After several months’ preparation period that included the meetings and complying with various institutions and beneficiaries of the project, the expert team of LEDIB programme made the concept for the new project for the development of clusters in the region.

LEDIB Cluster House is a five-year development project that will be implemented in a partnership with the RCE Niš and clusters and with the technical support of LEDIB programme. The planned period of establishment and development of the project is from 2011 to 2015. The project will be located in the premises of the RCE Niš.

The overall aim of this project is to form a regional association of clusters in order to represent the interests of the association before the local and national authorities.

Regarding the expressed needs of the clusters, it was approached to creating the new business organization LEDIB Cluster House that will provide technical support to all its members on equal terms and contribute to sustainability of the established clusters.

The main strategic directions of LEDIB Cluster House will be the activities on spreading the membership and access to the national and international development funds.

The partnership between LEDIB programme and RCE Niš will contribute not only to the long term development and sustainability of the clusters in the region, but also to restoring confidence of the RCE Niš members in its functioning. The future activities of the Chamber will be based on the needs of the members. The results of the analysis of the members’ satisfaction with the services of the RCE Niš in 2010 indicated that the members are 10% more satisfied than the previous year, due to the fact that the Chamber started the process of reorganization after the adoption of the new Statute and organizational scheme this year in May.

The ceremony of signing the Agreement on partnership in the project Establishment and Development of LEDIB Cluster House was realized in the premises of LEDIB programme, in the presence of local media. The Agreement was signed by Mr. Carsten Lund, the Director of LEDIB programme, and Milovan Kocić, the President of the RCE Niš, in the presence of Goran Zlatković, LEDIB programme component coordinator for the development of clusters and Aleksandar Popović, Secretary of the Centers of the RCE Niš.