UNIDO forum calls for further progress on e-economy in central and eastern Europe and Newly Associated States
A recent regional forum on eProductivity and Qu@lity (E4PQ), held in Warsaw, Poland, on 22 and 23 November, concluded that cooperation with EU programmes will be key to the success of the United Nations E4PQ initiative to make central and eastern European countries (CEEs) and Newly Associated States (NASs) ready for the e-economy. The forum, organised by UNIDO (the United Nations industrial development organisation) in cooperation with the Polish Ministry of economy, aimed to review the E4PQ regional programme to boost productivity and quality in CEEs and NASs through the use of high technology. The forum recommended that country-specific e-business initiatives, such as the European Commission's eEurope Plus action plan, launched to encourage the use of new information technologies in Candidate States, should be taken into account in the finalisation and implementation of the E4PQ programme. The meeting also recommended that possible synergies and cooperation within the EU and other regions, such as EU information society technologies (IST), benchmarking and SME (small and medium sized enterprises) initiatives, need to be pursued to boost the E4PQ programme through multilateral cooperation. It also found that the improvement of e-business practices in both NASs and CEEs will aid the process of integration into the EU. It called for action to increase competitiveness and innovation using e-solutions in order to smooth the enlargement process and aid the transition to an e-economy. It also warned that without financial backing, the E4PQ programme would fail. It said the programme should involve cooperation between UNIDO, the EU and CEEs and NASs. The forum also concluded that although productivity is improving in the region, it remains below the level of the EU Member States. It identified a lack of understanding among SMEs of the potential benefits of e-solutions for improving competitiveness and productivity, and concluded that enterprises, particularly SMEs, need to develop new business models and techniques to adapt to the e-economy and benefit from the creation of new markets. The E4PQ programme was first announced in October 2000 by UNIDO Director-General Carlos Magariños. It is hoped that the programme will lead to the setting up of a regional structure for industrial quality and productivity with emphasis on the application of web-based technologies. The E4PQ programme was also discussed as an area of possible UNIDO/EU cooperation when Mr Magariños met European Commission President Romano Prodi in March this year.