STIPP (SME Transition Innovation Partners Projects) enhances competitiveness and innovative strength of SMEs in the Meuse-Rhine area with business innovation support and direct funding. STIPP is an Interreg operation of strategic importance.
Interreg Meuse-Rhine (NL-BE-DE) launches the STIPP initiative for SME support
- 10 December 2024
The STIPP instrument was launched with a festive event in Maastricht on Thursday November 21st. Representatives of the European Commission (DG Regio), the Interreg Meuse-Rhine programme and the participating regions celebrated this important initiative for cross-border SME cooperation.
The STIPP instrument encourages SMEs in the border triangle of Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands to collaborate and offers access to support in the development of innovation projects, from initial ideas all the way to direct funding for high quality innovative projects that contribute to societal challenges: industrial transition, green transformation, healthier citizens.
STIPP is a joint initiative of six regional development agencies (RDAs) in the Netherlands (LIOF), Belgium (POM Limburg, VLAIO and Wallonie Entreprendre) and Germany (AGIT and NMWP), with the Managing Authority (MA) of the Interreg Meuse-Rhine (NL-BE-DE) programme (Province Limburg, NL).
The support activities and the grant scheme are two closely linked parts of this one STIPP instrument.
The RDAs invest in raising awareness of SMEs on innovation opportunities, they identify the knowledge needed and arrange matchmaking, and they offer support to apply for SME grants within the STIPP instrument.
The Province of Limburg runs the grant scheme that supplies direct funding to eligible SME consortia. Projects are pre-selected by an independent Expert Committee. 10 million EUR of EU funding will be available for SMEs.
STIPP is an operation of strategic importance for the Interreg programme. With this lighthouse initiative, the European Commission contributes EU grants to accelerate the innovativeness and competitiveness of the region’s SMEs.