The EBRD-GCF Gender Baseline and Mainstreaming Activity in Serbia was designed to get a better understanding of male and female business leaders’ awareness of climate change risks; their differentiated needs, priorities, vulnerabilities to climate change and coping strategies; as well as their access to climate finance for adaptation and mitigation measures.

To watch the National Gender Workshop, click here.

To see an animated film on the intersection between gender and access to climate finance, click here.

To read and download a summary of the Baseline assessment, click here.

Funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the “Improving Energy and Resource Efficiency in Greenhouse Cultivation” project researched and brought to light improvements in technologies for greenhouse cultivation in Kosovo, and how to finance them, in two primary areas: Renewable Energy Technologies; and (2) Hydroponics. Building on field research and data collected from selected greenhouse operators in Kosovo, the project developed optimal technological packages for greenhouse operators and a toolkit for the sector of technological options for renewable energy and hydroponics applications that reduce energy costs, reduce natural resource use and improve energy reliability and overall efficiency of greenhouse operations. Through the project, Crimson also worked with selected greenhouse operators to source and structure financing for the identified technological improvements. The project was financed through USAID’s global Small Business Applied Research (SBAR) initiative.

Funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the Kosovo After School Support for Teens (ASSET) program was a five-year activity designed to improve entrepreneurial skills and post-primary school employability, targeting grade 9-12. Crimson supported implementation of ASSET by aligning program activities with private-sector employment needs.

Funded by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the Austrian Ministry of Finance and the European Union, the Western Balkan Green Economy Financing Facility (WB GEFF) is a €85 million on-lending facility, designed to support investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy in the residential building sector in the Western Balkan region. Crimson is supporting implementation of WB GEFF through key senior management and partner-bank liaison positions in Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia.

The Crimson Finance Fund Albania (CFF Albania) is a non-bank financial institution that is established in partnership with the Norwegian Investment Fund for Developing Countries (NORFUND), the Albanian American Development Foundation, and the City of Tirana. It is designed to improve access to finance for underserved Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), entrepreneurs, innovators, women-owned businesses and farmers in Albania in order to catalyze business growth and job creation. CFF Albania provides factoring and leasing of productive equipment to Albanian businesses in all productive sectors. CFF Albania opened its doors for business in March 2016.

Funded by the US Agency for International Development, the EMPOWER Credit Support Project was designed to increase access to finance for underserved SMEs by establishing a guarantee facility, the Kosovo Credit Guarantee Fund (KCGF). Successfully established in April, 2016 KCGF is now a local, permanent, revolving and financially sustainable credit guarantee fund, licensed and supervised by the Central Bank of Kosovo that issues loan guarantees to commercial banks to reduce risk in SME lending.

Under the EMPOWER Credit Support Project, Crimson played an instrumental role in the design and establishment of the Kosovo Credit Guarantee Fund, through the provision of business, financial, credit, risk, and legal and regulatory advisory services and by consensus building among key government, donor, financial institutions, chambers of commerce, civil society and other stakeholders. Today, the KCGF is a sustainable, independently operating guarantee facility that has backed over €63 million in loans to SMEs operating in manufacturing, retail, agriculture, construction and services.

The Crimson Finance Fund (CFF) is a non-bank financial institution that is uniquely positioned in the marketplace. Drawing on its $5.4 million lending pool, CFF provides innovative, short-term working capital finance products to small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in Kosovo. CFF directly targets the problem of the “missing middle,” in which the vast majority of companies in developing countries cannot obtain short-term working capital financing needed to grow, employ more people, increase exports and become competitive and viable for the long-term. CFF utilizes products such as purchase order finance and pre-export financing to address the lending needs of the SME sector in Kosovo.

