PM Krivokapić: Smart specialisation is the basis for accelerated economic development

Prime Minister Zdravko Krivokapić chaired the first session of the new Council for Innovation and Smart Specialisation, which is a key advisory body to the Government in achieving goals for the development of the economy and society based on knowledge and innovation. According to the law, the Council manages innovation activities through cooperation between state administration bodies, local self-government units, the economy and other entities.

In the previous period, through the information on the implementation of the Action Plan for the implementation of the Smart Specialisation Strategy (2019-2024) for the period 2019-2020, it was determined that the expected results were not achieved. In addition to inadequate coordination, what has also caused limitations in the implementation of policy instruments is the lack of a clear national structure for the implementation of the Strategy, as well as imprecise definition of roles between institutions and uncoordinated action of actors in the S3 ecosystem.

On that occasion, the President of the Council, Prime Minister Krivokapić, pointed out that smart specialisation is the basis for accelerated economic development, and that it is necessary to connect three key pillars, namely research and development, innovation and human capital.

There is great human potential, but we did not use it. That is why the additional role of this Council is to help all of us to improve the processes, so that these processes have a visible result, said Prime Minister Krivokapić.

The Council reviewed and adopted the Information on the Development of Innovation Policy and Smart Specialisation in Montenegro, presented by Minister of Economic Development Jakov Milatović, which provides an overview of important results achieved by the Ministry in this area.

I am especially pleased that our reform activities in the past year have resulted in a significant increase in investment in innovation for 2022, during which the innovation community will have about 7.5 million euros at its disposal, said Milatović.

State Secretary at the Ministry of Economic Development Milena Lipovina Božović presented the National S3 Implementation Framework, prepared on the basis of a proposal from the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (DG JRC), taking into account the specifics of the Montenegrin innovation ecosystem, which was adopted by the Council.

The Council also gave a positive opinion on a very important development document, i.e. the Operational Programme for the Implementation of the Smart Specialisation Strategy 2021-2024 with the Action Plan 2021-2022, prepared by the Ministry of Economic Development in cooperation with all relevant actors in the innovation system, which has 12 operational objectives and 65 activities. EUR 70.5 million has been allocated for the implementation of the programme.

Furthermore, in cooperation with the UNDP, expert support was provided to the work of the Council, based on the Memorandum of Understanding signed on 27 September between the Ministry of Economic Development and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The Council also appointed the S3 National Coordinator, Marijeta Barjaktarović Lanzardi, Acting Director General of the Directorate for Digital Economy and Technological Development in the Ministry of Economic Development. The Council will hold its next (second) session in the first quarter of 2022.

The Council for Innovation and Smart Specialisation has 17 members: in addition to the competent ministers and Montenegro's Chief Negotiator with the EU, there are also representatives of the academic and economic sector, as well as a representative of the Union of Montenegrin Municipalities. Also, the Investment Agency of Montenegro participates in the work of the Council due to the special importance of networking investment priorities, which are in line with smart specialisation.