The strategy is aimed at the future and a change in the Portuguese economy's specialisation profile, i.e. it is based on innovation, competitiveness and a change in behaviour and attitudes.
The COMPETE Programme's management authority is responsible for recognising, monitoring and assessing the CESs in clusters, which may take two forms:
- Competitiveness and technology poles;
- Other clusters.
On 15 July, by order of the Minister of the Environment, Spatial Planning and Regional Development, Minister of the Economy and Innovation, Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education, Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Fishery and Minister of Labour and Social Solidarity, 19 collective efficiency strategies for clusters were officially recognised: 11 competitiveness and technology poles and eight clusters.
On 17 July 2009, their recognition agreements were signed at a public session at the Lisbon Congress Centre in Junqueira.
The action programmes involve a total of 108 anchor projects and an expected investment of around 650 million euros.
Pursuant to Article 9 of the Collective Efficiency Strategy Framework, projects considered to belong to one of the CES-Clusters will have access to higher incentives, provided that they are set out in the applicable specific regulations, and to special calls for applications or specific budget allocations in general calls for applications.
The criteria for inclusion in projects in recognised CES-Clusters and their sectoral and territorial framework, which have already been published, are a key reference for access to these preferential conditions.
What are competitiveness and technology poles?
Competitiveness and technology poles are highly oriented towards markets and international visibility and the action programme is firmly anchored to activities with a high TR&D, innovation and knowledge content.
The purpose of the network of players that supports these centres' activity is to leverage sustainable national and corporate competitiveness and attract more new investments with high value added, with a view to structural changes oriented towards intelligent future investments.
What are other clusters?
Other clusters are highly market-oriented, but improvement in their competitiveness results from their closer sharing of common assets and the creation of critical mass that makes it possible to undertake innovative projects and orient companies towards international markets.
They share with the competitiveness and technology centres the need for innovative vision oriented towards future activities, albeit possibly with less science and technology content.
What do we want to achieve?
The aims of implementing competitiveness and technology poles and recognised other clusters, are:
- Strategic focus - foster a strategic market-oriented vision compatible with future challenges and offering gains in efficacy and efficiency;
- International competition - international assertion of national and regional companies, products and technologies, thereby helping to increase exports and market shares, improve the country's technological balance, increase productivity and generate qualified employment;
- Structural projects - undertake structural projects with an important impact on the country to act as a foundation for new products and solutions, qualify traditional industries and encourage new businesses in the future;
- Investment in R&D and innovation - undertake technology research and development projects that increase the value added of national products and their exports, while boosting involvement between institutions in the national innovation system;
- Cooperation of players - organise and promote joint, common and cooperation projects between companies and with support organisations, thereby catalysing a new approach to creativity and innovation focusing on sharing and the multiplication of effects generated by a confluence of know-how.