Announcement of the Third Call for Expression of Interest

The Regional Challenge Fund (RCF) is a financing facility designed to increase employability, especially youth. It boosts the competitiveness of enterprises in Western Balkan 6 economies by funding investments in equipment and infrastructure for selected cooperative or dual training projects implemented through partnerships between vocational training institutes and enterprises. The grants are allocated through a competitive regional challenge.

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. The Fund is implemented by the consultant consortia.

The first and the second round of applications attracted more than 300 Expressions of Interest from all Western Balkan 6 economies. The selection process led to selecting 63 projects for financing, allocating approximately 27 million Euros for the investments in equipment, infrastructure, and training at the vocational training providers and partnering enterprises.