On 14 September, the President of the European Commission delivered the State of the Union address to the Parliament. The address takes stock of the achievements of the past year and presents the priorities for the year ahead. DG GROW will play an important role in delivering many of these flagship initiatives, among others: the European Critical Raw Materials Act; the SME Relief Package, including the Late Payment Directive; the recognition of professional qualifications of third country nationals; the proposal for the creation of an EU Hydrogen Bank ...

On 19 September, the Commission presented the new Single Market Emergency Instrument (SMEI). This crisis governance framework aims to preserve the free movement of goods, services and persons and the availability of essential goods and services in the event of future emergencies, to the benefit of citizens and businesses across the EU. While the Single Market has proven to be our best asset in crisis management, the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted structural shortcomings hampering the EU's ability to effectively respond to emergency situations in a coordinated manner. Unilateral measures caused fragmentation, worsening the crisis and affecting particularly SMEs.

On 14 September, the Commission proposed to prohibit products made with forced labour on the EU market. The proposal covers all products, namely those made in the EU for domestic consumption and exports, and imported goods, without targeting specific companies or industries. The proposal builds on internationally agreed definitions and standards, and underlines the importance of close cooperation with global partners. National authorities will be empowered to withdraw from the EU market products made with forced labour, following an investigation.

On 20 September, Commissioner Thierry Breton participated in an EU Youth Dialogue with young people in the framework of the EU Youth Strategy. This is a way to ensure that the opinion, views and needs of young people and youth organisations are taken into account when defining the EU's youth policies. The EU Youth Strategy contributes to realising the vision of young people by mobilising EU-level policy instruments as well as encouraging stakeholders to take actions at national, regional and local level.

On 1 September 2022, 30 Euroclusters were launched to implement the EU Industrial Strategy. Euroclusters are cross-sectoral, interdisciplinary and trans-European strategic initiatives of industry clusters and other economic actors such as research organisations, companies, etc. €42 million from the Single Market Programme have been allocated to this first batch of Euroclusters, composed of 171 partners, covering 23 different countries and all 14 industrial ecosystems.

OOTS will be the first EU-wide data space, which will enable the sharing of information between public administrations across borders between EU countries. Available as from the end of 2023, the Once Only Technical System (OOTS) will allow public authorities across the EU to exchange official documents and data at citizens' and businesses’ request in a simplified and efficient manner.

DG GROW has launched a call for evidence and public consultation on a proposal for a legislative initiative on cross-border activities of associations. Feedback from stakeholders will be collected until 28 October.

A crucial tool of the EU resilience toolbox entered into force on 29 August 2022: the International Procurement Instrument (IPI) (Regulation (EU) 2022/1031) gives the EU important leverage to open public procurement markets outside the EU. The primary objective of the IPI is to provide an open, level playing field for EU companies that are or would like to be active in public procurement markets abroad.

The Green Generation Fund (GGF) founded by Manon Littek and Janna Ensthaler has raised €100 million for investments in innovative food tech and green tech startups. The European Investment Fund (EIF) contributed €25 million backed by an EU budget guarantee from the new InvestEU programme. The Green Generation Fund invests exclusively in sustainable startups that make significant progress in CO₂ avoidance, the circular economy, climate and resource protection, health promotion and biodiversity. The EIF contribution is in line with the InvestEU priorities for enhancing venture capital in Europe, and for supporting female entrepreneurship and sustainability investments. Within the spirit of the European Green Deal, it will help companies engage in more sustainable business models.

The easiest and fastest way to search for the right EU support tools for SMEs available to help you find funding, information and guidance, training and partnerships, or help and advice.

The EYE programme continues to support its Ukrainian local contact points and entrepreneurs in this crisis. We took measures, implemented by the entire network, to help these organisations match Ukrainian entrepreneurs with their hosts outside of Ukraine and allow them to continue realising their ambitions to start and grow their companies.

In record time, a Business Matchmaking Platform was set up early June by the Ukrainian Enterprise Europe Network partner. This platform aims to bring EU and Ukrainian businesses together quickly so that they may find swift and pragmatic solutions for the export of agricultural produce from Ukraine.

Read the latest developments of DG GROW's analysis of supply chains disruptions related to the Russian aggression of Ukraine.

The 8^th edition of the European Cluster Conference will take place on 26 - 27 September 2022 in Prague, Czech Republic. The conference will bring together cluster managers, policymakers and experts from across the European Union to discuss the latest trends in cluster policies. The event aims to stimulate a high-level policy discussion on the challenges that need to be addressed in order to reinforce the role and added value of clusters in the implementation of the updated EU Industrial Strategy as well as in other core European initiatives impacting industry.

The Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) helps businesses innovate and grow on an international scale. It is the world’s largest support network for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with international ambitions. The Network is  active worldwide and brings together experts from member organisations that are renowned for their excellence in business support.

Their Annual Conference is the main event of the network, providing participants with an interesting and stimulating mix of EU policy updates, workshops, and networking sessions. This year, the conference is taking place in Prague from 25 to 27 October with around 500 people onsite and 3,000 people participating online. The overarching theme for this year's event is "New Network, new realities, new impact": with the European economy dealing with the cumulative shock of the pandemic and the war in Ukraine, it is vital that the services offered by EEN Network evolve to meet these challenges.

President Ursula von der Leyen has made Equality one of the main priorities of the European Commission. To fully play its part in that endeavour, DG GROW has prepared an Equality Mainstreaming Work Plan with operational actions and initiatives covering the external dimension focusing on our different policy areas.