Entrepreneurial development niches for Interreg
Author: Vassilen Iotzov
This article introduces potential niches for Interreg programmes in relation to entrepreneurial development in cross-border and transnational functional areas (FAs).
The ideas presented here have been inspired by an exchange between ESPON, Interreg stakeholders and representatives of the Directorates-General (DGs) for Research and Innovation and for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs within the framework of the ESPON transnational outreach project.
The synergies observed between Interreg, the framework programme for research and innovation (Horizon 2020) and the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) can be clustered into two main domains (see graph above) Both domains are considered niches for Interreg programmes, as they delineate areas of intervention that account for the place-variant needs of a cross-border or transnational FA (spatial heterogeneity) and control for possible deadweight risks, i.e. overlaps with activities carried out in the context of place-invariant innovation and entrepreneurial support schemes.