The Bern Conference, chaired OSCE PA Vice-President Barbara Haering and organized at the invitation of the Swiss Parliament and the Swiss Delegation to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, was addressed by prominent officials including Bruce George, President of the OSCE PA; Yves Christen, President of the Swiss National Council; Micheline Calmy-Rey, Foreign Minister of Switzerland; Samuel Schmid, Defence Minister of Switzerland; Gian-Reto Plattner, President of the Swiss Council of States and Marcin Swiecicki, OSCE-Coordinator for Economic and Environmental Activities.
The Bern Declaration urges the OSCE to raise awareness by making parliaments and governments more sensitive to the interplay between economic factors and security in the OSCE region. Recognizing the importance of SME's as a backbone and driving force for a sustainable economy, the parliamentarians called upon governments of the OSCE to provide technical assistance services on legal, tax and licensing requirements as well as access to information on market data and trade and investment opportunities. The Bern Declaration also appeals to the OSCE to identify areas and sectors under development and in need of reconstruction in order to bring them to the attention of international and government organizations as well as NGO's with the resources to assist SME's
The Conference in Bern was the third conference organized by the OSCE PA in the field of sub-regional economic co-operation following Monaco (1997) and Nantes (1999). The next conference will be held in Norway in 2005.
The Parliamentary Assembly of the OSCE, created by the CSCE Summit in Paris in 1990, is the parliamentary wing of the 55-nation Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
Berne, le 15.05.2003 Services du Parlement