquire and transfer first-hand knowledge at the same time that develops abilities and skills in a professional environment.

The Chamber is the local contact point for enterprises and entrepreneurs based in Benelux willing to participate in this initiative that will be running until 31st of March 2023.

For more information, please contact:

Noelia Sánchez, Project manager

mobilisesme@e-camara.com

Interview with Manuel Fernández, GSK Stockmann

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Luncheon-debate with Mariya Gabriel, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth

Last Tuesday 8th November, the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium held a new luncheon-debate in collaboration with the Government of Navarre, in which the European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, Mariya Gabriel, spoke about the new European innovation agenda.

R&D&I should respond to the needs of Europeans and tackle some of the major challenges facing the EU-27, the Commissioner underlined after the introduction of the President of the Chamber, Pablo López-Álvarez. Attracting and retaining talent, developing soft skills and promoting spaces for experimentation are just some of the flagship initiatives in the Commission’s strategy for the next two years: “If there is action in these areas, European lives will be easier”.

Boosting Europe’s competitiveness will require raising investment, good framework conditions and fundamental reforms. “We can only achieve this if we work together,” added Gabriel, who recalled the importance of understanding the specific needs of each region when implementing their own innovative projects and ideas, or the challenges faced by European companies, especially start-ups.

Innovation Fund

The ‘Innovation Fund‘, one of the largest funding programmes in the world, is only the first step in achieving the EU’s strategic objectives. Mariya called on all those attending the debate to be part of the so-called “coalition of the willing”, a union of public and private actors to cooperate in the implementation of the European innovation agenda, to support our talents (and boost female talents), and to move towards a green and digital Europe.

The Commissioner also wanted to highlight the important role of the regions in designing and implementing the EU executive’s action plan. In this regard, the Government and the University of Navarra, represented by its Councillor for Citizen Relations Ana Ollo and its Rector María Iraburu, have been nothing but precursors of this new wave of innovation, in which they will continue to work to be a “European, innovative and green” Navarre, in Ollo’s words.

From the Chamber, we would like to show a special thanks to Bodegas Xaló, and to all the attendees, who made this lunch-debate a very successful one.

Interview with Antonio Merino, BakerMcKenzie Luxembourg

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