| Highlight |
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| FEA presentation in the successful international conference in London |
Fejér Enterprise Agency held a presentation in the successful conference organized by the European Microfinance Network and CDFA between 23 - 25 June 2010 in London. 310 participants from 29 countries gathered for this event, the main theme of which was combating poverty and supporting microenterprises. |
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| IT working group meeting in Hungary |
The IT and Innovation working group of the European Microfinance Network held its meeting at FEA® in Székesfehérvár on 16 April 2010. |
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| PROPOSITIONS MADE BY THE HUNGARIAN SECTION OF ERENET |
The Hungarian Section of ERENET evaluated the current situation and discussed the direction of the necessary changes at the University of István Széchenyi in Győr within the scope of a workshop called “Hungarian National Policy – Evaluation and Possible Future Developments” on 27 March 2010. |
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| News |
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| European Progress Microfinance Facility |
The European Union has set up a new European Progress Microfinance Facility providing microcredit to small businesses and to people who have lost their jobs and want to start their own small businesses.
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| ESTABILISHED IN 1991 |  |
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WELCOME TO OUR HOME PAGE!
Welcome to the home page of Foundation for Regional Enterprise Promotion for the Town of Székesfehérvár
- Fejér Enterprise Agency ® -
the developer of the Hungarian Enterprise Portal.
Mission
The mission of the foundation is to support enterprises in various ways, including the provision of assistance to start up and establish enterprises, to solve special problems of already existing enterprises (i.e. growth related problems, accessing sources, mediating business opportunities and supplier contacts, etc.), and the development of the necessary legal conditions.
The Foundation
Legal status, location
| The Foundation for Regional Enterprise Promotion for the Town of Székesfehérvár (www.fea.info.hu) (short international name in use: Fejér Enterprise Agency ® or FEA) was established as a non- profit organization in 1991 in Székesfehérvár with the support of the European Commission mainly to handle the Hungarian enterprise development projects of Phare in Fejér county. Székesfehérvár lies about 60 km to the west of Budapest and it is the centre of Fejér county and the Central Transdanubian Region. The founders of the foundation include the local government of Székesfehérvár, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Fejér County, the Chamber of Agriculture, several big banks, companies and private people. |  |
Management and work organization
The Foundation is managed by the Board of Trustees consisting of 13 people elected by the founders. The operative activities are administered by the Enterprise Promotion Office with 6 people and the network of experts consisting of about 30 professionals under the management of the Managing Director.
Activities relating to enterprise promotion
 | Since the end of the Phare programme, the activities of the Foundation have changed several times.
Owing to the significant investment promotion activities of FEA the ‘Trade Centre’ office block has been built in Székesfehérvár (the registered office of the Foundation can also be found here), the Alba Industrial Park has been established (www.aiz.hu), and an airport project has been started. For a long time the preparation of studies relating to economy and regional development as well as adult education played a major part of our activities. |
Currently our most important activity is microfinancing, but in addition to this the foundation deals with training, and provides economic and financial advice.
On the basis of the authorization provided by Act CXII of 1996 on Credit Institutions and Financial Enterprises FEA is a microfinance institution (MFI) entitled to carry out microcrediting activities independently of banks.
Microfinancing
Fejér Enterprise Agency ® started its microfinancing activities in 1992 under the national co-ordination of the Hungarian Foundation for Enterprise Promotion as a pilot project of the Phare enterprise development programme by starting up the National Microcredit Programme in Fejér county.
In the past 18 years FEA has carried out significant developments in order to improve the quality of the microfinance activity and the related enterprise promoting services provided by FEA. It has started several pilot microcredit programmes (of social and enterprise promotion purpose) as well.
Microcredit funds currently managed by FEA:
- the funds remaining from the microcredit programme financed by Phare and the Hungarian government since 1992;
- microcredit fund donated by IBM;
- microcredit fund donated by the local government of Székesfehérvár;
- sources coming from the JEREMIE microcredit programme.
Microcredit products currently offered by FEA:
- the microcredit construction of the National Microcredit Programme;
- microcredit construction for entrepreneurs to be used freely in order to bridge the crisis;
- ‘Fehérvár’ microcredit (from the credit fund of the local government);
- rolling over microcredit construction;
- JEREMIE microcredit programme constructions.
FEA’s target groups consist of start-up and already existing but inexperienced micro-enterprises. The programmes – in conformity with the Central Eastern European practice – are mainly of enterprise promotion purpose, but in case of the individual programmes – depending on the expectations of the donors – social aspects may also be considered.
