EBRD and EU launch SME Go Green programme in Serbia

November 7, 2024 by The Sting's Team Leave a Comment

This article is brought to you in association with EBRD.

EBRD to extend financing under SME Go Green programme, complemented by EU funds
Programme to include dedicated finance for agribusinesses and women-led businesses
SME Go Green now active across the Western Balkans

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Union (EU) are stepping up their support for green economy investments in Serbia.

The EBRD, with the support of the EU, is launching a new credit line to local financial institutions for on-lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) under the SME Go Green programme.

In its initial phase, the programme will provide €120 million of targeted SME financing in the Western Balkans region, including Serbia. The expectation is that the programme will reach €400 million in overall size over the next few years.

The programme is regional and supported by grants from the EU via the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance under the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF). The EU is providing €24.94 million (split into €19.45 million for investment incentives for SMEs and €4.9 million for technical assistance) to support €120 million of EBRD credit lines.

The programme will encourage the competitiveness of SMEs by helping eligible Serbian businesses to access finance for investments that meet EU and international standards.

The funding will be fully dedicated to green economy investments, including energy efficiency, resource efficiency and renewable energy investments, and will help to reduce greenhouse gases in the country.

SME Go Green aims to help the agribusiness sector in Serbia reduce its environmental impact and become more sustainable and resilient to the risks of climate change. It further aims for 100 per cent of the proceeds of the programme to be used to finance green technologies.

Another key aspect of the programme is empowering women in business through dedicated funds to support women-led SMEs.

On successful completion of their investment projects, SMEs will be eligible for a cashback grant of 10 per cent of the loan amount, or 15 per cent for investments in renewable energy and the agribusiness value chain.

SME Go Green builds on the success of the Serbia SME Competitiveness Support Programme, which delivered a total of €50 million in EBRD funding, complemented by €9.54 million in EU funds.

The SME Go Green programme was launched at an event dedicated to the EBRD’s and EU’s support for SMEs in Serbia. Matteo Colangeli, EBRD Regional Director for the Western Balkans, attended, along with Nicola Bertolini, Head of Cooperation, Delegation of the European Union to Serbia, and Katarina Obradović Jovanović, Serbia’s Assistant Minister of Economy, Sector for Development of Small and Medium Enterprises and Entrepreneurship.

During the event, a €5 million loan agreement was signed with NLB Komercijalna banka under the SME Go Green Programme.

The EBRD is a leading institutional investor in Serbia and has invested more than €9.3 billion through 364 projects to date, the majority of which have supported the private sector. The Bank’s focus in Serbia is on boosting private-sector competitiveness, the green energy transition and sustainable infrastructure.

Discover more from The European Sting - Critical News & Insights on European Politics, Economy, Foreign Affairs, Business & Technology - europeansting.com

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

© UNOCHA/Viktoriia Andriievska The aftermath of a drone strike in Kyiv, Ukraine (file). UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk (file) said on Monday that he was "horrified" by the thought of fully autonomous weapons being used in battle.

AI: Türk urges action before it becomes an ‘existential risk to humanity’

September 8, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. UN human rights chief Volker Türk added his voice on Monday to growing calls for greater AI controls, warning that the revolutionary technology could become an “existential risk to humanity” if left unchecked. Without binding rules, independent oversight and clear limits, the technology could become impossible to […]

As wildfires spread north, UN agencies race to help Europe adapt

September 7, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. As the climate warms, the threat of wildfires is spreading in Europe. How can historically cooler and wetter countries prepare? Human activity causes most of the wildfires breaking out across Europe, but their spread, speed and intensity are strongly affected by the warmer, drier conditions associated with […]

© UNICEF-SoP/Crickx People walk down a dusty road in the West Bank carrying belongings.

West Bank: UN rights report warns of forcible displacement from three refugee camps

September 5, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Israeli security forces forcibly displaced the entire population of three Palestine refugee camps in the occupied West Bank in January and February last year – and continue to prevent their return, in violation of international law, according to a new report by the UN human rights office, OHCHR. […]

©UNIFIL/Tilak Pokharel UNIFIL personnel distribute food kits to displaced families in Saida, Lebanon.

Lebanon–Israel tensions escalate as Gaza sees major aid delivery

September 4, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Peacekeepers in Lebanon have reported a marked deterioration in the security situation along the Blue Line of separation, with Israeli forces intensifying their military footprint in violation of a landmark Security Council resolution, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said on Thursday. Meanwhile, in Gaza, humanitarian teams collected hundreds […]

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission.

World News in Brief: US-Iran war intensifies, aid for Myanmar, casualties in Ukraine

September 3, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Fighting between the United States and Iran has sharply escalated after a month-long lull, with the two sides exchanging strikes as fears grow over further civilian casualties. The US military struck rocket launchers on an island in the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend, days after US […]

© WFP/Hugh Rutherford A family eat lunch in the Bedouin community of Umm Al Khair, West Bank.