The Crimson Finance Fund provides financing to all sectors of the economy and operates in all regions of Kosovo, but gives special attention to businesses that are not being adequately served by existing financial institutions, including rural businesses and enterprises owned by women and minorities. CFF began lending in the fourth quarter of 2008. To date, CFF has made loans totaling more than $30.3 million to SMEs, supporting over $147 million in new, incremental sales and more than 3,960 new, permanent jobs, including over 934 jobs for women and minorities. Through its lending, CFF has also indirectly supported more than 3,400 local farmers and over 4,700 SME suppliers.

Crimson Capital designed and manages this $4 million fund that provides innovative, short-term working capital finance products to small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in Macedonia. The Fund directly targets the problem of the “missing middle” in which vast majority of companies in developing countries cannot obtain short-term working capital financing needed to grow, employ more people, increase exports, and become competitive and viable for the long-term. The Fund utilizes products such as Purchase Order Finance and pre-export financing to address the lending needs of the SME sector. In 2012, the Fund received an additional $300,000 from USAID Macedonia to establish an Innovation Financing Vehicle (IFV) designed to support business innovation and start-ups.

To date, the Fund has made loans totaling more than $38.5 million to Macedonian SMEs, supporting over $321.54 million in new exports and more than 7,089 new, permanent jobs, including over 3,770 jobs for women and nearly 402 for minorities. Through its lending, the Fund has also indirectly supported more than 40,463 local farmers, 1,232 agro-collection points, more than 9,473 domestic buyers, and over 15,735 suppliers. The Fund extends loans to all regions of Macedonia, and targets all major sectors of the economy, including light manufacturing, trade, textiles, ICT, retail, agriculture, food processing and construction, but particularly targets SMEs under that are not being adequately served by existing financial institutions, including rural businesses, entrepreneurs and enterprises owned by women and minorities. The Fund is a principal provider of short-term trade finance for SMEs in Macedonia and plays a key role in the expansion and growth of SME activities in Macedonia.

Funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the Private Sector Competitiveness and Employment Generation Activity (EMPOWER) project in Kosovo was designed to increase competitiveness in growth-ready sectors and facilitate inclusive private sector job-creation. Crimson supported implementation of EMPOWER by assisting SMEs improve their operations, become more competitive, and create new jobs.

Under the EMPOWER activity, Crimson conducted preliminary technical, human capacity building and financial investment needs assessments on roughly 500 businesses in the wood processing, apparel, energy, tourism, metal processing, and hospitality sectors and conducted detailed assessments and supply-chain mapping for the energy, IT, wood-processing, apparel and leather sectors. In addition, Crimson facilitated direct market linkages and sales from Kosovo to Europe resulting in the creation of over $330 million in new sales and more than 4,250 new jobs, out of which more than a third were for women, and over 10% for minorities.

Funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), PFD was designed to enhance the enabling environment for private sector growth and expand employment opportunities in Kosovo. Crimson supported implementation of PFD by assisting the Government of Kosovo (GoK) improve macroeconomic policy and public financial management and further develop the system of construction permitting and spatial planning.

Through PFD, Crimson supported:

• The organizational development of the National Council for Economic Development (NCED), an important body for high-level public private dialogue (PPD), which plays a crucial role in government policy agenda and reforms.
• Work with the Office of the Prime Minister and ministries in adopting budget impact assessment (BIA) methodology to better ensure that the budgetary costs of proposed policies and legislation are considered.
• Streamlining business legal and regulatory requirements, including improved operations of the Kosovo Business Registration Agency (KBRA) and Municipal Business Registration Centers (MBRCs).
• The development of a new Law on Business Organization, which entered into force in May 2018.
• The Ministry of Finance (MoF) negotiate a 22-month fiscal consolidation program with the International Monetary Fund, helping the GoK receive 172 million EUR in concessional financing.
• Significant process improvements in public financial management, resulting in improved linkages between policy prioritization and the medium-term budgeting process through a sectoral approach to medium-term budgeting, the institutionalization of the UN Classification of the Functions of Government (COFOG), improvement of BIA practices and introduction of Gender-Responsible Budgeting (GRB) principals at the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MIT) and the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning (MESP).
• The Ministry of Finance in introducing Government Finance Statistics (GFS) in line with international standards, publishing monthly fiscal reports and providing public access to 12 years of fiscal data.
• The Tax Administration of Kosovo (TAK) to transition to 100% electronic tax filing.

