Skip to main content

Visit from Finest President, Alessandro Minon, to Secretariat

On 24 January 2024, Secretary General Franco Dal Mas welcomed the President of Finest, Alessandro Minon at the CEI - Executive Secretariat (CEI-ES).

During the meeting, Dal Mas highlighted the CEI’s fundamental role in promoting cooperation among the countries of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe, with particular focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and the development of the Organisation's Economic Dimension.

In this context, and ahead of Minon’s participation in the Italy-Serbia Business Forum on 31 January in Belgrade, Dal Mas emphasised the importance of Serbia’s CEI Presidency this year, as "Serbia is a strategic country in this sector"; he
 mentioned the promotional roadshow for the Big Science Business Forum 2024 (BSBF), jointly organised by the CEI, the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region, and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation (MAECI), which had kicked off in Belgrade a few months back with a launch event hosted by the Italian Embassy in Serbia.
On that occasion, the CEI had facilitated meetings between Serbian businesses and the research and innovation sector in the emerging Big Science market.

In this setting, the SG also reaffirmed the Organisation’s ongoing commitment to the EU enlargement process in the Western Balkans, highlighting the strengthening of economic cooperation as one of its main assets.

President Alessandro Minon confirmed Serbia’s central role as a production hub for businesses from Northeast Italy, stressing how the current geopolitical context demanded the building of solid assets within the European value chain. "Serbia represents a crucial node for nearshoring, offering a competitive and stable environment capable of attracting strategic investments from our companies. Since its establishment, Finest has supported fifty investment operations in Serbia, with a total of 33 million EUR invested. This makes Serbia the third-largest historical investment destination for our financial institution."

The visit to the CEI-ES confirmed a shared vision of cooperation and economic development in the Balkan region.

Subscribe to CEI Newsletter

Keep up-to-date with the latest news and highlights from the Central European Initiative.