Hungarian Economic Development Agency Public Benefit Non-profit Limited Company

The company Hungarian Economic Development Agency Public Benefit Non-profit Limited Company (in short: MGFÜ – Hungarian Economic Development Agency) has been a part of our country’s economic, development, research and innovation community since 1990. The organization was founded by the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Bank for Industrial Development under the name of the Foundation for Industrial Technological Development and was transformed into a public foundation in 2004. In 2024 the name of the company changed to Hungarian Economic Development Agency.

It has the capability to attract significant resources to its public benefit purposes and effectivly competes within the competitive domestic and European Union professional environment through its projects. In addition, it provides complex business development support, helping Hungarian enterprises to implement their development and business building plans even more effectively than before. The activities of MGFÜ are in line with domestic and EU objectives.

The Modern Model Factory Program I. (previously: Industry 4.0 Model Factories) started as an independent project in 2017. Since 2023 it has been a flagship project aimed at promoting and supporting the organizational renewal and technological change of micro, small and medium-sized businesses, thus improving competitiveness and developing an entrepreneurial environment and culture.

In addition to its knowledge-based development services, as part of the approach to raise awareness, it organizes the Modern Factories’ Night each year for the general public. The Modern Factories’ Night has evolved a government priority program, with a special focus on SMEs, industrial workers, and young people making career decisions.

The Evolution for Renewable Enterprises Program offers a comprehensive solution for generational renewal, and for businesses affected by crises. The aim of the program is to develop legal and business services, train market players, who are actively supporting SMEs (such as lawyers and accountants), prepare Hungarian SMEs for the process of generational renewal ahead of them with expert advice, and provide advisory services to businesses in, or drifting towards, crisis.

MGFÜ has also set up and is the manager of the Business Information Website. The business information (VALI) website already has more than twelve thousand registered users, and aims to provide businesses with tailored, rapid, credible and comprehensible information. In 2023 a new feature has been added to the website: the application shows what fundraising opportunities are available for the interested person's already operating or planned business. The agency's new tasks include the development of the portal.

Another new task is to encourage supplier cooperation and launch supplier development programs. In addition to encouraging domestic participation in global value chains, the aim is to support the crisis resilience of domestic supplier SMEs, to have a more diversified customer base, and a more innovative product structure.

With the Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the MGFÜ launched the Automotive Supplier Development Program. Its aim is to strengthen domestic enterprises in the automotive and battery industry and to increase the proportion represented by Hungarian suppliers. Large companies operating in Hungary as customers create a joint development plan with their existing or potential supplier on the basis of which the supplier can participate in the production with a higher value-added product, or a new product.

As a business and economic development agency, according to the provisions of the ESG act, MGFÜ’s task is to increase the ESG awareness of the SME sector, preparing SMEs for ESG, organization of ESG consultant training and accreditation of institutions training ESG consultants in Hungary.

In response to the energy crisis, MGFÜ is the manager of the SME Energy Cost and Investment Support Programme, which provides support to enterprises in the manufacturing and tourism sectors to finance their increased energy costs (electricity, natural gas or district heating costs), and provides additional support for energy efficiency investments.

As an economic development agency, its mission is to build close, coordinated cooperation with organizations, government institutions and advocacy, dealing with business development, to help SMEs increase their added-value, competitiveness and organisational culture as effectively as possible. Accordingly, it has already concluded cooperation agreements with government institutions and advocacies, such as: Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, National Association of Entrepreneurs and Employers (VOSZ), KAVOSZ, and the Hungarian Development Bank.

Previous programmes

Among other things, MGFÜ managed the Future Hungarian Multinationals Program. The project promoted the development of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises with their official seat or a production site in the domestic, convergence region, through a unique, qualified pool of experts. The aim of the program was to strengthen domestic companies by encouraging internationally competitive quantitative and qualitative growth. The objective of the Green National Champions Program, as part of the Future Hungarian Multinationals Program, was to support technological change developments in high-growth potential manufacturing companies related to the green economy and industry. Three brochures have been published within the framework of the Future Hungarian Multinationals Program, presenting domestic enterprises that can serve as examples.

The aim of the Small Petrol Station Support 2022 programme was to provide targeted support to enterprises operating up to fifty public filling stations in order to guarantee security of supply in Hungary.

MGFÜ has been active in several domestic and international projects in the development of social enterprizes: GINOP 5.1.2-15, “PiacTárs” flagship project, INTERREG international projects, INTERREG EUROPE projects: Circular Regions, SOCIAL SEEDS, RaiSE, INTERREG DANUBE projects: SENSES, Finance4SocialChange, GoDanuBio, INTERREG CENTRAL projects: Social(i)Makers, Social Impact Vouchers, DelFin, CIREVALC and PROCAREFUL.