Regional Challenge Fund

The Regional Challenge Fund (RCF) enhances the sustainable competitiveness of businesses in the WB6 on the way to the EU single market through financing VET providers addressing skill needs in cooperation with companies. Youth unemployment, combined with a lack of skilled labour among the enterprises, characterise the economic situation in the Western Balkans. Hence, the aim of the Fund is to increase the employability of VET students by reinforcing a cooperative training approach in the economies of the Western Balkans 6: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia. The RCF supports projects that are jointly implemented by vocational training institutes and partnering enterprises that engage, or plan to engage, in cooperative training activities. They can receive support for developing new programmes or expanding and improving existing offers. The grants are allocated to consortia that have successfully passed the two-step competitive selection process. The RCF provides financial and accompanying support to the selected consortia for: - Workshop infrastructure and equipment for training facilities within the vocational training institutes - Training of vocational training institute teachers, in-company trainers and cooperative training coordinators (in vocational training institutes and enterprises) required for the implementation of the funded training programme - Advisory support during the planning and implementation of the project The German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development commissioned 64.43 million EUR for the RCF, and the Swiss Government, represented by the SDC Swiss Development Cooperation, co-financed an additional 9.7 million CHF. The funds were commissioned to the KfW Development Bank and executed by the Western Balkans 6 Chamber Investment Forum (WB6-CIF), a joint initiative of chambers of commerce from the region.