Funded by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Union, the Western Balkan Sustainable Energy Financing Facility II (WeBSEFF II) was a €92 million facility, designed to support investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy projects implemented by private companies (SMEs), Energy Service Companies (ESCOs) and municipal entities in the Western Balkans. Crimson supported implementation of WeBSEFF II through key senior management, partner-bank liaison, and municipal finance positions.

With funding from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and in partnership with ICT Norway and INTPOW-Norwegian Renewable Energy Partners, Crimson supported the establishment of the Albanian Renewable Energy Association (AREA). The goal of AREA is to become the leading advocate and promoter of the renewable energy sector in Albania by facilitating foreign and domestic investments, improving the business environment, developing new business opportunities for its members, and promoting implementation of international best practices within the energy and renewable energy sectors.

Crimson provided technical assistance and project management support to AREA in developing its organizational structure and capacity, governing procedures and bylaws, program activities and work plans, and by providing support in networking and promotional activities targeting new members and partners. Crimson also supported AREA by providing comments to the newly proposed Law on Energy, and to the amendment to the Law on Renewable Energy. Crimson and AREA jointly supported the organization of a number of important events and workshops, including the Energy Market and Infrastructure Towards Integration: 3rd EU Energy Package - Implications for the Albanian Energy Sector Development Conference in Tirana, Albania.

AREA was launched in February 2013 and currently has 40 members with a portfolio of investments of more than EUR 200 million and installed power capacity of 195 MW. AREA has effectively became the representative of the renewable energy sector to the Ministry of Energy and Mining of Albania, and other parliamentary committees in charge of developing laws regarding the energy sector in Albania.

In partnership with Athene Prosjektledelse AS, Crimson supported the establishment and development of the Innovation Centre in Kosovo (ICK). Crimson developed and managed the ICK Incubator, which assists entrepreneurs in developing their business concepts. The ICK Incubator provides services to young companies and entrepreneurs in Kosovo, including hosting, training, consulting services and support for R&D.

During the life of the project, the ICK Incubator hosted more than 230 tenants divided into 50 teams, out of which 22 became fully registered and operational businesses. These companies offer a wide variety of Information and Communication products and services, including mobile applications, web-portals, networking solutions and home automation.

ICK and Crimson organized Pristina Start-up Weekends in 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014. Theses start-up events gathered more than 100 participants with backgrounds in programming, design and marketing. Start-up Weekends offer a venue where young entrepreneurs get the chance to work on their ideas, benefit from experienced mentors, build networks and meet their peers.

ICK and Crimson also prepared and published specialized manuals for start-ups and entrepreneurs to help guide them through the initial stages of business operations in Kosovo, published in English, Albanian and Serbian, including:

How to Start a Business
Accessing Finance
International Trade
Intellectual Property Rights

Crimson also assisted ICK prepare for and manage a USAID-funded a grant program, including drafting the grants manual, application materials, selection criteria and monitoring mechanisms in accordance with USAID procedures. Through this program, ICK offered small grants to select tenants to develop innovative products and services.

The USAID-funded Kyrgyzstan Local Development Program (KLDP) was designed to stimulate rapid, diversified, and sustainable economic growth by supporting local economic development in Kyrgyzstan. KLDP assistance focused on improving tax administration, simplifying the licensing regime, facilitating trade, and streamlining customs.

