Regional Conference: Business Environment Reform in SEE

South East European (SEE) countries, as with other transition and developing countries, are seeking to increase levels of private investment in order to help stimulate and sustain economic growth. The quality of regulation affecting markets and business activity in general is increasingly viewed as a factor of competitiveness that influences the investment decisions of both foreign and domestic investors. Within the context of EU Accession and the new Central European Free Trade Area (CEFTA), regulatory reform is important to help improve the competitiveness of the region for investment and facilitate the flow of goods and services. The countries in the region are making progress. In the past 3 years, several countries have been listed among the “top ten” reformers in the World Bank’s Doing Business reports. However, there is still a lot of work to be done.

This conference brought together policy makers from across the region to discuss the issues and challenges of reforming the business enabling environment, with a particular focus on improving regulations in order to reduce the cost and risk of doing business. This regional event is viewed as a first step, as we continue to facilitate regional lesson gathering, knowledge sharing and networking on the wide range of issues related to business environment reform.

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Conference Agenda (including speakers' presentations and biographies)

• Welcome and Opening Remarks
• Modernizing Government – Improving Efficiency
• Stimulating Investment and Growth in SEE
• Regulatory Reform and Regional Integration
• Regulatory Reform: Improving the Quality of Regulation
• Strengthening Accountability - Linking Regulatory Reforms on the National and Sub-National Levels
• Improving Firm Competitiveness - Institutions and Processes Matter
• Improving Firm Competitiveness – Reducing Compliance Costs
• Options for establishing a regional BEE Reform Network of Policymakers
• Closing Session