Researchers from the University of Vaasa, Finland, together with the Regional Council of Ostrobothnia, have created an innovative model to help regions implement smart specialisation policy. The research-based model has spread to other countries around the Baltic Sea and given the Region of Ostrobothnia a reputation as a pioneer in the European Union.
Smart specialisation is the European Union’s regional approach to innovation policy, which has encouraged regions to develop their own areas of specialisation based on local strengths and opportunities. In Finland, different regions have developed their own smart specialisation strategies.
“Smart specialisation is the EU’s response to global economic competition from the USA, Japan, and China. The aim is to find a region’s strengths – the industries, products, services, and skills that would make it more succesful,” says Antti Mäenpää, Assistant Professor in Regional Studies at University of Vaasa.
Smart specialisation will support research, development, and innovation in the region. For example, EU Structural Fund programmes give a very high priority to smart specialisation, to the extent that some projects have to take smart specialisation into account to receive any funding at all. Smart specialisation is achieved by applying entrepreneurial discovery through interaction between government and the private sector.
The Connectivity Model, jointly built by the University of Vaasa and the Regional Council of Ostrobothnia, helps regional developers to identify bottlenecks in cooperation and strengthens the dialogue between different stakeholders. The model was developed at the university by Antti Mäenpää, assistant professor in regional studies, Seija Virkkala, Professor Emeritus, and Åge Mariussen, who worked many years as a researcher at the University of Vaasa.
Prof. Antti Mäenpää. Regional Studies. University of Vaasa, Finland.
