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Interview with Nenad Racic, Director of City development agency
Written by: Natasa Novakovic
City development agency. It sounds very ambitious.At once, we wonder is this agency one among number of others, which operations are not the most apparent ones. |
But, what integrates the most is a frequent media reporting on relevant activities of this institution. Therefore, if we add the cooperation with IURS during the preparation of strategic relevant document, there are enough reasons to revise our primary attitude about ambitiousness of this agency.
- Establishment of the City development agency, and what are the basic objectives of your activity?
N.Račić: City development agency established upon the initiative of European Union, by City of Banjaluka. It established in December of 2003 year, but because of the preparation of required founding acts, choice of the Management board and Director, and creation of other unavoidable requirements for the launching the activities; City development agency started with its work in June 2005 .y. Objective of the establishment of this agency is the support to small and middle-scale enterprises. People that want to start the business or improve their business operations, may come to the Agency to get necessary information about registration, credit-lines, preparation of the business plan etc, as well as to get other information in terms of the support to their work.
City development agency is, besides its primary activity, as well the support to economic development of the City. Namely, we passed the way from one informative-education service, to I may say freely, the significant wedge in the processes related to economic development of Banjaluka City.
- Significant projects and what are the plans for the following year?
N.Račić: Firstly, I would mention the informative-education support for the realization of significant activities in terms |
of the cooperation with other international organizations (for example. from the idea to business, to the use of internet in the banking where we involved the certain target groups, using our data base that being prepared for starting the own business).
Also, we carried out the program of incentives, which firstly offered to the City Assembly for adoption of this program. On basis of that adopted program, the City today provides favorable credit-lines to the ones want to launch their own business.
These credit-lines are intended for the beneficiaries, who can’t formally appear in the bank requiring for the credit lines.
We prepared the guarantee fund, which at the beginning of the next year needs to be adopted by City Assembly.
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Up to now, it has not been realized because of the lack of legal regulations – we waited the adoption of Law on public debt and the guarantees in which it was given an option that the guarantee funds need to be established in the area of RS.
Besides the informative-education and financial support, City development agency supports one more segment – development part related to the certain initiative and realization of the project activities. Actually, it is about rural development of the City, which designed in two ensembles. Preparation of the Feasibility study is in progress for south part, and for northwestern part we planned to offer the conceptual design to the Assembly for adoption, to the end of this year. These projects will stimulate and support the revitalization of rural area of the City, since our analyses and questionnaires showed that all economic events are created in narrow part of the city center that makes the 8% of total urban ensemble. These economic facilities are not capable to engage the new employees, villages are deserted… Idea is, exactly, an even development of the City upon the model of development countries in the surroundings. This project is titled as `Development of small and middle-scale enterprises` in tourism and agriculture, and it is prepared in the cooperation with Center for development and improvement of the village and Tourist organization.
City development agency as well works on the establishment of the clusters. We founded the cluster in the field lumber processing and final furniture production. We succeeded to register fifteen small enterprises in the cluster. These enterprises earlier were economically related, but it was missing the legal form-cluster, which would provide cheaper supply of raw-materials, technical support and mutual market presentation. Results are significant ones – already registered 22 members of the cluster. Therefore, we founded the cluster of solar initiative (device for solar energy) that should be replacement or supplement to existing heating fundamentals. Currently, there is the closing of the construction phase for placing of the first testing device at the elementary school `Borisav Stankovic`, in which up to now it has been used the heating oil. After the placing of this construction, it will be set up the monitoring for a certain period of time, in aim of identification of the energy saving thanks to installed solar device. Therefore, it was founded the Center for small business development at the beginning September, when we set up the exhibit too. This project was prepared in the cooperation with Danish Government. Project was completed, and resulted in 60 subcontractors engaged in the family/home micro business (pictures, fretwork and other numerous handicrafts). On basis of this project, the City provided for us one more building of the size of 200 m2, and in the following year we are planning a significant expansion of the facilities of City development agency, which it will provide us the realization of numerous other projects. Certainly, one of the most significant projects is the Technological business park.
- Media attention is focused on the project of Technological park – would you interpret us the essence of this project, collaborators...?
N.Račić: We planned, in the narrow urban area, to make one step forward in terms of the establishment of new enterprises, that is, opening of new work posts. Certainly, firstly we had to identify out situation in other cities. We visited Varazdin, Novi Sad, Kajzerslautern, and found out what had been done in aim of launching the new investments and opening of the new work posts. We found out that in those territories there are specific types of industrial zones, scientific-technological parks. Based on other country experience, we came to an idea that our area should have the technological park adopted to the conditions of our environment. From the aspect – what is missing to our city, we prepared the conceptual design of the Technological park of Banjaluka that would be composed of business zone, business incubators, logistic center and center for small business.
We have been planning that at one site or at several sites, start the economic development of city in terms of interested domestic and foreign investors that would build up the production facilities.
We want to carry out and merge that together with the most skilled people in Banjaluka – people from the University. For realization of this project, we will require the support from the Government and the City, since we consider that approach and realization of this project may initiate the investment cycle and economic development which currently missing to Banjaluka City.
N.Račić: According to the unanimous conclusion of the Assembly, during the adoption of conceptual design of the Rural development, it is necessary to prepare the feasibility study that would provide implementation of that conceptual design.
Thanks to certain happenings in terms of the investment of City administration into the infrastructure of the area, it already came to certain initiatives. There have been launched the small family businesses, people started to build up new houses – when we are going along the road for Stricici, there are arose many new houses and the foundations, and in previous period, when it was shortage of asphalt roads, there had not been constructed the new facilities.
The study should, from the expert’s aspect, identify five locations if adopted conceptual design feasible and in which way; accordingly, to give us the guidelines what it should be done in aim of implementation, how to coordinate the public and private initiative, and to make the framework of behavior in the following period for successful project implementation. It will be accomplished a successful project implementation, if there are opened numerous family businesses, and if tourism revitalized in that area.
It is essential to disburden the narrow urban area, to employ people, and to use ecological resources in ecologically acceptable way.
N.Račić: I see the facts related to that decision as positive ones. Regardless that the City development agency has been the special entity, she has always been the part of City administration. Generally, through a closer cooperation with City administration, we can carry out our activities more successfully and make step forward, have an adequate direction of the movement, and in a such way to justify the role of the establishment of our agency.
- Cooperation with the Institute for Urbanism of RS?
N.Račić: We have a good cooperation with the Institute, which is the main contractor for the Feasibility study preparation. They initiated certain things during the preparation of Study, that we dropped out during the preparation of the conceptual design, and they have directed us towards the additional activities, and we are waiting for general conclusion after adoption at City Assembly.
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