831 million euro for research and SMEs in German region The German region of Schleswig Holstein is to benefit from 831 million euro, which will be used to promote research and information technologies, support small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and promote equal opportunities for women and men in the information society. Th... The German region of Schleswig Holstein is to benefit from 831 million euro, which will be used to promote research and information technologies, support small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and promote equal opportunities for women and men in the information society. The European Union will provide 258 million euro for the regional development programme, to be matched by 245 million of public sector investments and 327 million from the private sector. The money will go to those areas of Schleswig Holstein covered by the Structural fund's objective 2, which aims to promote economic conversion and modernisation in declining industrial areas. In this instance, the finance will come from two Structural funds, the European regional development fund (ERDF) and the European social fund (ESF). Some 69.1 million euro of Community money will be spent on strengthening production capacities in the field of research and development, on the modernisation and upgrading of such infrastructures and on investments for the creation of sustainable jobs. The promotion of technology centres, business start ups and the qualification of entrepreneurs are core activities. Initiatives to strengthen the competitiveness of enterprises, particularly of SMEs will receive 83.5 million euro from Community funds. Other allocated funds will go towards the promotion of local development, improvement of regional competitiveness and programme administration.
