EU Macro-Regional Strategies

Four EU macro-regional strategies, covering several policies, have been adopted so far.

A 'Macroregional strategy' is an integrated framework endorsed by the European Council, which may be supported by the European Structural and Investment Funds among others, to address common challenges faced by a defined geographical area relating to Member States and third countries located in the same geographical area which thereby benefit from strengthened cooperation contributing to achievement of economic, social and territorial cohesion.

S3 cooperation in the frame of the EU Macro-Regional Strategies

The EU Macro-Regional Strategies (MRS) endorsed by the European Council emphasise greater co-ordination between different stakeholders and the alignment of resources and strategies in order to address common challenges  in a defined geographical area.

To date, the European Union has put in place strategies for four  macro-regions:
These strategies all together concern 19 EU Member States and 6 non-EU countries.

The EU Macro-Regional Strategies (MRS) serve as multi-level platforms bringing together in an organised way national, regional authorities, sectorial ministries and agencies, managing authorities of programmes, academia, research, entrepreneurs, local associations and other stakeholders such as civil society to tackle the common challenges. Bottom-up approach supported by the MRS  is very important for the S3 strategies.

What is the rationale?

Cooperation in S3 at macro-regional level helps explore whether and how S3 priorities envisaged in national and regional strategies differentiate, or are complementary to, their neighbouring countries/regions. It also leads to the creation of strategic linkages to tackle common challenges when engaging in joint S3 initiatives.

By participating in macro-regional strategies, regional and national policymakers have an opportunity to:
  • Discuss the transnational dimension of S3, its importance, relevance, and practical issues
  • Learn about available analytical tools and implementation instruments, including value chain activities through cross-cluster and cross-region cooperation
  • Examine various cooperation opportunities and steps to be taken in order to stimulate transnational cooperation in areas of smart specialisation
  • Explore common interests and set up collaborative projects
  • Jointly consider how to mobilise relevant funding sources that will support their projects
  • Provide more appropriate common or coordinated replies to global issues, and thus increase the competitiveness of the macro-region.

Collaboration in S3 on macro-regional level could allow partners to take advantage of European regional diversity, as a group of regions might develop strategies based on co-evolution and complementarity. Such a collaborative approach to policymaking can be expected to boost critical mass and knowledge complexity while further supporting ongoing entrepreneurial discoveries in various types of regions

Stakeholders

The macro-regional dimension in S3 provides a wider choice of combinations of actors, areas and expertise for strategic transnational R&I partnerships in the relevant S3 priority domains. MRS aim bringing together initiatives in different sectors which represent key challenges of the strategy, such as saving the sea or increasing prosperity. The challenges are connected to a wide range of policies which are organised in policy areas or priority areas (PA). Almost all strategies address wellness and prosperity of the region through research and innovation, which is an important policy area for macro-regional cooperation: in EUBSR – PA Innovation; in EUSDR – PA Knowledge Society; in EUSALP –  PA Economic Growth and Innovation. These policy areas coordinated by the National Coordinators (NCs) are the core strategic bodies gathering actors for macro-regional collaboration in R&I and smart specialisation.

What facilitates S3 cooperation in the MRS?

To facilitate a dialogue and interaction around S3 topics in the four existing EU macro-regions, the S3 Platform works closely with the MRS Priority Area coordinators in organising S3 seminars and workshops inviting a wide range of participants involved in the design and implementation of S3 strategies. These events provide arenas for launching a dialogue and initiating transnational multi-stakeholder consortia for developing collaboration opportunities within S3 priorities or horizontal measures to improve the national and regional RIS3s.

Related links

Latest news

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Latest registration

The latest region to register is South Denmark (DK).

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Latest registration

The latest region to register is Salzburg (AT).

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Events

EVENT |
Smart Specialisation in the Arctic Regions
On 11th of October the S3 Platform invites to discuss how smart specialisation supports sustainable and innovative development of Arctic regions at Arctic Circle Assembly in Reykjavik
EVENT |
Workshop on Research and Innovation in the EUSAIR
The purpose of the Workshop held as a side event to the 3rd Annual Forum of the EUSAIR was to stimulate the debate on how to promote Research and Innovation cooperation in the Adriatic-Ionian Macro-Region (EUSAIR). Starting from an introduction on the European strategic framework, the event...
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Publications

PUBLICATION |
Smart Specialisation in the Context of Blue Economy – Analysis of Desalination Sector

The smart Specialisation strategy design and implementation offer European territories a solid paradigm for developing effective innovation governance, improving innovation policy capacities, enhancing public-private partnerships, offering common platform for inter-regional cooperation...

Jan Post, Pieter de Jong, Matt Mallory, Mathieu Doussineau, Ales Gnamus
PUBLICATION |
The EU Blue Economy Report 2021

The fourth edition of the yearly EU Blue Economy Report provides a new perspective on the impacts that several factors have on the Blue Economy, including global challenges like climate change, emerging sectors such as maritime security and surveillance, enabling frameworks such as Maritime...

Multiple Authors
PUBLICATION |
Smart Specialisation in Sparsely Populated European Arctic Regions

This report explores applications of smart specialisation in sparsely populated European Arctic Regions. The paper provides an overview of the specific context of Arctic regions and examples of how smart specialisation has been implemented there with aim to discover how smart specialisation and...

Jukka Teräs, Viktor Salenius, Laura Fagerlund and Lina Stanionyte
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