On the 18th of May, 2023, the National Cluster Association hosted a General Assembly in the Technology Centre Prague.

The event was attended by 30 NCA members and guests. The agenda of the General Assembly met all the requirements, and during the meeting, a new member, Jana Vykoukalova, Chairman of the CZECHIMPLANT Cluster, was elected to the Supervisory Board team.

In 2022, we successfully made the Cluster Map available to non-member cluster organisations. After extensive negotiations with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, we advocated for the validation of cluster organisation profiles in the Cluster Map as a prerequisite for submitting the OP TAK Cooperation - Clusters call.

NCA actively participates in the European Cluster Alliance (ECA) consortia and collaborates with other partners on the European Cluster Collaboration Platform (ECCP) activities. In October 2022, NCA provided support for the organisation of the European Cluster Conference and hosted two workshops under the ECCP. The conference took place on October 26-27, 2022, in Prague.

Furthermore, NCA attended the Cluster meet Regions Katowice conference on November 7-8, 2022, where represented and supported Czech clusters. The promotion of the Czech cluster industry was significantly enhanced through the successful implementation of KLASTROVINY, a valuable cluster promotion material available in both Czech and English languages. KLASTROVINY proved to be an effective tool at the European Cluster Conference.

At the end of 2022, the GoDanuBio project concluded, resulting in the creation of the Bioeconomic Atlas NCA. The Atlas introduced products and technologies from renewable biological resources by NCA members.

Since September 2022, NCA has been actively involved in the EuroCluster Rural Tourism project, which will continue throughout 2023. NCA is responsible for managing the project's website and repository. The project aims to promote digitalisation in the tourism sector.

NCA is also a participant in the eDIH NEB project, which focuses on supporting SMEs and public administrations in adopting digital technologies. The project implementation is scheduled to begin in 2023, and NCA's involvement will contribute to enhancing the efficiency and competitiveness of the participating companies.

In December 2022, NCA hosted another successful Cluster Day, this time in Kraj Vysocina. Moving into 2023, NCA will continue providing support to its members. However, there are anticipated challenges ahead.

NCA is also part of the organising team for the ECCP and supports the Cluster meet Regions in Europe, particularly in Slovakia, Sweden, and the Czech Republic. The upcoming Clusters meet Regions conference will take place on October 23-24, 2023, in Prague, organised by NCA, metacluster CEDEG, and Klastr Mechatronika on behalf of the ECCP and European Commission. The conference will focus on digitalisation, cybersecurity, clean technologies, 3D printing, and virtual reality.

Throughout 2023, NCA will continue to facilitate regular monthly online member meetings, organise in-person gatherings, conduct cluster manager and team training, promote cluster successes and KLASTROVINY, and share relevant information via the members' infoservice.

Additionally, NCA provided support for the training of two Czech experts in the ESCA cluster excellence evaluation in 2023. This enables Czech clusters to undergo the Bronze label process in their native language.

We would like to express our gratitude to everyone who attended the General Assembly and extend an invitation to the upcoming Clusters meet Regions event in Prague on October 23-24, 2023.

TEAM NCA

 

We are the National Cluster Association of the Czech Republic. We connect cluster organisations, support and encourage their growth and develop cluster policy in the Czech Republic. Would you like to learn more about the National Cluster Association and our activities? We welcome you to read our Klastroviny, a cluster magazine, where you can learn about our members, their activities and their success stories. 

The National Cluster Association is open to new partnerships and projects, the same as our members. Do not hesitate to contact us.