Project "Support for Local Economic Development in the Republic of Belarus"
The EU will support three new business initiatives to improve the entrepreneurial environment in the regions of Belarus
The initiatives aimed at developing entrepreneurship support infrastructure will be implemented in Borisov, Braslav and Khoyniki districts. They became the winners of an additional competition within the framework of the project "Support for Local Economic Development in the Republic of Belarus", which is financed by the European Union and implemented by the UNDP in partnership with the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Belarus.
In Braslav district, the initiative "Business in your district – support for entrepreneurship in the field of agricultural production and agroecotourism" will be implemented. It is aimed at solving the problem of insufficient development of small entrepreneurship in Braslav district, inefficient use of tourism potential and low efficiency of activities of a large number of agro-tourism estates due to seasonality and fluctuations in demand for a narrow range of services.
The main idea of the project initiative, initiated by the Association of Franchisors and Franchisees "Belfranchising", is the creation and implementation of new forms in the practice of supporting entrepreneurship in the district. New tools for business development will be offered to SMEs in the Braslav district: ready-made solutions and practical tools for creating and developing businesses on existing land plots for agricultural production, and for developing the district's tourism potential through agro-ecotourism activities. A Business Navigator will be created – a unified interactive map of the district showing available premises and areas for business creation, in-demand business concepts in the region, financial products for implementing business ideas, as well as operating businesses. A Business School will be created – a multi-user platform combining traditional and online training events for creating, developing, and promoting businesses. The initiative also plans to create an offline platform "Business Attraction Center" with equipped workspaces for entrepreneurs and access to the online resources of the Business Navigator and Business School, as well as consulting on starting and running a business. A new area of activity – franchising – will be introduced into the entrepreneurship development system in the district by creating a franchise catalog for the district. To promote the products and services of the district's SMEs, a material base will be created, advertising content will be produced, and a YouTube channel will be launched.
Various organizations will be involved in the implementation of the initiative: Private Unitary Enterprise for Services "Polotsk Business Incubator 'Law and Order'", Center for Banking Services in Braslav of OJSC "Belagroprombank", non-profit social and information institution "Traditions and Innovations of Pozerie", and local authorities.
It is planned that as a result of the initiative's implementation, the number of SMEs will increase by at least 15% per year, at least 30 comprehensive business creation proposals will be formed, at least 50 new jobs will be created, the total number of employed people in the district's economy will increase, and the sustainability of existing and newly created businesses will significantly improve.
The full text of the press release can be found at the link: https://www.by.undp.org/content/belarus/ru/home/presscenter/pressreleases/The_EU_to_support_three_new_business_initiatives_to_improve_business_environment_in_Belarusian_regions.html
More information about the Project "Support for Local Economic Development in the Republic of Belarus": https://www.by.undp.org/content/belarus/ru/home/operations/projects/poverty_reduction/spring.html