Innovation and sustainability
FEA owes the success of its microcredit programmes to its strategic objectives and aspirations, according to which one of the most important aspects is long-term sustainability and the continuous development of the services. The revolving fund set up according to various aspects and set of objectives managed by FEA has a stabilizing impact on the operation of FEA, since it enables the compilation of such a microcredit product portfolio the credit constructions of which can ensure the satisfaction of the entrepreneurial demands by completing and strengthening one another. Thus, FEA does its best all the time to involve alternative financing funds and to increase its credit portfolio as well as to improve the quality of the services.
In order to handle microcredit programmes, FEA has developed an innovative, Internet based system to provide electronic services and support decision-making in co-operation with its information technology service provider partner, Monitor Kft, the individual modules of which are used by more than 10 Microfinance Institutions (MFI) (e.g. the members of the Hungarian Microfinance Network ® - www.hungarian-microfinance.hu) in all the regions of Hungary.
The system provides electronic services for both the MFIs and their clients. The electronic interface, which ensures the fulfilment of the daily electronic data supply obligation of the MFIs for the IT system operating at the national coordinator of the JEREMIE microcredit programme from the credit records held by them, is a part of this system.
International acknowledgement
 | The microcrediting practice of Fejér Enterprise Agency® FEA relying on an Internet based service providing and assessment management system was included among the five best practices by the scientific committee in the MICROFINANCE GOOD PRACTICES “EUROPE AWARD” 2009 – ‘Innovation and Sustainability announced by the Giordano Dell’Amore Foundation and the European Microfinance Network. The Foundation received this significant professional appreciation ‘in recognition of the contribution in advancing the microfinance best practices frontier and in introducing innovative and valuable elements for the economic and social development of the microfinance clients’ |
Participation in networks
FEA is a member of the European Microfinance Network (EMN).
FEA is a member of the Hungarian Enterprise Development Network Consortium (MVHK), which was set up by 19 regional and a municipal enterprise promotion foundation.
The Hungarian Microfinance Network (HMN) comprises of the same LEAs (local enterprise agencies). The MVHK / HMN are also members of the European Microfinance Network.
FEA developed the draft legal framework – which was approved by the Parliament – necessary for the independent (without the involvement of commercial banks) microfinance activity of the regional and municipal non-profit enterprise promotion foundations. FEA developed the crediting regulations and crediting manual used by the members of the Hungarian Microfinance Network® (for JEREMIE microcredit as well). The IT system developed by FEA provides the members of HMN with a credit recording system meeting the legal requirements and the managerial information system necessary for managing the portfolio.
As part of the co-operation within the network, in 2007 FEA, in addition to the above-mentioned projects, worked out and co-ordinated a pilot project in six counties within the scope of an EMN project (VS_2006_0424-HU) launched to improve equal opportunities of women (in co-operation with the members of the joining Hungarian Microfinance Network®) and operated it in Fejér county. Due to the special microcredit construction the ratio of women among the recipients of microcredit increased greatly. The enclosed bar graph shows the development of the figures in five counties.
Disseminating entrepreneurial and financial knowledge
According to the document of the European Union (COM(2006)33 final):
‘Education in entrepreneurship increases the chances of start-ups and self-employment and enhances individuals’ economic reward and satisfaction. Moreover, any dynamic SME that wants to grow will benefit from young people with entrepreneurial mindset and skills.’
At the same time it poses a great challenge for those dealing with education in entrepreneurship to pass on useful and practical knowledge to the students which can be put into practice immediately.
A co-operation agreement was signed by the Foundation for Regional Enterprise Promotion for the Town of Székesfehérvár (FEA), the Regional Education and Innovation Centre (ROIK) of the Technical College of Budapest and Stephen I. Secondary School in Székesfehérvár in order to ensure that the most lifelike and practicable knowledge is included in the teaching material. The purpose of the co-operation was to create an innovative teaching tool which provides help to acquire up-to-date and practical economic knowledge at both secondary and higher level.
The Internet based training system developed within the scope of the co-operation offers the following elements for the joining institutions:
- to acquire the use of the Internet based, on-line microcredit application system developed by FEA and its IT partner and used by the Hungarian Microfinance Network ® in practice:
- ‘applying’ online to a microcredit construction currently advertised in a given field by the students in such a manner that the application is ‘received’ by the teacher giving out the task;
- giving out the ‘received’ applications for assessment to the students selected by the teacher;
- closing the ‘assessment’ by the teacher by evaluating the participating students.
- Business plan preparing programme;
- on-line system to prepare management analysis on the basis of the simplified annual report.
- internal communications tool for the teachers using the system to exchange experience.
The system stores sample tasks and tasks that can be continuously expanded by the teachers. (www.vallalkozastan.hu)
The developers and Tibor SZEKFU, Managing Director,
would like to wish your enterprise every success.
www.mvfportal.hu
www.fea.info.hu
2009-12-30
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