€6m Cluster Excellence Programme call for proposals launched

Submitted by Lee Gibson on 04 November 2020

A €6 million call for proposals has been launched looking for partnerships that could strengthen management excellence and facilitate exchanges and strategic connections between clusters across Europe.

Open exclusively to organisations registered, or having submitted a registration request, to the European Cluster Collaboration Platform (ECCP), the overall objective of this action is to enhance the collaboration, networking and learning of cluster organisations and their members, including through implementation of the recently-launched ClusterXchange mobility scheme.  

The ultimate aim is to improve the specialised and customised business support that cluster organisations provide to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), helping to boost their competitiveness and expand into international markets whilst fostering the green and digital transitions of the European economy.

The activities to be implemented by such partnerships must at least comprise the following:

  • Supporting the development of cluster management skills, new services for cluster members and the organisation of twinning, collaboration, networking and learning activities as well as joint activities for implementing business-to-business (B2B) and cluster-to-cluster (C2C) collaboration projects
  • Running a ClusterXchange by facilitating the promotion, recruitment, matching and follow-up of short-term exchanges from cluster organisations, SMEs, training providers, scaling-up support organisations, large companies and staff from public authorities and innovation agencies that are active in a cluster from a COSME participating country
  • Carrying out outreach and awareness-raising activities to emphasize the role of Excellence partnerships

It is planned that around 12 proposals will be selected with up to €500,000 available to each via the European Commission's competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises (COSME) programme.

The deadline for the submission of proposals is 2 February 2021 (17.00 CET).

Find out more here.

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