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Issue N° 140 - February 2016
The non-members subscribers will receive this newsletter at least two weeks after its official launch

In this Issue:

INSMEnews!

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Keep up to date on innovation matters worldwide with the INSME Association!

Dear INSMEnews Readers,

The European Winter starts to be “beaten” and the INSME Secretariat is looking forward to welcoming its esteemed Members at the pleasant and warm atmosphere of the 12th Annual Meeting in Doha/Qatar.

To prepare for the vast offer of networking opportunities, international training experiences and panel discussions let me try to inspire you by sharing the following:

“For good ideas and true innovation,
you need human interaction,
conflict, argument, debate.”

(Margaret Heffernan)



...and now as usual enjoy your reading!

 

 

 

Ms. Christin Pfeiffer

INSME Secretary General

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Updates on the life of the INSME Network

The 12th INSME Annual Meeting: an all-round initiative on innovation for you!

Under the Patronage of Qatar’s Prime Minister, the 12th INSME Annual Meeting on “Enabling Smart SMEs as Key to Success” is going to be a further milestone in the history of our Network. Together with the co-host Qatar Development Bank (INSME Board Member) we are strongly committed to make the event a memorable one and an inspiring series of initiatives have been designed to ensure the INSME Community an enriching experience. High-level Speakers have already confirmed their participation to the International Conference, among them Mr. Stefan Kapferer, OECD Deputy Secretary General, Mr. Peter Marsh, Former Technology Editor at the Financial Times and author of the best seller “The New Industrial Revolution: Consumers, Globalization and the End of Mass Production“.

A leading innovation entity has been selected to concretely experience Qatar’s approach towards innovation: local experts will guide you on a journey to Qatar Science & Technology Park , Qatar’s primary start-up incubator and technology development accelerator.

Participants will learn how to use design principles to create a successful and effective innovation strategy through an exclusive skills development programme in the afternoon of the 14th of April. The International QDB-INSME Expert Training on “Design Thinking for Innovation in Practice” will feature a unique team of globally recognized practitioners of Design Thinking who will unveil the most effective means of stimulating empathy, creativity, efficiency and efficacy in an organization. Participants will be inspired by the visionary expertise of Mr. David Moore, Managing Director at Zero Nine Design and Guest Instructor at Stanford’s Design Program, who will share best practices to free inner creativity and improve the organization’s performance.

The Annual Meeting is much more than this. It is a unique place to create connections with innovation actors worldwide, build potential business partnerships and share ideas and insights with the final and common aim of giving a contribution to the creation of a fertile SME friendly innovation eco-system.

The organizers have negotiated advantageous rates for your stay at Doha, special price will be granted to guests in four different hotels. Please find more information here.

Find out more about the Annual Meeting here and do not forget to take advantage of the early bird rate available until the 11th of March.

INSME and Qatar Development Bank are looking forward to welcoming you at Doha/Qatar from the 12th to the 14th of April.

INSME strengthens its collaboration with UNIDO Italy and the Embassy of Pakistan

In its continuous efforts to strengthen the collaboration with international organizations, INSME is fostering its relations with UNIDO and its Italian Investment and Technology Promotion Office based in Rome.

Together with high-level representatives of UNIDO Rome, INSME Vice President Mr. Sergio Arzeni and INSME Secretary General Ms. Christin Pfeiffer have met Mr. Farid Tarar, commercial Councilor of the Italian Embassy of Pakistan to discuss synergy potential and collaboration on SME related projects.

In depth meetings with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA) of Pakistan shall follow at the beginning of March. A delegation from SMEDA and other Pakistani key players has been warmly invited to actively contribute to the diversified initiatives of the 12th INSME Annual Meeting at Doha/Qatar.

Welcoming our first new Member of 2016!

