Møre and Romsdal’s R&I strategy meets Europe: key learnings
On 22 April 2025, the Policy Learning Platform hosted an online Matchmaking on Aligning Møre and Romsdal County’s strategy for research and innovation with European trends in research and innovation policies.
Objective and context
Møre og Romsdal County, Norway, has drafted its County Strategy for Research and Innovation 2025–2028, which is currently undergoing public consultation until 15 April 2025.
The matchmaking aimed to explore key strategic recommendations to ensure that the county’s strategy aligns with European trends and initiatives in research and innovation policies.
Møre og Romsdal County sought strategic advice and guidance from European peers on priority areas for its roadmap to enhance innovation and foster triple-/quadruple-helix collaborations.
Policy challenges
Møre og Romsdal has a diverse, export-driven economy, with strengths in maritime industries, oil and gas, aquaculture, and manufacturing. It hosts a globally competitive maritime cluster, specialising in shipbuilding, propulsion systems, and marine technology.
The oil and gas sector has historically been a major employer and economic driver, with offshore supply operations centred in Kristiansund. However, the industry is undergoing transformation, with increasing investment in green maritime technologies and offshore renewable energy solutions.
Moreover, low R&D investment, limited interregional collaboration, and limited EU project participation currently reduce its innovation potential.
Key insights shared during the matchmaking
During the matchmaking, several key recommendations were shared by peers to help Møre og Romsdal County enhance its innovation strategy:
- Develop and take ownership of your innovation strategy by building on existing innovative initiatives. For instance, use Communities of Practice (CoPs) successfully applied by NCE Legasea on blue bioeconomy as the backbone to facilitate bottom-up innovation and shared learning, reflecting a quadruple-helix approach (see BlueBioClusters project).
- Establish thematic, place-based innovation clusters rooted in Møre og Romsdal’s unique strengths and sector priorities (e.g., maritime industry, green transition, circular economy).
- Clusters are useful intermediaries to engage SMEs in European funding, provide visibility for regional sectors at the European level, connect with European initiatives (e.g., European Cluster Collaboration Platform (ECCP)), access dedicated funding (e.g., Euroclusters), integrate into European value chains (e.g., Interregional Innovation Investments (I3) Instrument), diffuse knowledge within the local ecosystem, and tap into interregional initiatives and networks. Moreover, clusters can be structured around major exporting firms to build critical mass and foster an ecosystem-based approach aligned with sectoral priorities.
- Mirror governance principles from Ireland’s Technological University cluster models (see ACCELERATEGDT). 12 Educational Outreach Managers (EOMs) have been recruited by the Technological Universities and Institutes of Technology under the Regional Technology Cluster Fund to incubate various sectoral clusters.
Figure 1. Regional Technology Cluster Fund. Source: John Hobbs, Munster Technological University, Ireland.
- Position universities as central nodes of regional attractiveness to attract, develop, and retain talent.
- Strengthen the quality of life and regional appeal to attract and retain people in Møre og Romsdal over the long term.
Provide a platform between policymakers and researchers to exchange their views on priority sectors (see the example of Science Malta). This can lead to the co-design of funding programmes that reflect policymakers' policy questions for researchers.
- Align with the Competitiveness Compass for the EU and with the Clean Industrial Deal. Circularity will be a priority. Prioritise circular economy pilots aligned with the Clean Industrial Deal.
- Tap into external knowledge networks to bring in ideas and expertise, while anchoring solutions in the region’s specific needs and opportunities.
