In 2016, CSIL supported DG REGIO and Croatian national authorities in verifying and improving the result-orientation and targeting of the specific SME Calls. A first set of calls for proposals had been launched in 2015 under the specific objective "SMEs' development and growth improved in domestic and foreign markets", with the expected results to increase the performance of the SME sector, which is addressed through interventions in various sub-areas: the upgrading and expanding of technological capacities and business processes, development of economically viable and innovative tourism products, modern information and communication technologies (ICT), the creation and development of clusters and cooperatives, and other forms of supply and value chains, etc.
CSIL provided advice to increase the performance of the SME sector. The assessment provided was based not purely on indicators but also considered the expected role of EU funds in terms of contribution to the national objectives: raising the productivity, the sustainability of SMEs in the tourism sector, competitiveness, etc. Finally, CSIL provided recommendations for calls that would lead to enhanced result-orientation in the project selection, maximising the impact of cohesion policy in Croatia within the scope of the selected areas.