Under a subcontract to Chemonics International (Chemonics), Crimson worked to support increased access to finance for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), by working with four selected financial partner institutions to support the development and launch of innovative working capital finance products. Crimson assisted these partner banks in their product structuring; reviewed and made recommendations on credit and risk management policies and procedures, loan and pledge agreements, credit pricing, loan approval process, credit committee structure, loan administration and loan monitoring; supported the banks in marketing new products to SMEs; and provided hands-on training in transaction structuring. In under a year, partner banks made over $1 million in loans to SME as a direct result of Crimson’s assistance, resulting in the creation of more than 100 new jobs (seasonal and full time) and over $15 million in new, incremental sales and exports. As part of KLDP, Crimson experts also developed recommendations for the National Bank of the Kyrgyz Republic on reforming specific sections of prudential regulations on asset classifications and collateral requirements, in order to promote easier access to finance.

With funding from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and in partnership with ICT Norway, Crimson supported the development of the Albanian Information Technology Association (AITA), helping AITA become a leading force in innovation, technology and competitiveness in the ICT sector and across Albania’s entire economy.

Crimson provided technical assistance and project management support to AITA in developing its organizational structure, including support in reviewing and developing bylaws, hiring staff and establishing its office and operating procedures, and developing revenue generating activities that allowed AITA to become a self-sustainable and effective industry association for the ICT sector of Albania.

With Crimson’s assistance, AITA implemented numerous activities to promote its member companies, and the overall ICT sector of Albania. AITA also developed professional trainings and workshops designed to increase the competitiveness of its members. AITA organized and supported numerous regional business to business (B2B) events that helped stimulate businesses between ICT companies in Albania and other countries from the region and beyond. These include, among others, the ICT B2B event for Kosovo and Albania; the organization of ICT Days (conference in ICT for all stakeholders from Macedonia, Kosovo, and Albania); the Israeli - Albanian Business Forum; and the 1st International Business Forum (matchmaking event for companies from Israel, Macedonia, Albania, Kosovo, and Bosnia and Herzegovina).

With Crimson’s support, AITA has been able to establish itself as one of the main stakeholders and advocates of the ICT sector of Albania. Currently, AITA has 42 company members and is the leading voice in promotion of the ICT sector of Albania, both domestically and internationally.

The goal of the DEMI project was to strengthen municipal governance in Kosovo, focusing particularly on building the capacity of municipal administrations and assemblies, increasing citizens’ role in municipal government, improving municipal service delivery, and promoting local economic development. Crimson led DEMI’s Local Economic Development (LED) and Municipal Performance Improvement units. Crimson DEMI staff helped 21 partner municipalities develop or improve prioritized Local Economic Development (LED) plans and helped 11 partner municipalities to establish LED units.

Through DEMI, Crimson supported four partner municipalities in developing and implementing industrial zones to facilitate investment, contributing to the attraction of over €43 million in new investments and creation of around 2,000 new jobs. Crimson DEMI staff also supported the establishment of agricultural associations in five municipalities and green markets in two municipalities that assisted over 4,000 farmers to increase their production volume by around 10%, increase their market coverage by over 15% and increased support funds (government and donor funds) by over 10%. To further support local economic development, the LED unit worked with DEMI partner municipalities and the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) to develop municipal business profiles/investor’s guides that provide key information for potential investors on the business environment and primary economic sectors and opportunities in each municipality.

Crimson DEMI staff also supported improved land management in Kosovo and supported numerous advances in the legal and regulatory framework, including providing input into procedures for auctioning land and property for municipal revenue generation and economic development; providing input into the draft laws “On Allocation for Use and Exchange of Immovable Property of the Municipality”; “On Property Tax”, “On Internal Trade”, “On Spatial Planning”, and “On Construction”; and provided input into the administrative instruction “Main Elements of a Municipal Development Plan”.

The goal of the BEEP project was to support the development of a business-friendly environment in Kosovo, focusing particularly on better implementation of commercial law; improved access to information about borrowers’ credit history; and reduced barriers to trade. Crimson supported the efforts of the BEEP project by providing expertise to further the development of the Credit Registry in Kosovo, to improve the trade regime and to support the development of a business friendly-environment overall.

