Skåne’s research parks and incubators are uniting to drive Swedish innovation
Sweden stands as a leading research nation, consistently ranking at the forefront among OECD countries in R&D investments as a percentage of GDP. However, there is room for improvement in translating research into innovative and growing companies that offer services and products beneficial to society. To address this, representatives from the regional innovation support system invited Members of the Swedish Parliament to a dialogue meeting, aiming to collectively enhance the conditions for innovative companies and their growth journey.
The Skåne-based incubators and research parks have been instrumental in job creation and fostering growth, offering appealing environments and robust business support to regional start-ups and scale-ups for decades.
Last autumn, a reduction in Vinnova’s funding for the verification of research and new technologies was announced, coupled with a significant decrease in financing for the national incubator program. This poses a risk of undermining support for small innovative companies and, ultimately, diminishing Sweden’s competitiveness.
To address these challenges, a dialogue meeting was initiated by Ideon Science Park, and arranged in close collaboration with Medicon Village, SmiLe Incubator, Minc, Medeon, Krinova, and HETCH. Representatives from all political parties in the Swedish parliament participated.
The aim was to find concrete solutions to challenges limiting growth of start-ups. Discussions covered, among other things, topics such as bureaucratic obstacles in recruiting international talent, cross-border barriers between Sweden and Denmark, and the importance of procuring Swedish innovations in the public sector.
The meeting marked the first step in a long-term dialogue with local, regional, and national politicians on how to collectively enhance conditions for SMEs to develop, secure long-term funding for innovation and business support, and ensure that research at our universities continues to evolve into products and services ready for a global market.
’We need to come together to discuss the measures we must implement and what we need to do to maintain our position as an innovation leader. It is all about transforming innovations into strong, growth-oriented companies,’ says Lotta Wessfeldt, Vice CEO of Ideon Science Park.
’Speaking with a united voice on matters related to our innovation capacity and how conditions for growth could be enhanced is key. It is in everyone’s interest for Skåne to take the lead, and for Sweden to maintain its position as a leading innovation nation. However, if we do not address these challenges, both Skåne and Sweden run the risk of falling behind,’ says Petter Hartman, CEO of Medicon Village Innovation.
For more information about the meeting, please refer to the joint press release published earlier today (in Swedish).