Matchmaking at Balkan Summit 2026: the meetings behind the panels
Five tracks, seven sectors and one rule: a meeting only counts if it is followed up.
Balkan Summit 2026 was built as a working marketplace rather than a ceremonial conference. The panels set out the projects. The meetings were where the next step was meant to happen.
Matchmaking ran in the Meeting & Networking Hall next to the Strauss Hall, sector by sector, in five tracks:
B2B: companies meeting companies, from investors and contractors to operators and suppliers.
B2G: companies meeting the ministries and public bodies that own the projects.
G2G: governments of the three markets meeting each other.
B2IFI and G2IFI: companies and governments meeting the international financial institutions in the room.
On Monday 19 October, transport and environment met at 13:30, then energy and AI data centres, and the Mediterranean Games with tourism and hospitality, at 16:00. On Tuesday 20 October, agri-food met at 11:15, and industry and manufacturing and digital services at 13:30. An extra hour was added from 14:45 so that speakers from the afternoon sessions could take meetings too.
Meetings were proposed by sector and role, so that each participant sat down with the ministries, financiers or companies most relevant to their business. Bilateral meetings also ran throughout both days outside the scheduled hours.
What comes out of those meetings is tracked. The summit's commitment is a structured 30, 60 and 90-day follow-up of every meeting, and a public outcomes report at 90 days. We explain how that works in our article on what happens after the summit.
Balkan Summit 2026 took place in Prishtina from 18 to 21 October 2026, at the Emerald Hotel.