EU and Ankara sign COSME deal

Turkey has become the latest country to join the EU’s Competitiveness of Enterprises and Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (COSME) programme.

Ankara and Brussels announced the deal in the EU capital, and Turkey has become the fourth country from outside the EU to join the programme. In addition to EU member states, other countries taking part in COSME are Montenegro, Macedonia and Moldova. Turkey’s participation will help extend the EU’s policy environment for SME success and growth to a wider area. It will help the EU and its neighbours combine forces to compete more effectively with other economic blocs.

Commenting on the addition of Turkey, Ferdinando Nelli Feroci, European Commissioner for Industry and Entrepreneurship, said: “I welcome the decision of Turkey to join the COSME programme. It confirms its European aspirations. It also clearly demonstrates its understanding that the challenges of global competition are best faced within a framework of close co-operation. Participation in COSME and in the Enterprise Europe Network will help Turkey to increase the competitiveness of its enterprises, in particular SMEs.”

The COSME programme, with a total budget of €2.3bn, will run from 2014 until 2020. Non-EU countries that join the programme pay an additional contribution into the budget.