www.eumatching.net

The Euro Info Centre (EIC) Thessaloniki of the Federation of Industries of Northern Greece (FING), was responsible for the implementation of the EU Programme EU MATCHING in Border Regions during the period 2007-2008. This project was co-financed by the Enterprise and Industry Directorate General and was aimed at developing business trade co-operation agreements and helping companies to take advantage of the entrepreneurial opportunities arising from EU Enlargement, between SMEs from the EU25 countries and the new member states.

Within the framework of this programme, the Euro Info Centre (EIC) Thessaloniki, in collaboration with the EIC of Namur in Belgium and with the participation of 18 EICs from other countries, organised and implemented the following events:

• Workshop entitled: "Participating in International Trade Fairs: Incentives, benefits and strategy for Greek enterprises to follow" which took place on 26th March 2007 at the Hotel Nikopolis.

• 1st business matchmaking event held in Vilnius Lithuania during the BALTTECHNIKA trade fair which took place on 9th & 10th May 2007 and involved manufacturing companies active in the electronic and electrical sectors, as well as the machinery and mechanical equipment industries.

• 2nd business matchmaking event held in Tallinn Estonia during the INSTRUTEC & WOODTEC trade fairs which took place on 15th & 16th November 2007 and involved companies related to subcontracting activities, industrial automation and construction of machinery / measuring & testing equipment, and the wood sector.

• 3rd business matchmaking event held in Vienna during the IT’n T Wien trade fair on 5th – 7th February 2008. This event involved companies from the ICT sector.

• 4th business matchmaking event held in Berlin during the ITB Berlin trade fair on 5th – 9th March 2008. This event involved companies from the international tourism industry.

The companies that participated in the aforementioned events benefited from a number of services provided by the EIC Thessaloniki, such as interpretation and technical assistance during their b2b meetings, as well as promotion of their company profile on the project’s website and in the business catalogue.

In addition, for the duration of this project (2007–2008), the EIC Thessaloniki are offering companies the possibility to obtain specialized information concerning EU tenders related to their business activity.

Finally, in order to facilitate the participation of companies in this project, a special website has been created www.eumatching.net

Contact person: Vanessa Vlotides
E-mail : eic153@the.forthnet.gr