The FINANCIAL — A Georgian Furniture Cluster – the first formally established business cluster in Georgia – was officially launched at the end of October in the country’s capital Tbilisi. The establishment and development of this cluster is being supported in the framework of the project on ‘SME Development and DCFTA in Georgia’, implemented under the EU4Business initiative.
According to EU4Business, the cluster now connects 25 local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the sector of furniture production. By joining the cluster, they commit to working together to take advantage of market opportunities in Georgia and in Europe by achieving economies of scale.
Specifically, the cluster members commit to capacity building and development, the establishment of a creative space through apprenticeships and competitions for young furniture designers, and internationalisation.
The launch event brought together representatives of government agencies, the EU Delegation, the international donor community and the business sector, as well as other project partners and beneficiaries.
“Accelerating economic development is a priority for the EU in Georgia, and SMEs are a key focus in this effort,” said Vincent Rey, Head of Cooperation at the EU Delegation. “Since 2009 the EU has directly supported over 63,000 Georgian SMEs, and the furniture cluster presented today is an excellent and practical example of this.”
“Our goal is for these and other similar efforts to ultimately result in more and better jobs for Georgians,” he added.
The ‘SME Development and DCFTA in Georgia’ project assists Georgian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to become more competitive and adapt to the new regulatory environment created under the free trade agreement with the EU (DCFTA).
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