INSME warmly welcomes a new Full Member, the International Trade Centre (ITC), a Switzerland based joint agency of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the United Nations aiming at supporting the internationalization of small and medium enterprises. Its joint mandate combines a focus on expanding trade opportunities with the aim of fostering sustainable development. ITC’s main aim is to facilitate SME success in international business. Having worked with SMEs since its foundation, ITC is familiar with the unique needs of SMEs, including women-owned enterprises, and has vast experience in improving their international competitiveness and connecting their markets.

Further information about ITC is available at this page.

INSME can currently count on the support of 85 Members from 37 countries across 4 out of 5 continents.

The INSMEAcademy: the monthly meeting to enrich your skillset

INSME’s webinar-based training program offering one seminar per month consolidates its international success session after session: since three years the INSMEAcademy has been attracting innovation stakeholders who benefit from the expertise of high-level speakers from all over the world and share their thoughts and insights on relevant topics related to Innovation, Creativity, Strategic Partnerships and Entrepreneurial Spirit. In 2015 the INSMEAcademy gathered more than 600 participants from 57 different countries and the continuous impact assessment carried out by the INSME Secretariat shows a positive response to the didactic calendar: more than 9 out of 10 survey participants highly appreciated the sessions and considered the topics as valuable input to their daily work. The interactive features of the platform is perceived as undisputable added value enabling participants to share views and experiences with peers and experts holding the sessions.

The INSMEAcademy is currently in its 35th edition, featuring two trainers from the Information & Technology Innovation Foundation – ITIF, a US based organization, with an inspiring presentation on “The Countries Doing the Most to Advance Global Innovation” taking place on the 22nd of March from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. CET.

The overall list of sessions held is available here.

More information about the upcoming webinar is available at this page.

INSME turns 12: more than a decade of experience in supporting innovation

On the 17th of February our Association turned 12! Twelve years have passed since the foundation of the International Network for Small and Medium Enterprises with its purpose to promote and facilitate the sharing of best practices in the field of innovation and technology transfer to SMEs. Important achievements have been reached and the service portfolio of the Association for its affiliates considerably enriched. A focus has been put on tailor-made Capacity Building Initiatives. Seven new Members have joined the Network in 2015 - among them two Sustaining Members, the Global Coalition for Efficient Logistics – GCEL from Switzerland and the Small Enterprise Development Agency – SEDA from South Africa.

INSME confirms itself as a successful self-sustainable knowledge-based Network committed to international projects and initiatives with the final aim of fostering cross border cooperation and promoting a multilateral dialogue among all the actors involved.

Check INSME’s current e-brochure here.

News and contributions from the INSME Members

The EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation (INSME Member) launches the EU-Japan Technology Transfer Helpdesk

The Technology Transfer Helpdesk is a new service launched by the EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation (INSME Member from Japan) providing relevant content about intellectual property rights, their use and possible monetization options. Aim of this new service is to bridge the knowledge gap about the technologies available from both Japan and the EU and support European and Japanese individuals and companies to search for and acquire new technologies.

European and Japanese universities, companies and individuals working for these entities are invited to access a series of webinars, videos and presentations benefitting from a service supposed to implement open innovation practices in EU and Japanese organizations.

More information is available at this page.

“A lull in innovation, or a preoccupation with the next big thing?” by Mr. Rohit Shukla, CEO of Larta Institute (INSME Board Member)

Mr. Rohit Shukla, CEO of Larta Institute and INSME Board Member has recently released an inspiring article highlighting the importance of innovation’s incremental developments.

Mr. Shukla shows how entrepreneurs in the “dot com” era tend to push to create the “next big thing”, promoting a new conceptual-stage technology through huge marketing campaigns. He referred to “the media obsession”, meaning that entrepreneurs are using a large part of their energies to “over promote” products/services through the modern communication channels, while they do not consider their market and the fact that customers are often not ready for those products/services properly. This is related to their aim to seep through the market swiftly, no matter if customers are ready or accommodating.

