NRW.Europa & the Enterprise Europe Network
NRW.Europa is a partner in the Enterprise Europe Network established at the beginning of 2008 by the European Commission (Enterprise and Industry Directorate General) in about 48 countries. The Enterprise Europe Network evolved from the merging of the Innovation Relay Centres (IRC) and the Euro Info Centres (EIC).
The Enterprise Europe Network is represented in the following EU countries:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Cyprus
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Ireland
- Italy
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Luxemburg
- Malta
- Netherlands
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Slovak Republic
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Sweden
- United Kingdom
Additionally, there are local contact points in Non-EU countries:
- Armenia
- Bosnia & Herzegovina
- Chile
- China
- Croatia
- Egypt
- fYRoM
- Iceland
- Israel
- Japan
- Mexico
- Montenegro
- Norway
- Russia
- Serbia
- South Korea
- Switzerland
- Syria
- Tunesia
- Turkey
- USA
In all these countries, some of the services offered by the Europe Network, for example, is the search for suitable business partners, detailed information on funding opportunities or assistance with European legislation. The Enterprise Europe Network thus also supports the current priorities of EU policy, which is particularly focussed on small and medium-sized enterprises.
The three main priorities of EU SME policy are the "Small Business Act" (SBA) with its principle of "Give way to SMEs", the "Broad-based Innovation Strategy" (BBIS) and "Sustainable Industrial Policy".
Key topics amongst others are the implementation of a new patent strategy, the protection of intellectual property and the promotion of innovative lead markets. Support is also given to energy-efficient manufacturing processes and preservation of resources.
