Civil Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
economic and academic agents in a given local area, and to foster public-private
local partnerships.
The competitiveness clusters initiative is one of many policy efforts that have
been deployed in France in the past 10 years to face innovation challenges. Indeed,
with 2.23 % of its GDP devoted to R&D expenditure (GERD/GDP) in 2001,
France is not in a very strong position, compared to the 3 % Lisbon objective in
2020, but it occupies 4th place in the EU, after Sweden, Finland, and Germany.
According to the latest available data, France's R&D intensity has declined
steadily since 2002; it then improved significantly in 2008 and 2009, with
domestic R&D spending amounting to 2.21 % of GDP in 2009, virtually back up
to its 2001 level. Against this background, France's R&D target for 2020 is
ambitious but achievable, given existing and future measures, which will pay off in
the years to come, including the investments for the Future programs, the com-
petitiveness clusters initiative, innovation grants, and the development of the
digital economy.
The competitiveness cluster policy looks at: (i) facilitating public and private
partnership in research and development (R&D), promoting private investment in
R&D; (ii) supporting the development of knowledge-based small and medium size
enterprises (SMEs); and (iii) reinforcing local competitiveness and attractiveness
by facilitating cooperation among regional stakeholders and creating a local
innovation ecosystem: (La documentation Française
2008
; Bocquet et al.
2009
;
Bonnafous-Boucher et al.
2010
). Thus, this interministerial policy is a convergence
among three main policies: innovation, industrial, and regional policies.
The main objective of this chapter is to develop our understanding about the
French competitiveness clusters policy, particularly its impact on research and
development (R&D) collaboration between the private sector and research insti-
tutions on the creation and growth of knowledge-based small and medium
enterprises, and on the creation of local innovation systems. This chapter is based
on previous studies and evaluations that have been conducted by the French
government and relevant scholars.
2 Competitiveness Cluster: Basic Principle and Practices
The competitiveness clusters policy was initiated by the Interministerial Com-
mittee for Regional Planning and Development (Comite interministériel d'amén-
agement et de développement du territoire—CIADT). The name of the Committee
was changed to ''Internomisterial Committee for Regional Development and
Competitiveness (Comite interministériel d'aménagement et de competitiveité des
territoires—CIACT).'' The policy was founded on three principal axes: (i) pro-
viding financial support to specific cooperative innovation projects; (ii) supporting
the governance of the competitiveness clusters; and (iii) coordinating the public
stakeholders. The CIACT has an authority over any decisions regarding the
national policy of the competitiveness clusters.
Search WWH ::
Custom Search