Procure2Innovate Network Officially Launched in the Netherlands
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The European Union’s innovation agenda was given a boost at this year’s EcoProcura conference in Nijmegen (the Netherlands) with the official launch of a new initiative funded by the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme.
Procure2Innovate is an ambitious four-year project that aims to create a lasting European network of expertise in innovation procurement. The network is formed by “competence centres” in more than 10 European countries – centres from which experts provide advice and key services to public procurers nationwide looking to purchase innovative services and products. These could be in such areas as ICT and healthcare.
Public procurement accounts for about 14 per cent of GDP in the European Union and offers an enormous potential market for innovative products and services. This is especially the case for small- and medium-sized enterprises (or SMEs) for which the EU is particularly keen to create access to new customers.
To learn more about the project, visit the Procure2Innovate website.