Santa Cruz de Tenerife (EFE).- The Minister of Economy of the Government of the Canary Islands, Elena Máñez, has presented this Wednesday the Smart Specialization Strategy for the Canary Islands 2021-2027 (extended RIS3), which differs from the previous one “due to its vision more insularized” to attract investment in research and innovation.
The insularized vision of this plan, approved by the Canary Islands Government Council on February 16, “will guarantee territorial cohesion” and “incorporate the capacities of each one of the islands to attract investment in research, innovation and competitive development of public and private companies”, Elena Máñez pointed out at a press conference.
Máñez, who has been accompanied by the director of the Canarian Agency for Research, Innovation and Information Society (ACIISI), Carlos Navarro, has indicated that in this way “the great challenges of Europe will be followed, in sectors such as tourism, the blue economy and strategic projects PERTE”.
Another of the novelties of the Smart Specialization Strategy of the Canary Islands 2021-2027 (extended RIS3), in the words of the Minister of Economy, is its “capacity for alienation with the opportunities of the transformation plans of the Government of Spain in the funds Recovery and Resilience Mechanism (MRR) such as the PERTE in aerospace or green hydrogen matters”.
The Smart Specialization Strategy of the Canary Islands 2021-2027 (extended RIS3) is part of “the new mandate that Europe makes to each of the territories of the European Union to promote smart, sustainable and innovative development” with the unique capacities of each territory.
As the RIS3 ended in 2020, ACIISI now creates an updated version, RIS3, to be able to access EU funds in Science and Innovation and prioritize digital and sustainable tourism, well-being and health, the industry of the blue economy, astrophysics and aeronautics industry, as well as emerging industries.
Currently, the Canary Islands invest 0.56% of GDP in R+D+i, with a public contribution of 80% and a private contribution of 20%.
The Minister of Economy, Elena Mánez, has established the objective of reaching 0.75% investment in 2024, and 1% in 2027.
However, the director of ACIISI, Carlos Navarro, has qualified that the strategy will continue until 2030.
The Minister of Economy has valued “the effort” made after the pandemic with the approval of the Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council that promotes the creation of the Canary Islands Strategy, for which the archipelago receives 1,290 million euros through the European Fund for Regional Development (FEDER), in the face of a “more resilient and competitive economic development”.
The Strategic Plan is configured with “5 strategic levers”: perspective of the generation and valuation of knowledge; talent perspective, to promote, attract and retain scientific and technological vocations; perspective of focus and prioritization, with a view to specializing in emerging sectors; and, finally, a territorial perspective, with the aim of creating a collaboration and participation network “of people, companies, institutions and public administrations”.
Elena Mánez has confirmed the detection of 33 tractor projects of public or private collaboration that, at present, “are in the process of development or already started”, framed in the Next Generation funds, which “will transform our economy”. EFE