6 August 2020
Establishing Sustainable Dialogue and Enhancing Capacity
‘Improving European Dialogue for Business’ is a project that has been developed and implemented by Çerkezköy Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Turkey) in partnership with the Drama Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Greece). It is one of 19 Chamber Partnership projects which is being supported by the European Union in the framework of TEBD.
The ‘Improving European Dialogue for Business’ project was launched on 16 July 2019 and aims to establish a sustainable dialogue between Çerkezköy Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Çerkezköy CCI) and Drama Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Drama CCI), and enhancing the capacity of Turkish Chambers and their role in the EU accession of the project. Additionally, it also aims to strengthen the institutional capacity of Çerkezköy CCI.
Dialogue is so valuable that it can build stronger relationships while helping SMEs become more collaborative, innovative and successful. By carrying out activities such as match-making events, study visits, training’s, and so on, this project contributes to the development of mutual knowledge and understanding between Turkish Chambers and their counterparts in the EU.
During the 12 months of the project, the partners made a start with a Kick-off Event and Road-Map Workshop discussing the project activities and introducing the project to target groups. Within the framework of the project activities such as Matchmaking events, Joint Network Visits to Brussels (Belgium), an Analysis Survey, a Job Shadowing Programme, and a Training Programme have been carried out. Also, a Help Desk for SMEs has been established to address any questions from members. The comprehensive Training Programme was designed to improve the capacity of the members of Çerkezköy CCI and exists of four modules – Business Literacy, Functions of the Management, Financial Literacy, and Compliance with Financial Systems. These modules helped SMEs understand relevant approaches of business and financial literacy and the importance of organisational capacity, comprehend the best practices of managerial skills, explore a range of internalization tools, and understand the interaction between business and financial skills.
The implementation of the activities continue to have a significant impact on the institutional capacity of Çerkezköy CCI, and the cooperation between Drama CCI and Çerkezköy CCI. The project has especially unearthed the high willingness of the members of Çerkezköy CCI to be involved in EU related activities, utilize the knowledge they have gained from the project activities towards improving their businesses, and seize business opportunities with SMEs in the EU.
Click here for more information about the Chamber Partnerships.
