The Fund for Innovation and Technology Development, the Center for Transfer of Technology and Innovation at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technologies – INOFEIT and the Swiss Program for Increasing Market Employability (IME) signed a Memorandum of Cooperation, with the aim of establishing and improving mechanisms to support the processes of digital transformation among Macedonian companies through the introduction and application of digital solutions.
Through such cooperation, the importance of the digital transformation of key processes in companies is emphasized, which is essential for increasing the productivity and competitiveness of Macedonian companies and the economy as a whole.
“The successful collaboration between FITD and IME continues in the direction of development of the Macedonian eco-system by supporting the process of digital transformation and improving the level of digitization of Macedonian companies. The support of innovative digital solutions will contribute to the development of new types of innovations and accelerated growth of companies. With these activities, we will also contribute to strengthening the position of the Digital Innovation Hub at the Center for Transfer of Technology and Innovation (INOFEIT DIH) as a one-stop shop provider of digitization services” said Festim Halili, director of the Fund for Innovation and Technology Development.
The activities are scheduled to take place in two phases – in the first phase, an examination of the digitalization needs of small and medium-sized enterprises will be carried out, while in the second phase, the Fund is scheduled to announce a Call for co-financed grants for the development and implementation of innovative digital solutions.
“The digital innovation hub of INOFEIT as a provider of services to companies in terms of digital transformation will lead the first phase of the implementation of the activities foreseen by the Memorandum of Cooperation that we signed today. INOFEIT DIH with the support of the Swiss IME program will soon publish a call for companies that are interested in analyzing their digital maturity and detecting the needs for digital solutions. The analysis of companies will be done according to a methodology aligned with modern practices in EU countries with which companies will receive a detailed assessment of the potential for future digital transformation and future growth as well as key technologies/tools needed for digital transformation and raising the level of digital maturity – said Prof. Vladimir Atanasovski, manager of INOFEIT.
The activities will be aimed at companies from the domains defined by the smart specialization process: 1) smart agriculture and food with added value, 2) information and communication technologies, 3) smart and sustainable buildings and materials, and 4) machine and metalworking industry (industry 4.0), 5) tourism, and 6) energy.
“The planned activities within the framework of the Memorandum will enable the advancement of Macedonian companies in the direction of a higher degree of digitization and digital transformation. The aim of the Swiss support is to increase the digital readiness of companies, and through investments in digital solutions to improve their efficiency and productivity in operations, which will lead to greater competitiveness on the domestic and foreign markets, and at the same time will create conditions for creating new decent jobs” – said Goran Damovski, Director of the Swiss Program for Increasing Market Employability (IME).
In the next period, a Call for co-financed grants for the development and implementation of innovative digital solutions will be published in accordance with the Annual Work Program of FITD for 2022, Pillar 2 – Business Development Support, Part: Thematic Challenges – Startup Hubs and digital innovation hubs (Digital Innovation Hub – DIH), which will be followed by timely information on social media and subsequent info sessions.