DRAFT AGENDA Co-funded by the European Union POLICY SEMINAR Supporting SME Competitiveness Reforms in the Eastern Partner Countries Promoting SME Internationalisation and Making Policy Reforms Happen 10-13 October 2016 OECD Venice Centre Fondazione di Venezia Dorsoduro 3488/U Venice, Italy
OVERVIEW The OECD Eurasia Competitiveness Programme, Global Relations Secretariat (GRS), and the OECD LEED Trento Centre, Centre for Entrepreneurship, (CFE) are co-organising a policy seminar to support SME competitiveness reforms in the Eastern Partner (EaP) region. The aim of the seminar is to provide a forum for discussion and exchange of good practices in the area of SME policy making, with a focus on tools to promote SME internationalisation. WHAT IS THE CONTEXT? The countries of the region are currently struggling with serious economic challenges as a result of regional tensions, falling commodity prices and an economic slowdown in main trading partners. These developments have also revealed structural weaknesses in the economies, and highlighted the importance of strengthening economic competitiveness and diversification in the region. Given this context, bolstering the region s SMEs is more important than ever. With SME development acting as an engine for employment generation and sustained growth, they offer a significant opportunity for economic recovery in the short term and increased resilience over the medium to long term. Yet the potential of SMEs remains largely untapped in the region. Despite making up between 83 and 99% of all firms, they account for only about half of all employment and one-third of value-added. The vast majority of SMEs are subsistence microentrepreneurs operating in low-added-value sectors. In 2014-2015, the countries of the region underwent a Small Business Act for Europe (SBA) assessment for the second time, which resulted in the publication of the SME Policy Index: Eastern Partner Countries 2016. The assessment reveals progress on the overall implementation of business environment reforms and institutional aspects of SME policy making in the region. However, targeted support measures are still needed to enhance SME competitiveness, innovation and internationalisation; while policy co-ordination, public private dialogue, and monitoring and evaluation of policies should also be strengthened. WHAT WILL BE DISCUSSED? The seminar will focus on the facilitation of SME internationalisation as a key area of SME policy, as well as including a broader discussion of building blocks of successful SME competitiveness reforms, including policy coordination, public consultations, and monitoring and evaluation of policies. The seminar will leverage presentations from experts, identification of case studies and existing good practices in OECD countries, as well as interactive sessions allowing participants to exchange experiences, discuss common challenges, and think about practical applications. WHO WILL PARTICIPATE? The seminar will bring together senior policy makers and private sector representatives from partner countries, alongside OECD and OECD member country experts.
MONDAY 10 OCTOBER 2016 BENCHMARKING SME PERFORMANCE 14:00-14:10 Departure from Hotel Lobby to the OECD Venice Centre 14.30-15.00 Registration Welcome coffee 15.00-15.30 Welcoming remarks Prof. Mario Volpe, Scientific Co-ordinator, Fondazione di Venezia 15.30-16.00 Introduction to seminar structure, organisation, and exchange of expectations 16.00-16.45 Benchmarking SME performance in the Eastern Partner region: discussion of an analytical paper Ms. Meryem Torun, Policy Analyst, OECD Global Relations 16.45-17.15 Discussion 17.15-17.30 Conclusion and outlook for the next day
TUESDAY 11 OCTOBER 2016 SME INTERNATIONALISATION: POLICIES AND TOOLS 08.15-15.00 LEARNING FROM GOOD PRACTICES: A STUDY VISIT 08.15 Departure from hotel to shuttle boat station Zattere 09.00-10.20 Departure from Bus Terminale, Tronchetto to Soligheto 10.20 Arrival to Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Headquarters 10.30-11.00 Introduction to topic of the day 11.00-12.00 Tour of Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Headquaters 12.00-13.00 Discussion and relating key learnings to experiences from the Eastern Partner countries 13.00-14.00 Lunch break 14.00-15.45 Return to the OECD Venice Centre 15.45-16.15 Coffee on Arrival 16.15-18.00 POLICY DESIGN AND TOOLS FOR SME INTERNATIONALISATION This session will provide examples of how to design and apply policy tools for SME internationalisation. The session will also allow participants to develop initial ideas on the design of specific tools to promote SME internationalisation in their own countries. 16.15-16.45 SME internationalisation beyond export promotion Ms. Lisa Klinger, Policy Analyst, OECD Eurasia Competitiveness Programme, GRS 16.45-17.15 FDI and global value chains opportunity or threat for local SMEs? Prof. Mario Volpe, Associate Professor, Ca' Foscari University 17.15-17.55 Integrating policy tools for internationalisation in the Eastern Partner region: discussion session 17.55-18.00 Conclusion and outlook for the next day
WEDNESDAY 12 OCTOBER 2016 SME INTERNATIONALISATION: INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER 08.45-13.00 LEARNING FROM GOOD PRACTICES: A STUDY VISIT 08.45-10.00 Departure from hotel to local innovation cluster VEGA 10.00-10.15 Introduction to topic of the day 10.15-11.30 Tour of VEGA 11.30-12.30 Discussion and relating key learnings to experiences from the Eastern Partner countries 12.30-13.00 Return to the OECD Venice Centre 13.00-14.00 Lunch break 15.00-17.30 POLICY DESIGN AND TOOLS FOR SME INNOVATION This session will provide examples of how to design and apply policy tools for SME innovation. The session will also allow participants to develop initial ideas on the design of specific tools to facilitate links between internationalisation and innovation in their own countries. 15.00-15.30 Leveraging SME internationalisation for innovation and technology transfer Ms. Meryem Torun, Policy Analyst, OECD Global Relations 15.30-16.00 Internationalisation in the digital era: new challenges and opportunities 16.00-16.30 Coffee break Prof. Erkko Autio, Professor, Imperial College London 16.30-17.25 Integrating policy tools for innovation in the Eastern Partner region: discussion session 17.25-17.30 Conclusion and outlook for the next day 19.30 Farewell dinner
THURSDAY 13 OCTOBER MAKING SME REFORMS HAPPEN 09.00-09.15 Introduction to the topic of the day 09.15-09.45 Designing, monitoring and evaluating SME policies Mr. Karel Lember, Analyst, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communication of Estonia 09.45-10.15 Co-ordinating policies among public and private stakeholders Ms. Maria Lucia Pilutti, General Secretary, Chamber of Commerce of Udine 10.15-10.30 Coffee break 10.30-11.30 Implementing SME policy reforms in the Eastern Partner region: discussion session 11.30-12.00 Conclusion of the seminar For more information, please contact: Mr. Daniel Quadbeck Project Manager, OECD Global Relations daniel.quadbeck@oecd.org Ms. Meryem Torun Policy Analyst, OECD Global Relations meryem.torun@oecd.org