By Marija Marić
The event “CEI Fund at the EBRD contributed by Italy: Presentation of Operations in Serbia” was held today at the Embassy of Italy in Belgrade, bringing together representatives of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the Central European Initiative (CEI), Banca Intesa and the Serbian private sector to present the Fund’s activities and impact in Serbia, as well as its role in supporting investment, reforms, regional cooperation and Serbia’s European integration.
The meeting was hosted by Luca Gori, Ambassador of Italy to Serbia, and moderated by Niccolò Rossi, Head of the Economic Office at the Embassy of Italy in Serbia. Speakers included Alfredo Maria Durante Mangoni, CEI National Coordinator at Italy’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation; Jelena Čeperković, Deputy Head of EBRD Serbia; Elisabetta Dovier, Programme Manager at the Office for CEI Funds at the EBRD and the CEI Executive Secretariat; Maja Andonov, Head of the Small Business Division at Banca Intesa; and Aleksandar Skulić, President of the Executive Board of Meter & Control d.o.o. Serbia.
Italy and Serbia: Bilateral Trade, Regional Cooperation and EU Integration
Opening the event, Luca Gori, Ambassador of Italy to Serbia, highlighted the development of bilateral economic relations, regional cooperation and Serbia’s EU integration process.
Gori said that trade between Italy and Serbia is expected to exceed €6 billion in 2026, while stressing that Serbia’s economic profile is changing and that future investments should increasingly focus on technology-intensive activities.
“Serbia is no longer a low-cost country,” Gori stressed, underlining the need for a shift towards more technologically advanced investments.
Turning to the regional dimension, Gori also highlighted the importance of the CEI at a time when regional cooperation has faced a number of challenges.
“We have witnessed some setbacks in recent years when it comes to dialogue and infrastructure programmes and, unfortunately, we are also witnessing a rise in nationalism,” he said, noting that this is not a trend limited to Serbia but one that can be observed more broadly across the region.
“That’s why the role of regional cooperation is highly relevant,” he said, stressing the importance of maintaining platforms that bring countries together and encourage practical cooperation.
The Ambassador of Italy to Serbia also addressed Serbia’s European integration, noting that new momentum is visible in the accession processes of Montenegro and Albania, while progress for Serbia has remained limited.
“Unfortunately, for other countries, including Serbia, we are stuck. No cluster has been opened in the last five years,” Gori said, adding that Italy is continuing to advocate for progress in Serbia’s accession process.
Referring to the upcoming elections, Gori said that the next three months will be particularly important for Serbia and could shape the country’s political direction in the period ahead.
“The next three months will be critical for Serbia,” Gori concluded.
€12.6 million committed to projects in Serbia through the CEI Fund
The role and results of the CEI Fund were presented by Alfredo Maria Durante Mangoni, CEI National Coordinator at Italy’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation; Elisabetta Dovier, Programme Manager at the Office for CEI Funds at the EBRD and the CEI Executive Secretariat; and Jelena Čeperković, Deputy Head of EBRD Serbia. They highlighted the Fund’s role in supporting EBRD activities in Serbia.
Established in 1992, the CEI Fund at the EBRD is entirely financed by Italy, which has provided €61.5 million in cumulative contributions. Focus: institutional reform, energy and green transition, digitalisation, infrastructure, regional connectivity, EU integration and SME competitiveness. Figures for Serbia: €12.6 million committed to projects targeting Serbia
125 projects supported through bilateral and regional cooperation
Bilateral projects: €3+ million across 45 projects
Regional projects: €9.6 million across 80 projects
“Regional cooperation through the CEI must lead to full EU membership,” Durante Mangoni said, stressing the importance of modernising infrastructure and strengthening institutional capacity.
He also underlined that the Fund is not only about providing financial support, but also about creating opportunities for CEI member states to cooperate, exchange expertise and develop joint projects. Its programmes, he added, should serve as instruments to support countries in their reform and development efforts.
Dovier outlined the Fund’s two main programmes: the Technical Cooperation Programme, which provides technical assistance linked to EBRD investments, and the Know-How Exchange Programme, which facilitates the transfer of expertise between EU and non-EU CEI member states.
In 2015, the Fund shifted from tied to untied financing, opening up competition for technical assistance contracts to companies from all EBRD member countries.
From the broader EBRD perspective, Čeperković highlighted Serbia’s importance to the Bank, noting that the EBRD has invested around €11 billion through approximately 400 projects in the country. She identified the private sector and the green transition as key areas and stressed the CEI Fund’s role in supporting investment and reforms, particularly in the energy sector and private-sector development.
Deputy Head of EBRD Serbia Jelena Čeperković thanked Italy for its contribution and expressed the EBRD’s interest in further strengthening cooperation with the CEI and its partners in Serbia.
EBRD Support in Practice: The Meter & Control Case
A concrete example of private-sector support was presented by Aleksandar Skulić, President of the Executive Board of Meter & Control d.o.o. Serbia. The company develops smart energy metering solutions, and Skulić explained how EBRD-supported programmes had helped it obtain certifications for its products, making Meter & Control, according to Skulić, the only company on the market to hold these certifications.
Skulić pointed to the changing regulatory environment in the EU, where the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation and the Digital Product Passport, alongside the European integration process, are pushing manufacturers towards more sustainable and recyclable products.
For Meter & Control, meeting these evolving requirements and obtaining the relevant certifications is particularly important for competing in markets such as the EU and Switzerland, where compliance with technical and environmental standards can represent a significant barrier.
The company’s experience illustrated how technical assistance can complement financing by helping businesses meet new regulatory requirements and strengthen their access to international markets.
Banca Intesa: Supporting Young Entrepreneurs
The private-sector dimension of the Fund was illustrated by Maja Andonov, Head of the Small Business Division at Banca Intesa, who presented the EBRD Youth in Business Programme.
According to Andonov, young businesses often face difficulties accessing finance because they have a limited business history and insufficient collateral. The programme itself combines financing with additional support, education and networking opportunities.
As explained by Andonov, Banca Intesa has so far provided two €15 million credit lines, supporting more than 1,200 young entrepreneurs and business ideas, while a third line is being prepared. The programme provides longer repayment periods, more flexible collateral requirements and banking solutions tailored to younger companies.
Andonov stressed that supporting young businesses also means supporting employment, innovation and digital transformation.
“Today’s young clients become tomorrow’s larger, more stable partners,” Andonov concluded.
€3 Million for the CEI Fund in 2026: Building on Cooperation
For 2026, the CEI Fund has allocated €3 million, including more than €2.2 million for the Technical Cooperation Programme and €550,000 for the Know-How Exchange Programme. The priorities include connectivity, energy and energy security, SMEs and private-sector competitiveness, and capacity building.
In his closing remarks, Alfredo Maria Durante Mangoni, CEI National Coordinator at Italy’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, emphasised the strategic value of cooperation between Italy, the CEI, the EBRD and Serbian institutions.
Durante Mangoni also highlighted the broader scope of this year’s event compared with its first edition, which focused specifically on the Know-How Exchange Programme. In his words, events such as this one can help strengthen cooperation and trust among the different stakeholders involved, while the CEI Fund can serve as an enabling instrument for development.
Looking ahead, Durante Mangoni expressed the hope that a similar event could also be organised in Belgrade next year, following the planned 2027 edition in Rome, and said he would be pleased to return to Serbia for the occasion.
The discussions in Belgrade thus highlighted the CEI Fund’s role in bringing together investment, technical assistance, knowledge exchange and regional cooperation, with a particular focus on supporting Serbia’s economic development and European integration.