Regardless how fast technologies advance, innovation often proceeds by incremental development and might need years before becoming effectively disruptive in customers’ needs or habits. In Mr. Shukla’s opinion it is time to move a step back and understand that the path of technologies is endless. The key to give a contribution to incrementally develop technologies is patience, in his view.

Read the whole article here.

Dubai SME (INSME Member) signs a strategic MoU with Emirates Islamic

A Memorandum of Understanding has recently been signed between Emirates Islamic, the leading Islamic Financing Institution in the United Arab Emirates and Dubai SME (INSME Member from the United Arab Emirates).

Following the MoU statement, Emirates Islamic will act as preferred finance partner for SMEs registered under Dubai SME, thus supporting young Emirati entrepreneurs to access financing at special terms.

This partnership is a further step in the path of supporting entrepreneurship in UAE, with particular attention to SMEs considered as one of the key players of Emirati’s economic growth.

Find out more here.

INSME's Picks in the News

Financial Boost for Hong Kong’s Start-Up Ecosystem

Hong Kong’s start up eco-system is growing at full speed, indeed from November 2015 to December 2015 the number of registered start-ups increased from 1065 to 1558. To support this impressive growth, the Government of Hong Kong has announced important investments to sustain innovative start-ups or business concepts in ICT-related areas.

Hong Kong Dollars 2 billion (ca. Euro 230 million) will be invested in an Innovation and Technology Venture Fund and additional Hong Kong Dollars 2 billion (ca. Euro 230 million) allocated to boost research and development through the recent set up of the Innovation and Technology Bureau, supporting universities and R&D centres to carry out applied research projects.

In addition Mr. CY Leung, Hong Kong’s Chief Executive announced the Cyberport Macro Fund, a Hong Kong Dollars 200 million (ca. Euro 23 million) investment in ICT start-ups at Hong Kong Cyberport among other initiatives.

Check further details here.

Innovative ideas to write the history of entrepreneurship in Mexico

According to Janete Salcedo Morales, coordinator of the Business Incubator at Valle de Mexico University, Mexico’s entrepreneurship ecosystem is built on two key elements:

  • Families demanding goods and services according to their needs and budget;
  • Companies and economic players producing goods and services to meet customers’ (families) needs.

Among the main obstacles entrepreneurs face, the author referred to access to finance and a complex regulation system. A more active participation of financial institutions and increased incentives through new policies to support Research and Development seem to be essential measures to overcome the mentioned challenges.

Innovation is considered to be the key for future competitiveness for Mexican entrepreneurs. While some of them do not yet fully understand the reason why innovation has to become SMEs’ focus, there is an emerging generation of entrepreneurs with good ideas and an innovative approach to develop new businesses. This trend lets the author state that “Mexico is beginning to write a new history of entrepreneurship”.

Read more here.

INSME Picks in the Web

Time for Policymakers to put “solopreneurs” first

In the EU rapidly changing labour market a new category of workers is notably growing: solopreneurs, independent workers such as journalists, IT experts, translators acting in healthcare, finance, social and finance sectors who often collaborate with each other and drive growth and job creation in companies. The number of solopreneurs is increasing, representing 47% of all people working in newly-born enterprises.

According to Mr. Marco Torregrossa, Secretary General at the European Forum of Independent Professionals, European institutions should take the new labour market carefully into account and dedicate policies recognizing solopreneurs “as a unique subset of micro-enterprises with demonstrable value as economic agents in their own rights and proper recognition in official statistics”. Mr. Torregrossa states that the upcoming EU Directive on the Single-Member Companies represents a chance to support solopreneurs who need to access social security programs, training schemes, funding instruments and tax benefits.

In other words structural changes need to be promoted to sustain and leverage the changing labour market.

Read the whole article here.

Economic Snapshot for Latin America

Latin America’s economic performance registered a negative trend in 2015 and this is mainly due to the contraction of the Brazilian economy which is expected to decrease by 3.6%. In addition Venezuela is experiencing one of its worst economic crisis ever with a GDP likely plunging 8.2%.

