The country is the fifth of the group of EU candidate and potential candidate countries to join the SME programme. Membership will enable Albania to take part in the European Charter for Small Enterprises, making direct ties with EU Member States and learning from good practice in promoting entrepreneurship and innovation.
The other EU candidate and potential candidate countries that have joined the programme are Croatia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in October 2007, followed by Turkey in February 2008 and by Montenegro in March 2008.
The programme runs from 2007 to 2013 with a budget of €3.6 billion and consists of three programmes:
The Entrepreneurship and Innovation Framework Programme, which fosters the competitiveness of enterprises by providing co-guarantees and co-investments for local banks and risk capital funds to improve access for SMEs to loans and venture capital finance, and provides business and innovation services;
The Information and Communication Technologies Policy Support Programme, which aims to accelerate the adoption and more efficient take up and better use of ICT;
The Intelligent Energy-Europe Programme, which promotes energy efficiency and new and renewable energy sources.
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