CEI Secretary General, Amb. Gerhard Pfanzelter, met on 9 March 2011, with Deputy Secretary General of the Regional Cooperation Council, Mrs Jelica Minić in Sarajevo.
The RCC-CEI partnership began at the end of 2008, immediately after the establishment of the RCC. Cooperation between the two organisations is oriented towards implementing joint initiatives in strategic fields of common interest. As a result of this cooperation, the Sustainable Energy Development Regional Initiative (SEDRI) was launched in 2010. The Project aims at fostering regional cooperation in the sustainable energy sector, particularly in the field of energy efficiency and renewable energy, with priority attention to next generation bio fuels.
Mrs Minić stressed the unique and strong character of the RCC-CEI partnership. Both organisations work as complementary partners. The CEI has the ability to act as an implementing agency for joint priorities. Therefore, the partnership with the CEI is considered strategic.
The CEI SG and Mrs Minić stressed the importance of maintaining close links and active cooperation between the two organisations, with the goal of exploring new sectors of cooperation for launching joint initiatives.