On 26 February 2019, a meeting of the Working Group on small and medium-sized enterprises in the framework of the High-level Ukraine-EU dialogue on horizontal issues and specific industrial sectors was held in Brussels.

Ukrainian side presented a progress in providing a friendly environment for development of SMEs and an update of the overall implementation of the Action Plan for the implementation of a Strategy for SMEs development for the period until 2020.

European partners were briefed about the activities of the SME Development Office and its major projects to be implemented in 2019 and a state of play on the pilot project on the establishment of a regional network of entrepreneurship support centers, as well as needed support to implement this initiative.

Sides discussed ways to increase participation of Ukrainian organizations in the EU COSME program, namely in Enterprise Europe Network, Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs, Cluster Internationalization, as well as experience of cooperation with EU4Business projects in Ukraine and possible proposals for improving project coordination.

A particular attention was paid to the opportunities for participation in the Horizon2020 SME Instrument.

European partners provided an update on the EU Multiannual Financial Framework for 2021-2027 and the Single Market Programme and Horizon Europe.

It was agreed to coordinate further actions to align modalities of support by the European side the priority directions of the state policy in the field of SME development in Ukraine and possible Ukraine's participation in new EU support programmes for SMEs.