Czech Republic:

The objective of the OP EIC is to achieve a competitive and sustainable economy based on knowledge and innovation. The term “competitive” includes the ability of local companies to become competitive at world markets thanks to delivery highly innovative solutions and such create new jobs. The term “sustainable” accentuates the long-term horizon of competitiveness, which also includes the environmental dimension of economic growth.

Characteristics:

The programme is focused on the promotion of research and development for innovation, development of SMEs’ entrepreneurship and competitiveness, energy savings and development of high-speed internet access networks and information and communication technologies.

Priority or Measure Concerned:

Priority axis 1 Development of Research and Development for Innovations – this priority directly targets delivery of innovative solutions as defined in RIS3, including Home Care solutions

Reasons why it should be improved:

Main challenge for the improvement lies in strengthening innovation performance of domestic enterprises and increase their abilities and capacities. The number of the local origin entities participating in innovative chains should significantly rise together with number of innovative projects and efficiency of using supportive funding.

Slovenia:

Objective:

•  finding way to economic recovery & breaking the trend of Slovenia's moving away from the average EU development level;
• ensuring prosperity for all citizens;
• putting a decisive stop to passive, cyclical changes by transforming them into lasting structural improvements.

Priority or Measure Concerned: 

• Primary: International competitiveness of research, innovation & technological development in line with smart specialisation for enhanced competitiveness & greening of the economy (R&D, promoting business investment in R&D); more efficient investment in research, development and innovation; Increased share of innovation-active enterprises
• Possible synergy effect: Social inclusion & poverty reduction. Enhancing access to affordable, sustainable, and high quality services, including health care and social services of general interest.

Reasons why it should be improved:

This Structural Fund is new instrument & it is prepared for the period 2014-2020, which means it will be regularly updated and it needs to be improved. There are several actions aimed towards strengthening research, technological development, innovation and quadruple-helix cooperation, but not much emphasis is given to the links between SMEs innovations and area of Health care (telecare, telehealth). There should be a better mechanism for co-ordinating activities in telecare and telehealth within and between government directorates, research organisations, the (health) care services and SMEs.

Cyprus:

Objective:

“Promotion of holistic, integrated, complex and multi-parameter solutions that will enhance the competitiveness of the priority sectors”.

“Expansion of the ability of the RTDI system to produce results of high standards and utilize them for the benefit of the competitiveness of the economy and social advancement/progress”

“Development of substantial/valid links and synergies between the elements of the guardable helix”

In sectors: “Health: e-health… In addition, the Environment and the ICT were defined as important sectors of horizontal character” and “ICT: ICT Application, Future Technologies”

Priority or Measure Concerned:

Priority Axis 2: “Fostering the use of ICT”

Priority Investment 2c: “Enhancing ICT applications for e-government, e-learning, e-inclusion, e-culture and e-health”.

Reasons why it should be improved:

The specific instrument refers primary to the public, semi-public and local authorities on national level. A more inclusive strategy should be followed, therefore through the project’s activities we will seek to examine how the quadruple-helix approach could be adjusted and fit in the selected measure.

Bulgaria:

Objective:

Encouraging business investment in R&D, development of relations and cooperation between enterprises, R&D centres and the university sector, in particular the promotion of investment in the development of products and services, technology transfer.

 Characteristics:

According to the needs identified at national level within OPIC 2014-2020, this priority axis includes support for technological development and innovation in order to increase innovation activities of enterprises.

Priority or Measure Concerned:

Priority axis 1 is “Technological Development and Innovation" (TO1), which is in line with the Innovation Strategy for Smart Specialisation (RIS3);

Reasons why it should be improved:

As the scale and scope of the instruments for answering the societal challenges increases, their interaction becomes more important, as do constraints on administrative feasibility. Current approach focus purely on triple-helix cooperation, the clear link between delivery of innovative solutions and needs supported by another Structural Fund in Bulgaria is missing. To maximize efficiency of allocated funds, there should be introduced quadruple-helix approach in OPIC to interlink needs for innovation with delivery of innovation and also to further incorporate the aspects of public driven innovation into the OPIC framework.

