RISE Supports Twelve Youth Social Businesses in the Western Balkans

Western Balkans – Balkan Green Foundation, along with 5 other local incubators from the Western Balkans, has been leading the path towards the advancement, creation, and establishment of social business ideas through the Regional Incubator for Social Entrepreneurs project.

After months of training, twelve social businesses, two from each country of the WB6 (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia) will receive support with financial grants of 2.500€ and join a regional incubation program to make their ideas a reality through the RISE project, which initially worked with 46 teams consisting of 137 young people from the Western Balkans.

“The journey of our young entrepreneurs continues, as the winners of the Ideation phase are now joining a full Incubation program. Congratulations to them, congratulations also to our Consortium as we are passing this big milestone. Do not hesitate to contact us if you wish to join the adventure,” Projects and Development Manager of GROUPE SOS Pulse Ms. Kelly Robin underlined.

“For our region that is in post-conflict transition and is suffering from brain drain and high unemployment, today with the pandemic too, it is important more than ever to develop innovations and entrepreneurship actions that can make an impact and support our communities and link them. Young people should be on the frontline with their energy and creativity and RISE can support and empower them in this significant mission,” Director of Programs of the Regional Youth Cooperation Office (RYCO) Mr. Jan Zlatan Kulenović added.

“In the last 4 months, we have witnessed the RISE of outstanding young people from all over the WB6 through their dedicated work on social businesses, desire for progress and learning, as well as by bringing social entrepreneurship competencies to the level of great professionals ready to attack the market and produce value for community good. We were also witnessing the establishment of new long-lasting friendships and cooperation among those youngsters make us believe that we are contributing to the knitting of the social cohesion fabric for a prosperous and peaceful region,” Executive Director of the South-East European Youth Network (SEEYN) Ms. Mirela Rajković concluded.

Implemented by six Local Incubators from the Western Balkans and coordinated by a consortium of regional and European partners, RISE (Regional Incubator for Social Entrepreneurs) aims to enrich the Western Balkans social entrepreneurship ecosystem and enable young people to develop innovative societal solutions thus contributing to reconciliation and cooperation in the region. A positive change in the Western Balkans is possible while stability and prosperity can be achieved only by fostering reconciliation and cooperation in the region.

The selected entrepreneurs are young people from the region, 18 to 35 years old, motivated to learn about social entrepreneurship and be involved in a regional intercultural program. Through this tailor-made approach, they develop concrete ideas that tackle social or environmental issues in their communities. Participation in the RISE project is also developing their skills and contributing to their employability.