On November 20, 2018, over 200 representatives from finance and industry gathered at Sarajevo City Hall for the EFSE Entrepreneurship Tournament.

The EFSE Entrepreneurship Tournament showcased and supported 22 promising entrepreneurs in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The competition took aim at two common hurdles for businesses in the region: access to finance and know-how. The goal was not only to increase awareness of local entrepreneurship and recognize the growth potential of this key economic sector, but also to provide concrete opportunities for emerging businesses to receive crucial support in the form of financial awards and targeted mentoring.

At the close of the competition, 9 winners received business acceleration awards in amounts of EUR 6,000 and EUR 10,000, while 5 businesses were awarded for special categories: Innovation, Social Impact, and Woman Entrepreneurs. In addition, 12 businesses won 500 hours of mentorship to accelerate their fledgling businesses. The cash investments will be used exclusively for the purchase of necessary equipment, tools, and other assets for business acceleration. Mentorship services will include up to 50 hours of counselling, research, and analysis over a period of six months.

The judges analysed the candidates and selected the winners based on the potential of a financial award to increase production, income, number of employees, or geographic outreach.

The winners of the business acceleration award were:

• Dawood
• Bilje I Ljekobilje
• Axis
• Greens
• Agrorevolucija
• Freya
• Feedback
• Tree D One
• Igraj, Uci, Rasti

The tournament was hosted by the EFSE Entrepreneurship Academy, an arm of the EFSE Development Facility