The Local Economic Development in the Balkans (LEDIB) programme is a five-year programme for support to local economic development with a focus on development of the Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise (SME) Sector. In line with the strategy of the Danish Neighbourhood Programme, LEDIB covers Nisava District and is in support of the poverty reduction strategies of Serbia.

The development objective of the programme is socially balanced economic development and employment creation in the Nišava District in Serbia.

The programme consists of two components.

• The Enabling Business Environment Component will support local authorities in developing an enabling business environment for SME development. The support will promote public-private dialogue and will also support business organisations advocating for the needs of SMEs.
• The second component, SME development, will support SMEs through support to cluster development, support to development of Business Development Services and support to finance for SMEs.

The programme’s focus on Nisava District in Serbia will ensure synergy between the supported interventions and will help to establish and provide visible examples of good practices for SME development.