Since 2018, the Procue2Innovate project has been working to develop the international bonds between competence centres for innovation procurement. By sharing, collaborating and learning from one another, these competence centres have established and enhanced the services that they provide to public procurers, and have found new opportunities to collaborate and promote innovation procurement.
At the end of June 2022, the Procure2Innovate project will end, but this does not mean an end to collaboration!
The Procure2Innovate Network is currently being piloted, and plans are being made for an official launch in 2022.
PILOT YEAR ACTIVITIES
Under the guidance of the pilot year’s co-chairs Greece and the Netherlands, the Procure2Innovate Network is currently trailing collaborative activities, as well as testing the Network’s governance rules.
KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE MEETINGS
This series of meetings, organised by co-chair PIANOo in collaboration with Utrecht University, have provided a forum for national competence centres to discuss issues including policies which promote innovation, and evaluation methodologies for tracking performance. After each meeting, an Expert Opinion Paper has been prepared.
• KE Meeting 1 - Strategies to stimulate innovation
• KE Meeting 2 - Evaluating the impact of a public procurement competence centre
• KE Meeting 3 - Sustainable innovation and internal clients
JOINT DECLARATION ON INNOVATION PROCUREMENT
Under the leadership of the Greek co-chair from the Ministry of Development and Investments (previously named Ministry for Economy and Development), an initiative for a Joint Ministerial Declaration on Innovation Procurement has been developed. The declaration aims to strengthen political commitment to innovation procurement at a European, national and regional level, and strengthen cooperation between Member States and the European Commission.
WHO CAN JOIN THE NETWORK
It is intended that the Procure2Innovate Network will grow over time to include more European countries. Entry to the Network is subject to a vote of existing members. Efforts will be made to maintain the balance between experienced and newly established competence centres, and to ensure a proportionate geographic spread.
To be eligible for membership, organisations must meet the following requirements:
To find out more about how to engage with the Procure2Innovate Network, please contact procurement@iclei.org