News & Activities

Sarajevo - Western Balkans Women Entrepreneurs of the Year for 2023 are: Rigerta Loku - Green Woman Entrepreneur; Ilda Humić - Social Star Woman Entrepreneur; Hana Qerimi - Young Woman Entrepreneur; Nikolina Kovačević - Tourism Woman Entrepreneur; Irena Chaushevska Danilovska - ICT Woman Entrepreneur; and Marija Ivanković Jurišić - Artistic Woman Entrepreneur; as announced at a ceremony ...

Sarajevo – The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) is to present the 2023 Western Balkans Women Entrepreneurs of the Year at a ceremony to take place this evening in Sarajevo.

“The most dangerous phrase in the language is “We’ve always done it this way”. It’s 8 March today, and the buzzword you are getting from all around is “Women’s day”. So, the note of ours on this day is on women. Women continue to face disadvantage and discrimination in all areas of economic life. Mothers around the Western Balkans are particularly affected by the lack of both child and elderly care services which impact their employment. ...

Sarajevo – For the third year in a row, Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) is pleased to announce that the nominations for the Western Balkans Women Entrepreneurs of the Year 2023 have officially begun. 

UN Women Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia (ECA) and Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) will join forces to advance the digital transformation in the Western Balkans to promote cooperation in the region, as well as advance women’s economic empowerment, and the green agenda.

Tirana - Dhurata Thanasi Daneri, Snjezana Köpruner, Elki Shehu, Mirjana Babic, Zagorka Blazevska, Marijana Gligoric are Western Balkans Women Entrepreneurs of the Year 2022, as presented at a ceremony organised by the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) in Tirana today. 

Sarajevo/Tirana – On the International Women’s Day, the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) is to present the Western Balkans Women Entrepreneurs of the Year 2022, at a ceremony to be held on 9 March in Tirana. 

Following the launch of the Regional Network of Women in Entrepreneurship (RNWE) last March in Tirana, Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) meets representatives of public and private sector, civil society organisations and academia in every Western Balkans economy to discuss and agree on joint roadmaps for actions.

Sarajevo – The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) is happy to announce that the nomination process for the Western Balkans Women Entrepreneurs of the Year 2022 has begun! The RCC launched this initiative last year in the framework of the Common Regional Market Action Plan 2021-2024 and the Women Economic Empowerment Agenda to recognise women who have started and developed their own business and contributed to new and sustainable jobs for other women and men in our region. 

Sarajevo – The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) is launching a campaign dubbed “Choose STEM future” to encourage young women and girls to pursue careers in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) by bringing forth inspiring role models of successful women in STEM profession from the Western Balkans (WB). This campaign was created as part of the regional Women ...

Berlin/Sarajevo – The Western Balkans (WB) Foreign Ministers approved three regional agreements - on Freedom of Movement with Identity Cards, on Recognition of Higher Education Qualifications, and on Recognition of Professional Qualifications for Doctors of Medicine, Dentists and Architects – at the WB-EU ministerial meeting, organised within the Berlin Process by the German Government in their capital today. 

Pristina – “Today is a great day for Pristina.  It is the centre of gravity of one of the greatest Berlin Process initiatives – the Western Balkans Digital Summit. Pristina today bursts and radiates with the dynamism of so many start-ups, companies, experts and policy makers – all united in their drive to harness the potentials of digitisation for our region’s growth. It is the same vibrant spirit and energy we were privileged to see in flesh just two weeks ago ...

Tirana – “This spring we launched the first Regional Butterfly Innovation Award. ‘What is now proved was once only imagination’- this Blake’s quote fits perfectly the 154 ideas in six competing categories - largely exceeded our boldest expectations. Women led almost half of the teams or most team members were women. This competition proves that innovation can bring together many bright and courageous minds. The RCC has started slowly to support research and innovation ...

Brussels – “While many things change, our public and business perceptions surveys remain a truthful source of sentiments across the region. At times, the results surprise us, sometimes they serve as a wake-up call, while on other occasions they confirm that our efforts are not in vain as citizens and businesses feel the benefits of our work. 76% of Western Balkan citizens find regional cooperation a great approach,” said Majlinda Bregu, Secretary General of the ...

Tirana – “The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) is launching today the first Regional Women in Entrepreneurship Network in the Western Balkans. We will not boil the sea right away. But sometimes the smallest act can lead to the biggest impact. We will engage ourselves not only to connect women with each other but also to lend a helping hand with the informational support and mentorship for the start-uppers. And then, together, we will work on common endeavours such as financial challenges, ...

