On the occasion of the General Assembly of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Côte d’Azur, emphasis was placed on the opportunities that European institutions can offer the business world through various legislative frameworks.
Although, unfortunately, the information is not as fluid as desired, many projects, framed within the priority axes of community action, can be funded to boost the competitiveness of the territory and businesses (see, for example, the ERMIS project).
It is therefore urgent that a strategic reflection is put in place to prepare positions (targets and actions) concerning the structural funds of the European plan 2014-2020, which for the PACA Region should be 800 million euros!
The Chamber of Commerce and Industry must be able to play, with the support of businesses, a pivotal role in supporting this policy in the fields of energy economy, SME competitiveness, technological research and development, and access to ICT.
The Côte d’Azur is a hotbed of innovation, particularly with the Sophia-Antipolis technopole, which brings together on one site innovative SMEs, global companies in cutting-edge sectors, effective research and development networks, and educational institutions.
The ERMIS project, a European project launched in 2000, aims to play a catalytic role in proposing effective tools and methods to territories to develop entrepreneurship and innovation in SMEs.
The CCI is the leader of this project, which brings together 15 partners across the European Union.
In the Azorean territory, ERMIS has strengthened synergies between the Sophia Antipolis Agglomeration Community and the CCI, leading to the creation of a Business Pôle that will host more than 60 start-ups by 2013.
