Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds announced tenders for small and medium enterprises which will be published by the end of the 2013th under the Operational Programme “Regional Competitiveness”.

Aid on the basis of that public call will be granted in the context of measures for the development of public infrastructure, the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and competitiveness of the tourism industry.

Calls to be announced are:

• Grant scheme for the development of business and tourism infrastructure
• Use of information and communication technologies for the improvement of the business processes
• Increase of the economic activity and competitiveness of SMEs

For Croatian SMEs the most important call will be ” Increase of the economic activity and competitiveness of SMEs.” The call will include small and medium enterprises, crafts and tourism, and potential applicants are economic subjects, SMEs and craftsmen. The minimum grant amount is EUR 500,000 and a maximum 3.5 million euros .

Support within that public call will be granted to two types of projects that represent different sectors of the Croatian economy and will therefore be divided into two parts in order to provide equal support to operators of both sectors, first – The competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and second – Competitiveness of Tourism.

The second part of the public invitation, which refers to the competitiveness of the tourism industry, aims to contribute to the sustainable development of tourism by increasing the competitiveness of the tourism sector. Financial support will be given to SMEs that invest in the construction, renovation and improvement of quality of the accommodation of small and medium-sized hotels and in the development of additional tourist attractions and strengthening of the commercial value of natural and cultural resources, in accordance with sustainability and environmental standards set out in national strategies.