Events to look out for
Europe Day, 9 May - Europe. To celebrate Europe Day, the European Union institutions will open their doors to the public in Brussels (6 May), Luxembourg (13 May) and Strasbourg (14 May). National and local EU offices in Europe and all over the world will also organise a variety of activities and events for all ages. Find out what's happening in your country.
Second stakeholder workshop on implementation of the Tobacco Products Directive 2014/40/EU, 15 May - Brussels, Belgium. As part of the preparatory process for the implementation of systems for traceability and security features for tobacco products, a face-to-face workshop with stakeholders will take place on 15 May in Brussels. NGOs active in the field, manufacturers of tobacco products, solution providers, supply chain operators and retailers are invited to participate.
Financing energy efficiency in Denmark, Sweden and Finland, 19 May - Copenhagen, Denmark. This event will share best practice from across northern Europe on how energy efficiency investments can be financed. It includes the use of private funds and innovative financing instruments, notably in the building and industry sectors.
Funding available
Juncker Plan: EUR 420 million for over 2,000 Greek businesses. The Juncker Plan has backed four new agreements between the European Investment Fund and two financial intermediaries in Greece. These are expected to unlock EUR 420 million in financing for 2,000 small businesses across the country.
Finnish small businesses to benefit from EUR 150 million of investments under a new agreement. The European Commission signed a new agreement under the SME Initiative between the European Investment Bank Group and Nordea Bank, in Finland. Under this agreement 400 Finnish small companies and start-ups will benefit from better access to finance.
LIFE Programme launches 2017 call for action grants: more than EUR 373 million available. In this year’s call the European Commission is particularly interested in close-to-market projects. On the 31 May 2017 there will be a LIFE 2017 call information and networking event to explain how to prepare and submit a successful LIFE proposal.
EU policies for better business
European Commission takes action to make garment sector more sustainable. Last week the European Commission presented a set of focused actions to make value chains in the garment sector more sustainable.
EU and Chile sign deal on organic trade. The agreement means that the EU and Chile will mutually recognise the equivalence of their organic production rules and control systems, allowing all organic products produced and controlled according to EU rules to be directly placed on the Chilean market, and vice-versa. The organic logos currently used by the EU and Chile for their products will also be protected as part of the deal.