Crimson supported BEEP in helping the Government of Kosovo (GoK) adopt crucial World Bank Doing Business-impacting legal reforms related to streamlining business registration procedures (such as the successful introduction of a maximum three day period for issuing a business registration certificate), reducing barriers to business entry (such as the successful removal of charter capital requirement for LLCs), loosening onerous regulatory requirements and eliminating unnecessary, redundant, and burdensome government permissions (such as removing business licensing fees at the municipal level and removing unnecessary licensure). As part of this support, 22 municipalities were assisted in voluntarily eliminating or suspending business license fees, making it easier for businesses to start and operate a business. Crimson also provided support to the National Council of Economic Development and the Legal Office of the Prime Minister in a comprehensive review of administrative instructions, eliminating approximately 440 that were determined to be obsolete, duplicative or to contradict law. In addition, Crimson supported the development of Kosovo’s first ever electronic, searchable database of all laws and administrative instructions, which is accessible to the public (http://gzk.rks-gov.net), and available in Albanian, Bosnian, English, Serbian and Turkish.

Working toward an improved trade regime, Crimson conducted an analysis of the import and export process, including the development of detailed process maps linked to articles in the laws and administrative instructions that govern each step in the process. Based on recommendations of this analysis, the Kosovo Customs Agency issued an Administrative Instruction eliminating several previously required steps/documents from the import and export process. These improvements in streamlining the export and import process helped Kosovo advance nine points in Trade Across Boarders in the World Bank’s Doing Business 2013 report. Further, Crimson advisors also provided support in drafting the Law on External Trade, the Law on Safeguard Measures, the new Customs and Excise Code of Kosovo (based on the EU 2008 Customs Code) and an Integrated Border Management Law that is intended to improve trade procedures and reduce time and costs related to importing and exporting goods.

Leading the Improving Access to Finance component, Crimson supported improvements in available credit information to reduce risks to lending. This assistance focused on upgrading Kosovo’s Credit Registry to ensure that more credit data is captured, that it is stored securely, that it is available in a timely manner to authorized users, and that it is expanded to include insurance companies as users. With support from Crimson BEEP advisors, the GoK selected a vendor to upgrade the Credit Registry through a public tender. The new, improved Credit Registry system went live in September 2012. Financial institutions reported impressive improvements over the old system; within the first month, several banks reported a 45% decrease in the time it takes to report credit classifications to the Central Bank of Kosovo. The upgraded Credit Registry also allows businesses and citizens easier access to their own credit information and includes insurance companies as users. Within the first year of its launch, the Central Bank reported more than a 150% increase in the number of credit requests made by businesses and citizens.

Crimson BEEP advisors also provided technical assistance support to improve the legal and regulatory framework for business and financial sector. These activities included providing input on the draft Law on Banks, Non-Bank Financial Institutions and Microfinance Institutions; the Law on Business Organizations; the Law on Construction and related sub-normative acts, including the Construction Code; the Draft Law on Spatial Planning; the Draft Law on the Pledge Registry; the Draft Law on Normative Acts; the Law on General Product Safety; and the Draft Law on Notaries; as well as on various regulations and administrative procedures of the Central Bank and Credit Registry.

With funding from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Crimson Capital supported the establishment of the Kosovoa Society for Information Technology and Communications (STIKK). STIKK represents more than 55 Kosovo ICT companies, implementing a number of activities to support the development of the ICT sector in Kosovo, including:

• Compiling market information and conducting research on the ICT market in Kosovo and in the region;
• Informing the Kosovo ICT sector on relevant trends in the industry throughout Europe and about business and development opportunities;
• Lobbying to address issues such as customs tax on the ICT sector;
• Attracting investment and businesses interested in the ICT sector in the region;
• Implementing a marketing campaign to increase public and private sector exposure to the ICT industry;
• Providing training and capacity building opportunities; and
• Working to improve the ICT education curriculum at learning institutions.