Food aid cutback in the occupied West Bank as health fears grow in Gaza

September 2, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Lack of funding has forced the World Food Programme (WFP) to slash aid to families in the West Bank by half even though needs have more than doubled over the past two years. “We’re running out of funding, and that means that from today, some 200,000 people […]

© UNICEF/Laxmi Prasad Ngakhusi Mud covers Nuwakot district in central-northern Nepal following devastating flash floods.

Nepal flooding deaths surpass 900 as needs climb

September 1, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. The confirmed death toll from Nepal’s catastrophic floods has surged to 903, with more than 4,200 still missing as rescue crews and humanitarian workers battle blocked highways to reach the hardest-hit areas, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said on Monday. Key points Triggered by a glacier collapse and […]

© WFP/Mohamad Al Hinnawi Brothers sitting outside their family’s tent in Gaza.

Four children killed as separate attacks in Gaza destroy aid supplies

August 31, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Israeli attacks killed four children and destroyed humanitarian aid supplies in what turned out to be a deadly week in war-ravaged Gaza, the UN emergency relief agency, OCHA, said on Friday. Key points According to UNICEF, the four children – aged two to 16 – were reportedly […]

© UNICEF Buildings are submerged in mud following flash floods in Rasuwa district in central-northern Nepal.

Deadly floods cause widespread destruction in China, Nepal

August 27, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Severe flooding in China and Nepal caused widespread destruction and mounting death tolls, UN agencies reported on Wednesday as aid efforts deployed to help provide emergency assistance. UN agencies and humanitarian partners are already providing support to local authorities, said UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric. “The Secretary-General is […]

This article is published in association with European Investment Bank.

As wars spread, the global food system unravels

August 26, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. A family with four children abandoned its farm in Somalia after armed groups arrived and demanded payments for the right to continue cultivating the land. They walked roughly 100 kilometers to a displacement camp. One of the children died along the way. Carl Skau, the acting head […]

Gaza: Children still at risk despite drop in acute hunger

August 25, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Among tent cities pitched on the rubble of destroyed homes in Gaza, children are, by one measure, finally getting enough to eat. By another, however, many of them may never fully recover, according to a new study by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) released on Monday. Key points Hunger […]

UN Photo/Elma Okic Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Doreen Bogdan-Martin speaks at the AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva. (file)

AI for Good: How the UN uses AI to advance human rights

August 24, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. For Ari, a six-year-old boy with learning difficulties in Jamaica, artificial intelligence (AI) opened the door to something many children take for granted: reading a book in his own language. Thousands of miles away, gold miners in Ethiopia are being screened more quickly for tuberculosis, while communities around […]

This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Ms. Imane El Maimouni, a 22-year-old fifth-year Moroccan medical student at the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy of Casablanca. She is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s view on the topic, nor The European Sting’s one.

Who heals the healers?

August 22, 2026

This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Ms. Levina Kulembeka, a Medical Doctor from Tanzania passionate about global health. She is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s view on […]

Middle East: 94 per cent need shelter in Gaza, Israel ramps up demolitions in Lebanon

August 21, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Ninety-four cent of Gaza’s 2.1 million residents need shelter as Israeli gunfire and strikes continue inside the enclave, UN agencies and peacekeepers warned on Thursday. Key points More than four out of five families currently face critical or catastrophic living conditions, which lack fuel, energy and essential […]

© IOM/Lisa George Flooding in Sudan has displaced 20,000 people since June (file).

Sudan war: 200,000 newly displaced as fighting and floods intensify

August 20, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Intensifying fighting in Sudan has displaced at least another 200,000 people since late 2025, while destructive seasonal floods are compounding the massive humanitarian emergency there, the UN International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Wednesday. In an alert, the agency also warned that relief access has been […]

© UNRWA/Kazem Abu-Khalaf A girl looks out the window of her home in the Jenin refugee camp in the West Bank, where she and other family members were trapped during an Israeli military operation.

Raising alarm over new illegal Israeli outposts, UN condemns attacks, incitement against Palestinians

August 20, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Reports of new illegal Israeli outposts in the occupied West Bank raised alarms at UN Headquarters on Wednesday while the UN rights office called on Israel to condemn its national security minister’s words that incite “violence amounting to atrocity crimes” against Palestinians. Key points “The Secretary-General is […]

Sudan war: 200,000 newly displaced as fighting and floods intensify

August 19, 2026

Gaza: Only three per cent of cropland available to grow food

August 19, 2026

Amid ongoing deadly hostilities in Gaza, the enclave’s farmers face the increasingly difficult challenge of finding safe land to grow their crops. Satellite images published on Tuesday in news analysis from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and UNOSAT, the UN Satellite Centre, indicate that just three per cent (448 hectares) of the shattered enclave’s […]

© UNOCHA/Themba Linden A UN team inspects an unexploded bomb lying on a main road in Khan Younis, Gaza.

Qusra siege eases as UN reaches trapped families, but crisis deepens in Gaza

August 18, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Humanitarian workers have reached Palestinian families who had been trapped for days by Israeli settlers in Qusra village in the northern West Bank, the UN said on Monday, as officials warned that the standoff must not become “the new normal.” UN teams on the ground reached the […]