Final Regional Stakeholder Meeting hosted by RARS

On February 27, 2026, the Development Agency of the Republic of Srpska (RARS) successfully hosted the final regional stakeholder meeting as part of the Danube4SEecosystem project.

The meeting was attended by representatives of social enterprises, local public authorities, local development agencies, the Union of Social Enterprises of the Republic of Srpska, and the Ministry of Economy and Entrepreneurship of the Republic of Srpska. On this occasion, a significant number of activities implemented during the previous period were presented. Particular emphasis was placed on the training sessions for social enterprises and local public authorities, which brought together 48 participants. In addition, the RARS and the Ministry of Economy and Entrepreneurship of the Republic of Srpska took part in the international events Policy Learning Dialogue and Knowledge Transfer Workshop, where they presented the important results achieved by the Republic of Srpska in this area. Furthermore, within the Second Session of the Council for the Development of Social Entrepreneurship of the Republic of Srpska, the RARS organised a workshop dedicated to jointly addressing challenges in the field of social entrepreneurship, with the aim of identifying the key reasons why the number of registered social enterprises in the Republic of Srpska remains low.

During the discussion, participants also addressed upcoming activities, including the announcement of a National Knowledge Transfer Workshop to be held in Banja Luka. The workshop will bring together representatives of institutions, local public authorities and social enterprises with the aim of presenting the project results, exchanging experiences and strengthening networking. As part of the event, social enterprises will also be presented through an exhibition area, providing participants with the opportunity to become more familiar with their products and services.

The Final Conference was also announced and will be held on May 26-27, 2026, in Hungary. On this occasion, two social enterprises from the Republic of Srpska that maintain successful cooperation with local public authorities will have the opportunity to compete for a social award in one of the categories.

During the meeting, a new social enterprise was also presented – the agricultural cooperative “Veteranska zadruga – ZaDruga”, registered in 2026. The establishment of this cooperative represents an important step forward in strengthening social entrepreneurship, particularly in the area of employment and economic empowerment of target groups.

At the end of the meeting, it was confirmed that social enterprises that obtained their status before the publication of the public call will be eligible to apply for the public call for incentives aimed at improving the competitiveness of SMEs in 2026, which will be published by the Ministry of Economy and Entrepreneurship of the Republic of Srpska in the coming period. This continues the systematic and institutional support for the development of social entrepreneurship as an important segment of economic and social development.

For more information about the meetings, you can read more on our website page project: https://lnkd.in/gBg_m47X