Developing an Identity for the Black Sea as an Economic
RegionBarry Kolodkin, Regional Programme ManagerICBSS 5th International Black Sea Symposium
Athens, Greece5 July 2012
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Black Sea Trade & Investment Programme Implementer: UNDP Donors: Greece & Turkey Partners/Donors: BSEC & BSEC
Business Council Beneficiaries:
Enterprises Government agencies Business associations
Began in 2007; project office in Athens, Greece
Objective: To stimulate intra-regional trade and investment among BSEC countries
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Emphasize cross border economic activity
Business facilitation events
Training for business support organizations and investment promotion agencies
Business development assistance
Green business/sustainable development
Regional Focus
Sectors
PackagingFood products and wineTourism Construction materialsICT LogisticsRenewable energy
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WHY?
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REGIONAL IDENTITY = GREATER AWARENESS
Better awareness should lead to more foreign trade and investment, more tourism, and better economic cooperation among BSEC countries
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INCREASED COOPERATION= GREATER OPPORTUNITY
Market Access, Lower Cost of Trade, Higher Profitability, Regional Market Development – EU, NAFTA, APEC
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Regional Brand/Identity
MIDDLE EAST = OIL
PACIFIC RIM = TECHNOLOGY
INDIAN SUBCONTINENT = OUTSOURCING
BLACK SEA = ENERGY OR ??
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GDPMOLDOVA 7.0%TURKEY 6.6%GEORGIA 5.5%UKRAINE 4.7%ARMENIA 4.6%RUSSIA 4.3%BULGARIA 3.0%-- (2011) est. Global Finance
= POTENTIAL
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350 MILLION PEOPLE4 TRILLION USD GDP> ½ TRILLION USD IMPORTS
= A REAL MARKET
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www.undpforblacksea.org
ENERGY SOURCE? GATEWAY TO
MIDDLE EAST? ASIA? CRADLE OF
CIVILIZATION?
CORRUPTION? LOW INTENSITY
CONFLICT? OLD FASHIONED?
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…UNDEFINED
3 EU states2 Preaccession/accession states
6 CIS states3 CEFTA states
2 not WTO + Russian WTO ratification
= Difficult economic cooperation
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SOLUTION: Convergence not strict compliance to the Acquis and EU norms. Comprehensive, familiar, to all, attractive to EU nations, supports states with EU entry ambitions, standardization 12
COOPTITION is a phrase borrowed from the technology industry where competitive companies use common standards and realize that a certain amount of cooperation will benefit the market place overall.
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Supporting A Regional Identity
• Better transportation links• Full utilization of regional
funding• Regional stock exchange
• Green energy/economy development
• Expand tourism• Creating a brand
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www.undpforblacksea.org15
Brand Assets
ENIRADACIASTOLICHNAYABIT DEFENDERLUKOILNEMIROFFARCELIKBEKO
CAVIARSAPERAVIDRACULAKLITSCHKOBALCHIKMAMAIASOCHIODESSA
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SANTORINIBALTIKAVIOHALCOANTALYAINTRACOMEURO CUPTURK TELECOMBEELINE
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CREATE A VISION
A Vision for a Black Sea Identity
WORLD AWARENESS OF HIGH ECONOMIC GROWTHGOOD REGIONAL ECONOMIC COOPERATIONSTRONG REGIONAL TOURISMCOOPTITIONSTRONG BSEC AS A REGIONAL FORUM FOR PROJECTS AND IDEASIMAGE AS A PLACE OF OLD AND NEW, TRADITIONAL ENERGY AND GREEN ENERGYREGIONAL BRAND PROFESSIONALLY DEVELOPED
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