8th Forum Makarska

The 8th edition of the Adriatic and Ionian Chamber of Commerce Forum took place in Makarska from 22nd to 24th April 2008.

The event fits in the picture of the new 2007/2013 community planning, within which, the Chambers of Commerce, have undertaken a key role for the development and the competitiveness of their territories, as they are considered bodies servicing the enterprises able to carry out a connecting role with other institutions.

The plenary session was divided into two phases respectively entitled “Political trends and development proposals of the Adriatic-Ionian area” and “The EU 2007/2013 interests programmes for the Adriatic-Ionian area: the pre-accession instrument IPA”. (Instruments of the Pre-Accessions Assistance)

The achievement, for the second time, of the patronage of the European Parliament President has strengthened the role and the position of the Forum in Brussels, undertaken by the association in 2007. The edition took place in Croatia, which will shortly be joining the EU, and has promoted, due to the importance of the subjects dealt with, considerations on the integration process of the non EU Countries associated with the Forum.

The heterogeneous group of the territories represents a challenge in continuing to help the balanced development and integration of the area, as well as a permanent dialog between the Countries that look on to the same sea, constitutes the basis for an economic, social and cultural cooperation of the whole basin.

The activities have been declared open by the Forum’s President Ms.Jadranka Radovanić, President of the Split Chamber of Commerce, and by Mr Giampaolo Giampaoli, the Forum’s Vice President and President of the Ancona Chamber of Commerce. The initiative in Croatia has seen the involvement of political, social and economic realities, not only involving the chambers, thus becoming a privileged moment of confrontation from which ideas have originated in regards to a mutual planning
The opening statements were addressed by: Mr Miljenko Pavlaković (Deputy to the Minister and Secretary of the Ministry of Economy, Labour and Enterpreneurship of the Croatian Government), Mr Ante Sander (Prefect of Split County, Croatia), Mr Marko Ožić-Bebek (Mayor of Makarska), Mr Alessandro Pignatti Morano di Custoza (Italian Ambassador to Croatia), Mr Branko Lukovac (Montenegro Ambassador to Croatia), Ms Lorena Pistelli (Councillor for the Marche Region holding devolving power for Ports and Airports, Equal Opportunity, Viability, Territory Administration), Mr Michele Altomeni (Deputy for the Marche Region and the Regional Council for the Ancona Province holding devolving power for District Viability, Transport and Mobility, Infrastructural Viability, Ancona International Port, Waterways, Social Policies and Migration) and Mr Fabio Sturani (Mayor of Ancona) The following representatives of the Ancona Chamber Committee, Mr Rodolfo Giampieri for the Trading Department, Mr Giorgio Cataldi for the Craftsmanship Department and Mr Otello Baldini for Tourism took an active role in the works.

A special attention goes to the participation Mr Guglielmo Ardizzone Plenipotentiary Minister and National Coordinator for the regional initiatives in South East Europe, who represented the Secretariat of the Adriatic Ionian Initiative (him being a referring and prestigious political institutional subject for all the future actions that will be accomplished by the Marche Region), the Director of the Delegation of the Marche Region in Brussels (Mr Marco Bellardi), the Secretary General of the Forum of the Cities (Mr Emilio D’Alessio) and Prof. Gianluca Gregori, spokesman for the Marche Polytechnic University and of the UniAdrion the network of universities on the Adriatic Ionian basin.

The Ancona Province Institution was widely represented by it’s President, Ms Patrizia Casagrande Esposto, and by the Province Councillors to the Environment, Tourism and Equal Opportunities (respectively Mr Marcello Mariani, Mr Carlo Maria Pesaresi and Ms Eliana Maiolini)
The activities that took place during the event, have allowed the consolidation of international relations, and to strengthen the liaisons with the European institutions such as the European Parliament (Mr Paolo Meucci), the European Commission (Mr Emilio Mastracchio), the Eurochambers (Mr Micol Martinelli and Ms Birgit Arens) and the Unionchambers of Brussels (Mr Maurizio di Genova), thus enhancing the awareness of the numerous communitarian funding opportunities destined to the area.

Relations were also strengthened with numerous Embassies, Ministries, Banking Institutions (Unicredit represented by Mr Andrea Bondoni), as well as International bodies such as Ascame, the Association of the Mediterranean Chambers of Commerce and Industry, with which the Forum will stipulate a letter of intent during 2008, and will be represented for the occasion by Mr Eren Paykal.

The 8th edition allowed the Forum to promote itself as a leading subject within a competitive network, and has given it the opportunity to trigger planning projects with reference to the new pre adhesion funding plans as well as to those destined to Mediterranean area (MED). The growing attention by local institutions, both national and international and by the European institutions to the Forum, allows new Europe-wide programming which cannot be prescinded from a constant coordination between all the leading protagonists of the territory, that is by the high ranking institutions which jointly take part in proposing valuable technical-scientific projects and contribute in international cooperation activities, in the planning, access and management of the structural funding.