Restart and Prevent have partnered together to initiate joint efforts on several projects. Restart will provide support to Prevent by organizing summer internships for young professionals from the diaspora, and will also provide assistance in the recruitment process for new professionals and staff. These are just initial activities for the two organizations, after which they anticipate cooperation on additional projects.
Running a company in Bosnia and Herzegovina can come with tremendous administrative challenges in BiH, and is not as easy today as it was in 1999 when Prevent established its business. The decision to create jobs in a war-torn country is one that only entrepreneurs who invest for reasons that include both a return on investment and numerous social benefits − including those for their neighbours and fellow citizens − attempt.
The launch of Prevent required constant investment, as well as the training of 50 employees. Today, Prevent is the Prevent Group, a global company that employs over 13,000 employees across its 36 locations worldwide, and is positioned among leading exporters.
Prevent’s motto − “Where entrepreneurial enthusiasm meets professionalism in creating.” − is cemented by its achievements, as Prevent’s upholstery can be found in 15 percent of cars in Europe. In addition to its work in the automotive industry, Prevent is increasingly present in the following segments: metal, fashion garments, furniture, protective equipment, footwear and maritime.
Today, the situation is significantly different. In order to restore the confidence that has since been lost in the BiH market, BAFA and SEEBA created the Restart Project to facilitate investment and business establishment.
Restart operates as a business embassy for the diaspora. We handle business requests and facilitate incoming investments from the diaspora network and their contacts around the world. Restart aims to serve entrepreneurs, business-oriented individuals and municipalities in BiH needing improved international networks, an enhanced information base and effective consulting with regards to direct and indirect investment. Additionally, Restart reaches out to all other members of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian diaspora who desire to directly participate in the economic and social transformation of their motherland.
Through our success stories, Restart hopes to engage the diaspora community to turn to BiH and offer support in its development − the way that Prevent does. Our motivation is to assist in the development of new business projects that will create additional value − as well as social benefits − to our citizens.
Looking at the path that brought us to where we are, we believe that it is a natural sequence of events that has brought Restart and Prevent together. The experience Prevent has gained over its many years of operation in BiH are of great importance to Restart, and works as an excellent resource for future endeavors.