Romania:

The COP 2014-2020 addresses the challenges stemming from the low support for RDI and the under-developed ICT services and infrastructure. COP aims to contribute to bolster the competitiveness of the Romanian economy. The main direction of investment in RDI is to build a more compact and modern R&D environment that focuses on the businesses' needs and to deliver innovation and research outputs of highest quality.

COP supports investment to economic competitiveness particularly in respect of (a) insufficient support for research, development and innovation (RDI) and (b) ICT infrastructure underdeveloped and so, by default, undeveloped services, thus positioning itself as a driver of horizontal interventions in the economy and society, capable to induce growth and sustainability.

Priority Axes:

A1. Research, development and innovation supporting economic competitiveness and the development of businesses

A2. Information and communication technologies for a competitive digital economy

Reasons why it should be improved:

There was experienced the low rate of SF absorption in COP instrument in previous programing period. The reasons were lack of high quality project, complex application and implementation process, which was not suitable to innovative enterprises and lack of clarity and mainstreaming of opened calls to address priority areas, where is the strong potential in Romania to deliver innovative solutions in regional innovation ecosystems.

Lithuania:

Objective:

Promotion of innovations in SME’s. Instrument has been designed to encourage co-operation between business and research institutions.

Characteristics:

Support is done through Innovation vouchers which are more in line with the philosophy of today’s companies, where small, short term projects dominates and best way to support is affording “quick money”. The appeal of the innovation vouchers scheme is related to its simplicity and low administrative burden both for beneficiaries and administrators.

Supported activities:

Research;

Technological development;

Technical feasibility studies.

Innovation voucher helps business and scientific co-operation, speed up research and knowledge transfer and innovative business ideas and commercialization of research results. Companies are encouraged to use the latest scientific achievements and research.

Priority or Measure Concerned:

Priority axis 1 - Strengthening research, technological development and innovation

Reasons why it should be improved:

On one hand, responsible body (Ministry of Economy) feels that more impact could be generated from the funds. On other hand, evolution of businesses and their needs clearly indicates that traditional public support services should be more dynamic and versatile. Drawing from the past experience and existing data, the main future challenges for this instrument is related to increasing the efficiency and impact and introduction of alternative solutions – like Quadruple-helix approach.

Hungary:

GINOP is the largest national SF programme of Hungary, allocating more than 8 billion Euro for improving the country’s competitiveness. It mainly targets less developed regions, but applying the relevant flexibility rules, also partly addresses Central-Hungary. It creates synergies and complementarities among all other SF programmes of Hungary, incl. the Competitive Central-Hungary regional OP. Priority Axis (PA) 2 is dedicated to improving research, technology and innovation via 1) strengthening R&I capacities and improving connectivity with international networks to increase participation in H2020 programme; 2) increasing R&I activity in businesses; and 3) improving strategic R&I networks and cooperation among innovative SMEs and research institutions. PA8 complements these measures with financial instruments to be made available to SMEs. Innovation support under PA2 and PA8 specifically targets smart specialisation sectors identified by the national S3, incl. the priority “Healthy society and wellbeing”, which promotes the widespread use of advanced health industry technologies in order to maintain and improve the general health condition of the society.

Past experiences shows there is a risk of lack of high quality projects, such impact and efficiency of allocated funds is endangered. Aim is to implement in GINOP structures of Quadruple-Helix approach to target this issue.

Portugal: 

Targeted structural fund ( in short Madeira 14-20 ) seeks to mitigate the problems of accessibility to social infrastructure and health care of the citizens of RAM, especially of their rural populations, through investment in the regional health system, with its strategic priorities:

• Delivery of innovative Home Care solutions by regional companies ( in field of health and social care)

• Strengthening the capacity assistance;

• Health care delivery to users;

• Strengthening disease prevention and health promotion through structured investments at the level of primary and hospital health care and in cross-cutting areas of support.

 With HoCare project the IDERAM - Business Development Institute of the Autonomous Region of Madeira aims to improve the effectiveness, efficiency and impact of this specific policy instrument by realizing actions related to the provision of home care services developed through a quadruple helix strategy involving governmental organizations and its structures, universities, companies and business associations as well as movements of citizens committed to the well-being and social inclusion. The main issue to be target is the weakness in delivery of innovative solutions targeting local needs in the framework of tackled Structural funds.