Clusters are tool for implementation of smart specialisation strategy

On 27-28 April 2015, in Brussels, GROW your REGIOn conference took place. It brings together European Commission's representatives, regional policy makers, cluster practitioners and business stakeholders. Mr. Peter Statev and Ms. Anna Naydenova  took part in the event as a representatives of ICT Cluster.

The main message of the EC high level representatives from DG GROW and DG REGIO was that Clusters are tool for implementation of the smart specialisation strategy, they can bring in knowledge needs to make smart specialisation successful.

The main outcomes of the conference and interactive discussions are:

·         Moving from accidental to systemic approach to help winners emerge. This requires thinking outside the box and an open space for cross-fertilisation in order to find complementarities

·         Clusters are key, but they need a conducive framework of funding, commitment, and support for smart specialisation

·         Building trust is critical for cooperation and involves focusing on strengths, adding value and connecting the right people

·         Visualisation is needed to show the way by moving from abstract to concrete and from past, present to the future in order to demonstrate a long-term vision

·         Smart specialisation was reflected in the emphasis on niche development, identifying own advantages, and being the starting point for internationalisation

Video form the conference: Here