Alex Munteanu, Managing Director, Dragon Capital, Appointed Chairman of Business Advisory Council for SEE
Mr. Alex Munteanu (Dragon Capital, Ukraine) and Mr. Halil Kuuluk (Intekno, Turkey) were appointed Chairmen of the Business Advisory Council, a position formerly held by Mr. Rahmi Koc (Koc Holding, Turkey) and Mr. Muhtar Kent (Chairman of the Board and CEO of the Coca Cola Company, USA).
The Business Advisory Council for Southeastern Europe and Eurasia (BAC SEE) is an independent, international network of business people and investors who voice the views and concerns of the business community on the challenges and opportunities facing the broader region. A select group of highly profiled members, BAC SEE serves an advisory role to policy makers from governments, regional initiatives, local business communities, European institutions, development organizations and IFIs.
“I’ve been a cheerleader for Southeastern Europe for a long time, led and managed several investments in Ukraine, Republic of Moldova and other emerging markets and am proud to be associated with this council for many years. It’s a big honor for me to become its Chairman now”, says Mr. Alex Munteanu, Managing Director, Private Equity, Dragon Capital. BAC members work closely with Europe’s eastern neighbors and those regions where the private sector is eager to build new bridges of cooperation with Europe and the international community.
One of the outgoing Chairmen of the Business Advisory Council, Mr. Muhtar Kent, Chairman of the Board and CEO of The Coca Cola Company, reflected on the challenges and opportunities the current crisis poses to the regional governments. “We cannot let a crisis go to waste” – he said, addressing the current situation in Greece.
The BAC SEE was established in 1997 with the aim to mobilize cross-border business cooperation in the Balkans and to facilitate trade and investment. The organization takes pride in developing practical cross-border initiatives in fields such as border crossing and trade facilitation (World Bank’s $72mTTFSE project), capacity building for the public sector (EPA project), e-governance (establishment of SEE Center for e-Governance Development), and rail transport (Cargo 10 train, linking Ljubljana and Istanbul three times more often, in less than 50% of the 2008 travel time).
About the Business Advisory Council for SEE
The Business Advisory Council for Southeast Europe is an advisory body composed of international investors and business representatives from more than 20 countries, whose experience and activities span across a wide range of sectors which are key to regional growth and development.
Established originally under the auspices of the Southeast European Cooperative Initiative in 1996 (SECI BAC), the BAC aims to reflect the concerns and proposals of the private sector on the reconstruction and development process of the Balkans. Composed of volunteers from within and outside the region, the SECI BAC joined forces with the Business Advisory Council of the Stability Pact for Southeast Europe (SP BAC) in December 2002, establishing the Business Advisory Council for Southeast Europe.
The BAC SEE is today acknowledged as a solid partner for growth and development by all national governments and local private sector and investor communities in SEE, as well as by the European Commission, the broader donor community and regional cooperation initiatives. Following the transition of the Stability Pact into the regionally owned Regional Cooperation Council (RCC), the BAC SEE now serves as the private sector arm of the new regional cooperation mechanism.
Believing in the Euro-Atlantic future of Southeast Europe, the BAC SEE is a culmination of its members’ experiences, successes and failures, their networks and relationships, private and public. Their recommendations are based on facts and worded accordingly, away from general principles.
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