Decembar 27- ONEX Connect 2025!

Banja Luka, December 17, 2025 – ONEX Connect 2025, the first international business and innovation forum organized by the Consortium of the European Enterprise Network of Republika Srpska (EEN RS), was held today at the Banski Dvor Cultural Center, bringing together around 200 representatives of institutions, businesses and innovation organizations from 12 countries in the region, Europe and the world.

The forum was dedicated to strengthening international partnerships, digital transformation, sustainable development and connecting domestic companies with European and global markets, with a special focus on bilateral B2B meetings between businesspeople from the Republika Srpska and foreign companies.

Addressing the participants, Dr. Bojan Ćudić, Director of DIH ONEX and Coordinator of the European Enterprise Network of Republika Srpska, emphasized that ONEX Connect 2025 represents a combination of the long-standing experience of the EEN network and the new energy of digital transformation brought by the European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIH).

“Development is not built in isolation, but through connections, trust and knowledge exchange. The European Enterprise Network has been providing strong support to small and medium-sized enterprises for years, and through the EDIHs, this support is now gaining a new – digital, sustainable and international – dimension,” said Ćudić, emphasizing the importance of including the diaspora as an important part of the regional innovation and business ecosystem.

The forum was officially opened by the Minister of Economy and Entrepreneurship of the Republika Srpska, Vojin Mitrović, who emphasized that such events play a key role in networking institutions and business entities, exchanging good practices and strengthening the competitiveness of the domestic economy.

Minister Mitrović emphasized that digital transformation, green transition, innovation and international partnerships are in line with the strategic commitments of the Ministry of Economy and Entrepreneurship, and recalled that in the period from 2022 to 2025, the Ministry allocated more than 58 million KM in non-refundable support for over 800 business entities in the Republika Srpska, through programs aimed at the procurement of equipment and technologies, the development of small and medium-sized enterprises, encouraging female entrepreneurship, increasing wages, attracting investments and promoting the domestic economy.

It was particularly emphasized that additional support measures are planned for the coming period, including strengthening entrepreneurial infrastructure in local self-government units, with the aim of creating a more favorable environment for domestic and foreign investors.

The ONEX Connect 2025 program included three panel discussions dedicated to innovation and sustainability, digital transformation and the role of EDIHs in the region, as well as smart cities, a discussion on the European Enterprise Network with coordinators from the countries of the region, a fireside chat with a successful businessman operating in the European Union market, and a presentation of innovative company solutions.

The central segment of the forum consisted of organized B2B meetings, during which participants had the opportunity to establish direct contacts, exchange business interests and initiate concrete forms of cooperation.

ONEX Connect 2025 once again confirmed the importance of international networking, institutional support and innovation as the foundation of sustainable economic development and strengthening the competitiveness of the Republic of Srpska in the European and global context.