DIGITAL SME welcomes new members from Lithuania, Moldova and Armenia

The European DIGITAL SME Alliance extends its membership to six national SME organizations from Lithuania, Moldova and Armenia.
Strengthening the cooperation in Lithuania and in Eastern Partnership countries is important to create greater opportunities for SMEs that share EU values in the digital markets.

Six new associate members from Armenia, Moldova and Lithuania join DIGITAL SME to strengthen the cooperation with Eastern Partnership countries and Lithuania.

“The European DIGITAL SME Alliance believes that the membership enlargement towards Lithuania and Eastern Partnership Countries is an important step to create greater opportunities for SMEs that share EU values in the digital markets. This cooperation will help foster the EU’s values and interests that digital innovative SMEs in Europe represent and embrace,” said DIGITAL SME President Dr Oliver Grün.

The Alliance welcomes the Lithuanian Innovation Centre (LIC) – a non-profit organisation providing innovation support services to enterprises, research institutions, industry associations and business support organisations. LIC‘s mission is to provide innovation support services by implementing Lithuanian innovation policy.

DIGITAL SME also welcomes five associations from the Eastern Partnership countries – The Moldovan Association of ICT companies (ATIC), Enterprise Armenia, Union of Employers of Information and Communication Technologies (UEICT), Association for the Development of Electronic Communications and Innovation Technologies (ACETI) and the Enterprise Incubator Foundation (EIF).

The Moldovan Association of ICT Companies (ATIC) is a business organisation uniting 92 entities and representing an umbrella organisation that gathers over 9000 employees. ATIC is the action leading association and the voice of the Moldovan ICT industry that promotes the development of the ICT sector. ATIC’s mission is to protect and promote the Association members’ interests as well as facilitate a more favourable ICT business climate.

“We are elated to join the European DIGITAL SME Alliance, which promotes the best practices and experiences among small and medium enterprises. ATIC, as the leading ICT association in the Republic of Moldova, strives to connect Moldovan Digital SMEs to the European ones to create competitive regional markets that can strengthen the capacities of people, who bring innovation to our daily lives,” said Ana Chirita, ATIC’s Strategic Projects Director.

Enterprise Armenia is the national investment promotion authority of Armenia. The mission of the Fund is to promote and facilitate foreign and domestic investments, attract new FDI, provide aftercare services to foreign investors in Armenia and assist local exporters, as well as support SMEs in different directions, including capacity building, access to finance, information and advice, business internationalisation, etc.

The Union of Employers of Information and Communication Technologies (UEICT) has been established in Armenia to present and defend the rights and interests of ICT employers. More than 45 companies, including universities, joined the Union. UEICT is actively involved in the digitalisation process of the Armenian economy.

The Association for the Development of Electronic Communications and Innovation Technologies (ACETI) aims to develop the field of engineering and digital technology innovations in the Republic of Moldova, especially in the Northern region. ACETI’s mission is to strengthen the IT ecosystem in the Northern region of Moldova by advancing the digitalisation of traditional SMEs and linking IT businesses to regional SMEs for the adoption of tech solutions. ACETI will also contribute to the acceleration of adoption and improvement of necessary digital skills and facilitate access to funds and resources for the digital transformation of SMEs.

Enterprise Incubator Foundation (EIF) is one of the region’s largest technology business incubators and IT/High-Tech development agencies operating in Armenia. Established in 2002 within the framework of the World Bank’s “Enterprise Incubator” project, they support the development of the information and communication technology sector in Armenia by creating a productive environment for innovation, technological advancement and company growth.

“We are delighted to join European DIGITAL SME Alliance and hope that this partnership will allow the Lithuanian Innovation Centre to offer a wider range of services to local companies in transition to digital business models. Our team is looking forward to working with the Alliance and helping Lithuanian enterprises open new opportunities for cooperation in foreign markets,” said Lithuanian Innovation Centre Director PhD Mantas Vilys.

The Alliance looks forward to supporting the Lithuanian ICT sector and facilitating the cooperation between EU and Eastern Partnership business associations to strengthen support to their SMEs.

CONTACT INFORMATION

Lithuanian Innovation Centre (LIC)
Marijus Muralis, Project manager
m.muralis@lic.lt

Moldovan Association of ICT Companies (ATIC)
Ana Chirița, Strategic Projects Director
achirita@ict.md

Enterprise Armenia
Ani Khandamiryan, Head of international cooperation and business internationalisation projects
ani.khandamiryan@isc.am

Union of Employers of Information and Communication Technologies (UEICT)
Eduard Musayelyan, Executive Director
eduard.musayelyan@ueict.org

Association for the Development of Electronic Communications and Innovation Technologies (ACETI)
Ion Bodrug, President
bodrug.ion@aceti.md

Enterprise Incubator Foundation (EIF)
Marina Minasyan, Project Manager
marina.minasyan@eif.am