A research, development and innovation (RDI) fund, “Support for innovation and sustainability in Tunisia”, endowed with 5 million dinars, was launched on Tuesday at a press briefing organized by the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy.
It aims to stimulate the growth potential of Tunisian SMEs operating in the industrial and related services sector, and seeking to undertake RDI projects in collaboration with public or private players, service providers or relevant clusters. Launched in partnership with the European Union and the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the fund also aims to support research, development and innovation projects in collaboration with public and private centers and service providers.
According to the Ministry, the fund is committed to financing collaborative RDI projects, thus offering an opportunity to high-potential companies. It is part of a vision that lies at the core of the Industrial and Innovation strategy for Horizon 2035.
To this end, three funding priorities have been identified: innovation, digitalization and environmental sustainability. The fund will be managed by Smart Capital and the “Tunisia Technoparks” association.The creation of this fund is part of the “Qualitative Growth for Employment” project implemented by the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), in partnership with the Tunisian Ministry of Industry. It is mandated by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and co-financed by the European Union (EU) to modernize Tunisian industry in terms of economic and ecological sustainability in priority sectors.
The agreement relating to the creation of this fund was signed by the head of the Ministry’s cabinet, Ahlem Beji Sayeb, the GIZ representative, Asma Hamouda, the Managing Director of Smart Capital, Alaya Bettaieb, the President of the Technopole Association and Hichem Turki, CEO of the Sousse “Novation City” Technopole.
TunisianMonitorOnline
