Bucharest-Ilfov
Romania
Regional
context
Bucharest-Ilfov it is an emerging innovator region that comprises the municipality of Bucharest and the surrounding Ilfov county. Located by the Black Sea, it is a major economic hub, accommodating international companies from the financial and technological sectors, and several industrial parks and manufacturing facilities.
The regions counts on companies in the energy, manufacturing, and banking sectors (e.g., OMV Petrom, 12.4B€ revenues in 2022; Automobile Dacia, 4.3B€; Rompetrol Rafinare, 2.5B€) are potential big buyers as well as SMEs and R&D centres in the ICT, healthcare, optoelectronics, nanotechnology, advanced materials, and bioeconomy industries.
Alignment with RIS3 strategy
The RIS3 strategy (Research and Innovation Smart Specialization Strategy) focuses on the development of innovation across key areas like ICT, healthcare, energy, and advanced materials. Bucharest-Ilfov’s alignment with this strategy is seen in its support for R&D, fostering innovation in public procurement, and the encouragement of private-public partnerships. Through projects like iBuy and collaborations between BIRDA and local clusters (Rohealth), the region leverages EU funding to support innovation-led growth.
Importance of PREPARE for the region
The PREPARE project is critical for Bucharest-Ilfov as it supports public sector innovation, especially in terms of public procurement strategies. This project offers a framework that helps the region address procurement challenges and accelerates innovation by creating a supportive environment for local SMEs, research centers, and industries. With its focus on enhancing collaboration among key stakeholders and boosting innovation capacity, PREPARE aims to drive economic development and competitiveness in Bucharest-Ilfov.
Regional Partners
Rohealth is a cluster of 91 enterprises in the healthcare and bioeconomy sector, and one of the 11 “Gold Label” clusters in Europe. It promotes and supports cooperation through sustainable national and international partnerships between private companies, universities, research organizations and public entities/authorities. Rohealth has participated in the PRONTO (EU COSME, 2020-2023) project, aimed at supporting public procurers in implementing PPI solutions. It regularly collaborates with the Bucharest-Ilfov Regional Development Agency (see below) in competitive EU and national funding calls, with a success rate of 3 EU-funded projects per year.
The Bucharest-Ilfov Regional Development Agency (BIRDA)v is a non-governmental, non-profit institution established in 1999 to promote and support sustainable development in the region, through services to the public and private sector. It is the coordinator of all regional innovation strategies financed by European and national R&D programmes, including the development of its RIS3. BIRDA participated in iBuy (ERDF, 2014-20), a project dedicated to developing innovative inP models that encourage public authorities to start acting from the demand side of innovation, boosting innovation through public procurement.
Relevant Regional Stakeholders
The EIT RIS Hubs and other innovation clusters for specific sectors (e.g., Mechatrec), accelerators/incubators (e.g., Impact Hub, Tech Hub), and technological and business parks (e.g. Magurele Science Park).
