In six pilot regions of the UCORD project, the active phase of implementation of the Clusters4Regions initiative is underway, which is being implemented at the request of the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine by the Ukrainian Cluster Alliance with the support of the UCORD project. The pilot regions are Sumy, Vinnytsia, Khmelnytskyi, Volyn, Ternopil and Odesa regions.
Currently, all six regional working groups are in the final stages of developing regional cluster programmes. Each group, consisting of 14 to 28 representatives from government bodies, regional development agencies, businesses (clusters), educational and scientific institutions, has held two strategic sessions and a series of working meetings.
On 23 July, another meeting was held to analyse interim results and discuss challenges. It was attended by Roman Kropyvnytskyi, Director of the Real Economy Development Department at the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine,
On 23 July, another meeting was held to analyse interim results and discuss challenges. It was attended by Roman Kropyvnytskyi, Director of the Real Sector Development Department at the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, Marina Bryl, UCORD Project Leader, Olena Nyzhnyk, Head of the Regional Development Component of the UCORD Project, as well as representatives of the Ukrainian Cluster Alliance, regional military administrations, and the RDA of the project’s pilot regions.
A key element of the meeting was the presentation of regional cluster programme projects, which are currently being prepared for approval. As part of the Clusters4Regions initiative, pilot regions are demonstrating a systematic approach to cluster policy formation. Among the common principles are:
- Focus on key economic sectors. Each region has identified 3–6 priority areas: agriculture, light industry, tourism, IT, medicine, and mechanical engineering. Some regions additionally focus on high-tech, creative, or logistics sectors.
- Improving the competitiveness of the region as a whole. Clusters are seen as a tool for stimulating investment, employment and innovation, rather than as isolated structures.
- The approach: ‘support the mature, develop the young’. The programmes are aimed at developing the institutional capacity of existing clusters and creating conditions for the growth of new initiatives: mentoring, consulting, acceleration.
- Consistency with national policy. All regions work within a common methodological framework, which is developed with the participation of the Ministry of Economy and the UCORD project team, with a view to further scaling up and integration into the national cluster policy.
- Clear and measurable expectations. Key indicators include the number of effectively functioning clusters, new jobs, growth in tax revenues, and the development of an innovative environment.
The key indicators of the initiative’s success are not only the regional cluster programmes that have been created, but also their subsequent effective implementation. The programmes must be effective — helping businesses to grow, innovate and become more competitive in domestic and foreign markets. In the long term, the aim is to scale up the experience gained to other regions.
Regional Development Agencies play an important role in the process of developing and implementing regional cluster programmes. They ensure the necessary connection between cluster initiatives and broader regional networks, promote the integration of clusters into the strategic vision for regional development, and align their activities with national priorities. Regional Development Agencies are key coordinators of interaction between government, business, science, and civil society in the cluster process.
The next stage should involve not only approving programmes, but also developing mechanisms for their effective implementation. In this process, it is critically important to maintain and deepen close cooperation between key stakeholders: regional authorities, regional development agencies, business, and the scientific and educational communities.
The Clusters4Regions initiative is being implemented at the request of the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine by the Ukrainian Cluster Alliance and is funded by the Swiss-Ukrainian project ‘Ukraine’s Cohesion and Regional Development’, UCORD, which is being implemented with the support of Switzerland via the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation by NIRAS Sweden AB.