The 13th Forum of Economy, Agriculture and Tourism was held in Brod: Open dialogue on new investments and economic challenges
Exchange of experiences, presentation of opportunities for new investments and open discussion about the challenges faced by the real sector were the focus of the 13th Forum of Economy, Agriculture and Tourism Brod 2026, which brought together businessmen, agricultural producers, tourist workers, and representatives of local government, republican institutions and the Chamber of Commerce.
After 12 years of holding the traditional fair, this year’s event was organized in a new format, with an emphasis on direct communication between businessmen and representatives of institutions, presentation of Brod’s development potential and specific support measures for existing and future investors.
The Mayor of Brod, Milan Zečević, pointed out that the change in concept is the result of an effort to give this manifestation a stronger practical and developmental component.
“We can say that this is a small evolution of the fair that has lasted for the past 12 years. We think that this is an ideal opportunity to present to our businessmen everything that we have been doing, together with representatives of the Chamber of Commerce, the Ministry of Economy and Entrepreneurship and other relevant institutions, and all with the purpose of finding new partners for new investments and investment in the development of the real sector in Brod,” said Zečević.
He reminded that in the past 18 months, the Municipality of Brod has worked to create a more favorable business environment, from resolving property and legal issues and developing business zones to establishing the Brod Free Zone and adopting stimulating measures intended for businessmen and investors.
DIRECT DIALOGUE OF BUSINESSMEN AND INSTITUTIONS
The new format of the Forum was supported by Slobodanka Dubravac, Assistant Minister for Economic Cooperation in the Ministry of Economy and Entrepreneurship of the Republic of Srpska, who emphasized the importance of continuous communication between institutions and the business community.
“Based on our experience, we have estimated that it is best when there is a constant and open dialogue between institutions and businessmen, because it is in the interest of all of us to define together what are the open issues and we can concretely take some steps for the next period. So I welcome this format of conversation,” said Dubravac.
Speaking about the cooperation of different levels of government with the business community, she praised the previous approach of the local administration in Brod.
“Brod has a great administration, it is one of the examples of local communities that cooperate well with republican institutions, and this trio between republican institutions, local administration and the businessmen themselves is actually a winning combination,” Dubravac emphasized.
NEW INVESTMENTS AND THE RETURN OF THE DOMESTIC WORKFORCE
Co-owner of the company “DM Montaža” Mika Zečević also spoke about the opportunities that business zones in Brod offer to domestic companies. The company, which operates on the European and world market in the field of energy plant overhaul and prefabrication for the Western European market, is nearing completion of the construction of the production hall in the “Skele” Business Zone.
As he pointed out, one of the important motives for the investment in Brod was the possibility to move part of the production to the home municipality and create conditions for the return of workers who have been working abroad until now.
“The idea came to build the hall here and transfer production to Brod, as I have more and more requests from our workers who want to return and not go abroad anymore. The business zone here proved to be a great solution for our investment. We are one of the first to recognize this possibility and started building the hall, which is now in the final phase. In addition, the duty-free zone in Brod is an additional convenience that was not an option at all when we first started construction at this location,” he explained. Zecevic.
In addition to development opportunities, the Forum was an opportunity for businessmen to openly point out the problems they face in business.
The president of the Doboj Regional Chamber of Commerce and the owner of the company “Sanin”, Radovan Pazurević, pointed out the difficult situation of the footwear, textile and leather industry, which is facing a drop in orders and increasingly difficult long-term production planning.
“There is a wide range of problems and difficulties before companies. Our economic branch is facing very big difficulties, first of all due to the lack of contracts. Every year at this time we had a clear picture of what we will do next year, and now there is no company in our branch that knows what it will do next month. The simple reason is that we have become an expensive workforce for European partners. European companies and capital do not choose people, religion, or nation. Capital has its own way, it wants to be refined, and we simply we are not in a position to keep large European companies solely because of the cost of labor because they are moving production to regions like Africa,” said Pazurevic.
The lack of qualified and available labor was highlighted as one of the problems affecting various economic sectors. Pazurevic pointed out the disproportion from among the number of persons who are formally registered as unemployed and the number of workers who are realistically available to employers.
At the same time, Brod is considering the possibilities of developing new economic branches and directing the workforce towards modern industries. Mayor Zečević stated that the municipality has trained personnel in the metal sector, but also that talks are being held with potential investors from the field of high technologies. These plans are also connected with the idea of establishing an educational center for 3D modeling and development of digital technologies.
INCENTIVES FOR NEW INVESTMENTS AND SMALL ENTREPRENEURS
The economic structure of Brod, which for decades was heavily dependent on the oil refinery, is gradually changing with the development of the metal, manufacturing, service and trade sectors.
Among the more important business entities is the company “Sky Adapter”, owned by Italian capital, which employs about 220 workers. A significant part of the local economy is also made up of companies from the metal sector oriented towards export to the European market, while the trade sector is additionally encouraged by the proximity of the border and the arrival of customers from neighboring Croatia.
In order to retain existing businessmen and create conditions for new investments, the Municipality of Brod is developing various models of support for investors.
“The municipality of Brod has two concepts of business zones. One is our duty-free free zone, which allows every investor, according to the number of workers, and we do not condition the amount of the investment, to get land at a preferential price, even free of charge for companies that employ more than 50 workers,” said Zečević.
A special support model is intended for smaller entrepreneurs and investments.
“When we talk about the concept that we called the micro-entrepreneurial zone, also within our business zone, we give a refund of 50% of the purchase price of the land for all small entrepreneurs, that is for the purchase of plots of up to 2,500 square meters. All newly established persons are exempt from municipal taxes for the first year, and we also have significant reductions for the issuance of building permits, even up to 50% depending on the size of the building itself,” concluded Zečević.
During the Forum, it was emphasized that the communication between the local administration, republican institutions and the business community will continue even after this event, so that the questions and problems raised by the businessmen would be translated into concrete initiatives and support measures.
