Within the framework of the EBSOMED project, BUSINESSMED gathered in Rome on March 9, 2022, at the headquarters of Confindustria, a selection of Employers' Confederations members of its network for a working session of its Thematic Commission on the Internationalization of SMEs launched earlier this year following a recommendation of the Board of Directors.

BUSINESSMED, through this commission, is committed to support the internationalization of SMEs and help them access new markets for competitiveness, economic growth and innovation in the Euro-Mediterranean. The priority is to ensure that companies can count on a favourable business environment and make the most of growing markets inside and outside the Euro-Mediterranean region.

This commission aims to feed the reflection of stakeholders on active policies related to improving the competitiveness of SMEs and increasing trade between the European Union and Mediterranean countries. This will allow to follow the different trends and to help the European Commission, the Euro Med countries and the employers' organizations to provide SMEs with the tools and resources necessary for internationalization.

The Rome meeting aimed to identify a set of best practices and guidelines to foster international development and thus promote intra-Mediterranean trade as a roadmap towards economic recovery, with the objective of helping SMEs access new markets to strengthen competitiveness, economic growth and innovation in the Euro-Mediterranean region. The event was an opportunity for employers' federations to share their experiences and to jointly develop recommendations for policy makers wishing to improve their policies to support the internationalization of SMEs.