Research & Innovation in Belgium
Research and Innovation in the Walloon Region
The Walloon Region is located at the heart of Europe.
It aims to be a region with a good quality of life, where it is
a pleasure to learn, take initiatives, teach, perform research,
innovate and produce.
The Region intends to broaden its horizons by forging new alliances
with those who share its interests, or who display essential complementary
qualities.
The Walloon Region attracts researchers from all
over the world, especially in those areas where it has proved its
competence. Proof of this is the large percentage of foreign researchers
(15% to 20%) in Walloon universities and companies. It particularly
welcomes researchers from Western and Eastern Europe.
In this context, in order to welcome more researchers
from non-EU member states at the universities of Wallonia-Brussels,
the Region recently launched a programme called "International Elite".
Scholarships will be granted to researchers undertaking work sponsored
by a company or one of the Walloon research centres.
An important part of its research budget is dedicated
to projects initiated by business and/or the universities.
As
far as industrial research is concerned, the Walloon Region
stimulates technological innovation by encouraging the development
of new products, processes and services.
The Region provides :
-
grants and refundable loans for companies.
The Region also commissions mandates from companies, with a
view to consolidating co-operation with universities;
-
follow-up of the EUREKA tool in business;
-
management of resources provided to companies
under structural funds and international programmes such as
EUCLIDE.
The Region is eager to develop innovation in SMEs.
It has therefore drawn up several policy
schemes grants such as:
-
RIT (Responsable à l'Innovation Technologique)
grants for subsidising the salaries of persons at SMEs investigting
the prospects of and areas related to innovation. It includes
a technical support (ST) scheme which pays for a feasibility
study;
-
technical and economic assistance (ETE) tackles
strategic marketing;
-
sectoral studies (ES) are used to analyse a
specific sector with a view to targeting technological clusters
that could be exploited by SMEs;
-
feasibility studies of innovative software
(LI) are provided for software companies;
-
RIT Europe examines the possibility of developing
technological co-operation with one or several SMEs located
in one or more EC member states, other than Belgium.
A new decree of the Walloon government concerning
a different approach to NTICs will enable the promotion of e-commerce
business and an "RIT NTIC" to be set up.
Moreover, the Walloon Region supports "inventors"
by enabling them to develop and finalise new products on their own
without requiring any corporate assistance. This grant covers the
costs of protecting industrial property rights, of producing a prototype
and carrying out tests by a certified body.
The Region indirectly supports SMEs by funding
thirty research centres, which perform research programmes in important
areas for innovation. The Walloon Region also financially supports
the activities of 50 "guides", i.e. scientific experts attached
to these centres supporting and advising businesses, especially
SMEs, in matters relating to innovation.
As
far as university research is concerned, Wallonia is renowned
over the world for its vast scientific resources that are undoubtedly
one of its greatest assets. In an effort to enhance and develop
this potential, the Region has launched several university (or equivalent)
research projects focused on general issues, the results of which
are likely to be of interest to existing companies or might lead
to the creation of new undertakings.
The anticipated results should provide the potential
user with complete and reliable data as reference material for applied
research and technological developments. In the medium term, Walloon
companies will be provided with leading-edge scientific information
and know-how enabling them to devise new technological products,
services and innovative processes.
Moreover, the Region has always attached great
importance to the protection of results. Specific research units
will in future be granted financial support for this purpose.
The Walloon Region is aware of the importance of
R&D personnel. It has therefore implemented special programmes aimed
at training researchers.
A substantial part of its research budget is dedicated
to projects initiated by business and universities.
The Region has also launched several "mobilising programmes". Examples
of these are "Biomaterials", "Bioval" and "From digital to multimedia".
As regards to the environment, the Region funds a programme aimed
at curbing noise pollution. It has also launched the programme "Wallonie-Développement-Université"
(Wallonia-Development-University), intended to stimulate new ideas
and initiatives relating mainly to the priorities of the Fifth Framework
Programme.
While the Region's RDT budget has grown consistently
in recent years, efforts still need to be made in order to increase
the budget allocated to research as in most other European countries.
The current budget imposes a certain selection: rather than tackling
all areas of research with its limited means, the Region has decided
to target those that best suit its potentiel. Particular attention
is given to those areas of research that focus on current scientific
and technological transformations and meet the social, environmental
and economic challenges these changes bring about.
The Region also funds research aimed at broadening
scientific knowledge or developing basic technologies in forward-looking,
fast-developing sectors.
