Overview
The National Operational Programme for "Research and Competitiveness" 2007-2013 (NOP for R&C) is Italy's means of contributing towards the development of a European Union Cohesion Policy for Italy's least-favoured regions.
In this regard, Italy and the European Union have agreed that a significant part of European Structural Funds should be invested in research and innovation in the four regions within the "Convergence" Objective (Puglia, Calabria, Sicily and Campania).
The objective is to transform these regions into drivers of social and economic development.
To accomplish this objective the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR), in its capacity as Managing Authority (MA), and the Ministry of Economic Development (MiSE), in its capacity as Intermediate Body (IB), have been called upon to administer more than €6 billion and to define and implement several measures to be planned and used comprehensively.
The scope of these measures is to produce positive effects on the lives of citizens, on business competitiveness and on employment prospects for younger generations.
The Programme therefore includes several measures, some administered by MIUR and some by MiSE. Specific measures have also been included in the Cohesion Action Plan (CAP), which was developed by Italy in 2012. The scope of these measures is to adapt some interventions coherently and functionally to the new social needs that have arisen from the present economic crisis.
MIUR and MiSE have allocated the available funds towards a structured set of measures.
MIUR measures includes the following domains:
- Industrial Research
- High Technology Districts and Public-Private Laboratories
- Structural Improvement
- Smart Cities and Communities
- Social innovation
MISE measures includes:
- Guarantee Fund (Access to credit)
- Development Contracts
- Technological Innovation
- Innovative investments
- Business creation
- Internships
- Industry improvement