Quebec to invest $32 million for the creation of regional innovation hubs
The Government of Quebec announced Monday that it will invest more than $32 million to support the creation and implementation of 18 regional innovation hubs and a national network as part of the its future Entrepreneurship Action Plan 2017-2022, which will be announced soon. The mandate to form the national network of regional innovation hubs is entrusted to the Shawinigan Digihub.
Regional innovation hubs will be focal points for entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation and will aim to stimulate collaboration and consultation between the various socio-economic actors. They will also help steer current or future entrepreneurs to specialized support services or to help them seize business opportunities, in collaboration with existing regional partners. The Government of Quebec will allocate a maximum of $400,000 per year per regional cluster for a total investment of $28.8 million over four years. A call for projects from regional socio-economic organizations to consult each other and submit their proposals by April 30, was also launched Monday.
"Entrepreneurship is a priority for the Government of Quebec and one of the pillars of its vision of economic development, lik innovative manufacturing and exporting,” said Stéphane Billette, Minister Delegate for Small and Medium Enterprises, Regulatory Reduction and Regional Economic Development “With today's announcement, we are proposing a new model to encourage it and to encourage the retention and attraction of young people in all our regions. The regional innovation hubs will encourage the sharing of ideas and stimulate collaboration in regional entrepreneurial ecosystems by promoting consultation with existing actors"
The regional innovation hub network will receive $1 million in the first year and $750,000 per year for the next three. Its function will be to facilitate communication between hubs to assist them in setting them up and to create alliances and synergies between them.
"Entrepreneurship is a priority for the Government of Quebec and one of the pillars of its vision of economic development, such as innovative manufacturing and exporting. With today's announcement, we are proposing a new model to encourage it and to encourage the retention and attraction of young people in all our regions. The regional innovation hubs will encourage the sharing of ideas and stimulate collaboration in regional entrepreneurial ecosystems by promoting consultation with existing actors."
Regional innovation hubs will be located in the 17 regions of Quebec and in the Magdalen Islands. They will collaborate with various partners, including entrepreneurship support organizations, accelerators and incubators, businesses, startups, niches and centers of excellence, universities and colleges, research centers and universities. technology transfer colleges, members of Quebecinnove, as well as government partners Digital technology will play a central role in communication and networking among the various actors in regional innovation hubs.