The event, held on 16 and 17 October in the As5HUB building at the Science and Technology Park, was a meeting point for the coordination and development of joint actions in the field of innovation and business growth.
Asturias, and specifically the city of Gijón, hosted this year the most important meeting and coordination point for Spanish regional development agencies: the ADR Forum. The meeting, which on this occasion was hosted by the Sekuens Agency, held its 24th edition in the As5HUB building of the Gijón Science and Technology Park on 16 and 17 October 2024. The objective of the event was clear: to share experiences between Agencies as the main instruments of regional policy linked to innovation, competitiveness, smart specialisation strategies and business growth, with the participation of leading specialists in these fields.
Iván Aitor Lucas del Amo, General Director of Innovation, Research and Digital Transformation, took part in the opening ceremony, highlighting the importance of innovation as a key driver for sustainable development and competitiveness in Asturias and in Spain as a whole. For his part, David González, executive director of the Sekuens Agency, during his speech, valued very positively the creation of this forum where ‘we can create synergies and learn from each other to boost the productive fabric of companies and entities in our region’.
Ángel Pedraja, President of the ADR Forum and General Director of the Society for the Development of Cantabria, SODERCAN, took the floor to highlight ‘Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) have been engines of transformation and growth for decades, playing a fundamental role in the creation of opportunities for our communities, promoting investment, digitalisation and entrepreneurship, with an inclusive and decentralised vision of economic and social progress’ and he continued by stressing the commitment of all RDAs to collaborate and join forces to face the great challenges of today’s society.
The main objective of this XXIV Forum is to share experiences between the Regional Development Agencies, as the main instruments of regional policy linked to innovation, competitiveness, smart specialisation strategies and business growth. The meeting was attended by technical and managerial staff from all the agencies, as well as representatives of relevant national entities involved in innovation, territorial development and entrepreneurship, such as the Ministry of Industry and Tourism, CDTI and COTEC.
On the first day, after the institutional opening, we had the outstanding participation of Jordi García, Director General of Industrial Strategy and SMEs of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism, who made an analysis of the ‘New Industrial Strategy and Strategic Autonomy’, a key issue for industrial development and the competitiveness of Spanish companies in the current global context. Next, José Moisés Martín Carretero, Director General of the Centre for Technological Development and Innovation (CDTI), stressed throughout his speech the importance of the CDTI’s strategic cooperation with the Regional Development Agencies as a fundamental pillar for promoting innovation and industrial development throughout Spain. He stressed that this collaboration with the RDAs is essential to promote projects that contribute to the competitiveness of SMEs and local industries, in line with European policies of strategic autonomy and smart specialisation.
After the plenary sessions, the meetings of the working groups dedicated to the evaluation of public policies, Smart Specialisation Strategies, competition and cohesion policies were held, as well as the staging of the Dual Use of Defence and Security Group in line with European policies; the cohesion and competition group with the development of the Law on late payment and R&D certification. In addition, and in parallel to the ADR Forum working group sessions, the association’s General Assembly was held, the association’s main corporate meeting which is held every year at the heart of the Annual Forums. This year, it had the peculiarity that it was of an electoral nature, which led to the renewal of the Board of Directors of ADR Forum for the next two years, which was unanimously formed as follows:
- Chair: Joaquín Gómez, Director General of INFO Murcia.
- Vice-presidency: Augusto Cobos, Director General ICECYL Castilla y León.
- Members: Antonio Castro- General Director of Andalucía TRADE, Gema Sanz- Director of Institutional Relations of Madrid Network, Felipe Carrasco- Autonomous Secretary of Comunitat Valenciana and Luis Pérez- Managing Director of ADER La Rioja.
The second day began with the presentation by the Secretary General, Rafael Escamilla, of the agreements adopted during the General Assembly and the contents dealt with by the ADR Forum working groups. Among the agreements adopted during the General Assembly, it is worth highlighting the creation of a new working group led by IVACE+i for the management of R&D tax deductions by the Regional Development Agencies. On the other hand, it was also agreed to hold the next ADR 2025 Annual Forum in Salamanca, organised by ICECYL. Institute for Business Competitiveness of Castilla y León. This was followed by the working table on ‘Dual Use in the Defence and Security Industry’ , which focused on the development of dual-use technologies, applicable to both the civil and military sectors, and their alignment with European defence and security policies.
This round table moderated by Joaquín Gómez, Director of INFO Murcia, counted with the participation of Óscar Jiménez Mateo, Head of R&D Planning and Control of the Ministry of Defence; Javier López San Román, Director of European Affairs of Navantia; Paula Queipo, Director of Operations of IDONIAL and Rafael Arcos Palacios, Senior Manager of the Defence Strategy Directorate of the INDRA Group. This space allowed exploring the cooperation between public and private institutions, promoting innovation and strengthening Spain’s strategic autonomy in defence, as well as generating a space for reflection and proposals that seek to consolidate an innovative and sustainable industry, aligned with the great global challenges, reinforcing the competitiveness of companies in the defence and security sector.
After this part, it was Jorge Barrero, Director General of the COTEC Foundation, who took the floor to analyse the situation of technological sovereignty, where he stressed the growing need for Spain and Europe to develop their own technological capabilities to reduce external dependence in key sectors such as artificial intelligence, renewable energy and industry 4.0, emphasising the importance of promoting innovation and talent, as well as the need to articulate public policies that encourage investment in research and development.
Finally, and as has become customary on the second days of the Forums, the Panel of innovative experiences in 300 seconds was repeated. A space for the exchange of good practices developed by the ADRs in recent months. A dynamic space where different Regional Development Agencies shared their most innovative initiatives and best practices in an agile and enriching format. The meeting was closed by Joaquín Gómez, now as the new President of the ADR Forum, who thanked the Government of Asturias and the SEKUENS Agency for the excellent organisation and reception of this new edition of the Forum, which has allowed to reaffirm their will to continue promoting balanced development and territorial cohesion through joint initiatives and the exchange of knowledge.