Through the USAID FS Share contract, Crimson implemented the “FS Share Stability Pilot Project” (FSSP) in Armenia, under a subcontract to Chemonics International. FSSP focused on rapidly identifying, adapting and introducing applicable financial products to increase Armenian SME access to finance in targeted value chains.

In just six months, Crimson advisors supported two Armenian partner banks in developing and marketing new debt products designed specifically for SMEs, including Purchase Order Finance (POF). By the close of FSSP project assistance, the two partner banks had fully integrated these new debt products into their existing loan portfolio line and had exceeded USAID SME lending targets for the project more than two times over, issuing $2.5 million to 18 SME clients.

The primary objective of USAID’s AgBiz Program was to sustainably increase the competitiveness of Macedonian agribusiness producers, processers and traders in selected agribusiness value chains. The AgBiz team worked to help Macedonian agribusinesses enter export markets for value added food products, enhance market linkages along the selected value chains, improve business management and operations, build income-generating opportunities for agribusinesses and create new employment.

Crimson worked through a subcontract to ARD on AgBiz to help Macedonian agribusinesses source capital, enable them to expand and improve production, and increase sales. Crimson experts assisted agribusinesses access over $7.4 million in debt financing and over $9 million in equity to expand their operations and complete trade deals. To further support agribusinesses source capital, Crimson experts developed the Finance Guide for Agribusinesses and SMEs. The guide provides detailed explanation of the financial products and services available to Macedonian agribusinesses and practical information on how to apply for them.

The Crimson team also assisted fresh fruit and vegetables producers and marketers to improve their processes, install more efficient drip irrigation systems, upgrade storage facilities, and enhance their export marketing capabilities. Crimson experts organized six study tours (in South Africa, Israel, USA, Holland, Poland and Croatia) with a focus on pre/post harvest handling of fresh products. In addition, Crimson organized seven B2B meetings and assisted Macedonian exporters participate in three trade fairs, including Fruit Logistica Berlin, World Food Moscow, and Novi Sad International Agricultural Fair. As a result, Macedonian agribusinesses increased sales by over $12.5 million in just three years. To further promote international competiveness, Crimson experts assisted agricultural producers and processors implement HACCAP, ISO 20,000 and Global Gap.

Crimson also assisted the establishment of the Macedonian Agro Exporters Association (MAEA), the first trade association in Macedonia representing fresh fruits and vegetables exporting companies.

Under EMSG, Crimson Capital provided advisory services to the Ministry of Energy and Mining (MEM), the Project Steering Committee (PSC) of the Lignite Power Technical Assistance Project (LPTAP), and the Government of Kosovo for reform in the energy sector. Activities included assistance on the development of the 3 billion EUR LPTAP program consisting of a new lignite mine and 2,000 MW lignite-fired power plant, future disposition of existing power plants, legal and regulatory reform, and the privatization to a foreign strategic investor of the distribution and supply functions of Korporata Energjetike e Kosova (KEK), the electric utility. Crimson Capital was a subcontractor to BearingPoint on this activity.

• Supported the introduction of leasing and purchase order finance in the Kosovo market, including supporting the development of the Law on Leasing.
  
• Facilitated two new joint ventures totaling $6 million.
  
• Developed the DCA Agricultural Loan Portfolio Guarantee with Raiffeisen Bank, which got Raiffeisen to go into agricultural lending, hire and train specialized agricultural loan officers, and make loans throughout Kosovo to farmers and processors. As a result, the 10 million Euro DCA loan portfolio guarantee program for the agricultural sector issued through Raiffeisen Bank and was fully utilized in less than two years.
  
• Designed and implemented two Kosovo Finance Fairs, connecting more than 2,000 businesses with new credit opportunities.

• Creating detailed restructuring plans
• Assuring due diligence in technical, commercial, financial, tax, and legal frameworks
• Delivering recommendations on the structure and regulation of the electricity market in line with European standards
• Preparing and implementing actual restructuring and privatization