The Region's interdisciplinary research potential
must also be stressed, particularly in the fields of life sciences,
nanotechnologies, information and communication technology, aeronautics
and space research. These scientific fields will be amongst the
priorities of the New Framework Programme.
The Region has a long history of international
collaboration and plays an active role in the research programmes
funded by the European Union, especially those of the Fifth Framework
Programme. The Walloon Region also collaborates with several European
(EUREKA, COST, ESA...) and international (WHO, UNESCO, NIH, NATO...)
organisations.
The Region is fully involved in the European Research
Area. It participates in numerous networks and attaches importance
to co-ordinating the implementation of regional and European research
programmes, by encouraging researchers to work abroad and making
the Walloon Region as attractive as possible to foreign researchers,
particularly by promoting spin-offs and easy access to venture capital.
Participation in European programmes is fostered
by means of the "Horizon
Europe" grant, which covers part of the cost of developing
and mounting an RTD project to the European Commission or with a
view to obtaining the EUREKA label.
Thanks to the European "Objective 1" subsidies,
several centres of excellence and reference units have been set
up mainly in the province of Hainaut. These include the "Centre
de Ressources technologiques en Chimie (Certech)" (Technological
Resources Centre for Chemistry), the "Institut de Biologie et de
Médecine Moléculaire (IBMM)" (Institute of Biology and Molecular
Medicine), Materia Nova, the "Centre d'excellence en technologies
de l'information et de la communication (Cetic)" (Centre of Excellence
for Information and Communication Technologies), Multitel and the
"Centre International de la Terre et de la Pierre" (International
Earth and Stone Centre).
These centres cooperate actively with business and contribute to
the creation of new enterprises.
Within the framework of the 1998 RIS programme
(Regional Innovation Strategy) the Walloon Region started working
on a project entitled "Prométhée".
The purpose of this project was to design a research and innovation
strategy for Wallonia. It was geared towards getting to know more
about the innovation potential of Wallonia and disseminating this
information. Forty key technologies were chosen in accordance with
social demand, current and future technological evolution and the
assets of Wallonia in terms of science and industry.
The project also encouraged the creation of structured innovation
"clusters" focused on one or several of the forty technologies mentioned
above.
It also aimed at implementing mechanisms to support innovation,
sharing out the tasks amongst the various players and defining their
missions and mutual cooperation.
To promote scientific and industrial contacts,
the Walloon Region has set up a directory
of its innovative companies.
This directory provides details of the R&D activities of the companies
as well as the industrial applications and services relating to
them. Its aim is to promote the research potential of Walloon companies
in Belgium and abroad and to strengthen the cooperation programmes
between them and with the universities.
The Region also produces a CD-ROM listing these
innovative companies and the RDT grants funded by the European Commission.
The Region attaches great importance to the relationship
between industry and universities. It commissions projects from
both companies and universities aimed at developing the exchange
of information between the two sectors.
Priority is also given to the transfer of university
research results. The Region provides funding for experts working
for the interface units of universities and covers the costs of
legal protection of the university research projects it funds.
In order to stimulate the creation of spin-offs, appointments are
made available for university researchers who wish to study the
conditions for industrial and commercial exploitation of the results
of their research.
The appraisal of recently created spin-offs is very positive indeed.
Examples include: BABEL, Eurogentec, HENOGEN, IBA, IRIS. IBA and
IRIS are quoted on the stock market in Brussels.
With a view to fostering the development of new
firms, several Seed Capital Funds have been formed close to major
universities. The Region has numerous public and/or
private risk capital companies, which adapt their services to the
various stages of a project. To promote industrial activity, the
Region collaborates with nine inter-municipal associations which
manage 130 industrial and/or scientific areas.
Several initiatives have been launched in order
to stimulate the interest of young people in research and scientific
careers. The "Parc d'Aventures Scientifiques"
(Science Adventure Park) is a particular example, including exhibitions,
interactive activities and games as well as scientific observatories.
It is a unique site, which combines the authenticity of a listed,
ancient coalmine with fascinating, futuristic architecture.
Throughout the Belgian Presidency of the European
Union, the Region will strive to promote negotiations within the
context of the New Framework Programme and adopt legislation on
the Community Patent.
Contact:
DGTRE - Direction Générale des Technologies, de la Recherche et
de l'Energie (General Directorate of Technology, Research and Energy)
http://mrw.wallonie.be/dgtre
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