Sarajevo/Tirana – Instead of happy 8th of March, the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) is announcing the launching of the Western Balkans (WB) Regional Network of Women in Entrepreneurship, at an event taking place this Friday (11 March) in Tirana. The Launch will gather a number of businesswomen from the entire region, and also serve as an opportunity to recognise WB Women Entrepreneurs of the Year 2021.

Sarajevo – The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) has a pleasure to announce that we are launching the Western Balkans Women Entrepreneurs of the Year initiative, one that will hopefully become a tradition, to recognise women who have started and developed their own business and contributed to new and sustainable jobs for other women and men in our region. 

Sarajevo – “Women in the Western Balkans account for only 27.5% of business owners and just 14.2% of companies’ top managers are females. Despite an evolving ecosystem of start-ups and innovation hubs in the Western Balkans, the number of women start-up entrepreneurs remains low, accounting for only 10-12% of founders. It will take 135.6 years to close the current gender gap worldwide,” said Secretary General of the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) Majlinda Bregu ...

“It’s not breaking news any longer that our youth is leaving the region. One out of 3 youngsters, age 18-24, in the Western Balkans confirms that they are ready to leave their homeland. We should understand the message – their choice of destination shows what’s missing in their own societies. We just need to observe, listen and the most importantly act –give them a reason to stay. The ...

Tirana – “This, seventh in a row, Balkan Barometer shows human uncertainty and vulnerability are the main concerns followed by some goodish news which is the consciousness about the benefits of regional cooperation. For 49% of Western Balkan citizens, unemployment is the biggest problem, as it is for young people as well, while 46% are most worried about the economic situation. Pandemic shifted opinions and influenced realities. People are more hesitant to leave and work abroad – ...

Tirana – The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) is to present the 2021 edition of Balkan Barometer on Thursday, 24 June 2021, starting at 10:00, in Tirana. This is the 7th edition of annual public and business opinion survey commissioned by the RCC which examines Western Balkan citizens and businesses perceptions and expectations towards a variety of thematic areas, such as the EU integration and regional cooperation, digitalisation, green recovery, employment, and for the ...

Antalya – “Last year, ruled by the pandemic has definitely showcased the extent of our interconnectivity and interdependency and demonstrated that in cooperating, we boost our strengths and resilience. It is clear that regional socio-economic integration is crucial for regional development. There is no doubt about the fact that cooperation brings mutual benefit to its participants. It is not a zero-sum game but an absolute gain for all involved,” said Majlinda Bregu, RCC Secretary ...

Sarajevo/Tirana–“Regional cooperation with clear, targeted goals and meeting deliverables is more urgent than ever. Establishing a Common Regional Market which will attract investors, support real added value of industries, promote innovation, ensure digitalization and bring the Western Balkans closer to the EU standards, will smoothen recovery and enhance resilience to future exogenous shocks to economies,“ Majlinda Bregu, Secretary General of the Regional Cooperation Council ...

Sarajevo/New York – The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) launched today the Regional Network of Women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) as part of a RCC-UNDP ...

Sarajevo/Tirana – “The months since our last meeting in October have been difficult with the onset of new Covid-19 waves and new variants of the virus turning things topsy-turvy with a downward spiralling. In terms of regional cooperation, the big good news was the success of the Sofia Summit of the Berlin Process and the endorsement of the Declaration on Green Agenda for the Western Balkans and the Common Regional Market (CRM) Action Plan, which has also been recognised by the citizens ...

Sarajevo/Tirana/Belgrade – “Business world is harsh for young people, especially women in Western Balkans, where they account for only 27.5% of business owners, and just 14.2% of companies’ top managers are female. Gender prejudices are not vanished yet, but there are always those who "fight" them and win, like Zoja Kukic, an entrepreneur from Serbia. And we, as a region, need to be aware that an increase in women’s entrepreneurship and participation in the labour ...

Sarajevo/Tirana/New York - "What we are launching today is a platform which will allow us all to strategise on how to best contribute to unlocking women power in the region. The reasons are obvious. Prior to pandemic, almost two-thirds of working-age women in the Western Balkans were either unemployed or outside the labour force. Unlocking the potential of half the population is not just a moral obligation – it is an economic and security imperative. So, hire women, promote ...