Mr. Ricardo Aceves, Senior Economist at FocusEconomics recently published a contribution offering a detailed overview of the current economic situation in Latin America based on the results of a survey carried out by FocusEconomics among economic analysts. Data from the survey show that after a period of recession a gradual recovery in the region is forecasted and the economy is expected to recover by 0.3% in 2016.

A focus on Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Venezuela shows current economic performances and how political changes are influencing countries’ recovery. Mr. Aceves finally discusses inflation data which are expected to remain high continuing to rise closing 2016 at 19.1%. In this regard Venezuela is a source of concern as its inflation rate is supposed to remain nearly 200% in 2016, while the inflation forecasts have been downgraded by the FocusEconomics analysts for Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay.

Mr. Aceves’ article is available at this page.

Tenders, Calls & Consultations

2016 Call for Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs) proposals

On the 14th of January, the European Institute of Innovation and Technology launched a call for the creation of two Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs) comprising leading higher education institutions, research organizations, companies and other stakeholders of the innovation eco-system that meet societal challenges through the development of innovative products, services and processes.

The two KICs will operate in the following thematic areas:

  • EIT Food: Food4Future - Sustainable Supply Chain from Resources to Consumers;
  • EIT Manufacturing: Added-value Manufacturing.

In order to be eligible, the proposed KICs have to comply with the following eligibility criteria:

  • the KIC has to be composed of a minimum of three independent partner organisations coming from at least three different EU Member States;
  • the partnership has to include at least one higher education institution and one private company, for a maximum of 50 partners;
  • at least two thirds of the partners forming the KIC have to be established in EU Member States.

The EIT limits the maximum financial allocation to no more than 25% of the KIC’s overall budget.

The deadline for submitting proposals is the 14th of July 2016.

Please click here to learn more.

EIG CONCERT-Japan: Food Crops and Biomass Production Technologies Joint Call for Proposals

EIG CONCERT-Japan is an international joint initiative to enhance cooperation between European countries and Japan in the fields of science, technology and innovation. The project is coordinated by the Japan Science and Technology Agency and the French National Center for Scientific Research and involves the following organizations as partners: the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey – TUBITAK, the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, the Hungarian Regional Centre for Information and Scientific Development, the Slovak Academy of Sciences and the Research Council of Norway.

To achieve its goals, on the 10th of February EIG CONCERT-Japan launched a call for projects to support scientific research in the field of Food Crops and Biomass Production Technologies.

Research proposals have to demonstrate a strong innovative drive and shall produce outcomes contributing to improved design, control of growth and increased production and quality of important food and biomass plants. Research proposals are also expected to include a focus on mobility and networking in addition to the core research element.

Public and private legal RTD entities, higher education institutions and non-university research establishments, as well as enterprises and other organisations based in Japan, France, Germany, Spain and Turkey are eligible for funding under this call. Researchers or research teams from countries that are not listed in the call are also eligible to participate if they can prove they can cover the costs of proper tasks through other sources.

Each project consortium should consist of at least one partner from Japan and two beneficiaries from two different European countries.

Funding will be provided for the maximum duration of three years according to the relevant national/regional regulations applied by each Joint Call funding institution.

The deadline to submit research proposals is the 28th of April 2016.

Learn more here.

The Innovations in American Government Awards

The Innovations in American Government Awards is a program founded by the Ford Foundation and the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University recognizing excellence and creativity in the public sector.

The Award celebrates innovative programs and initiatives at the state, city, town, county, tribal and territorial government level within the United States of America and covers all policy areas, from training employees to juvenile justice, recycling to adult education, public health to e-governance etc. In order to be eligible to participate, programs and initiatives must be currently in operation and managed by a governmental entity, and must have been implemented 12 months prior to the date of submission. Not-for-profit organizations, private sector and union initiatives are also eligible to apply if a governmental entity is involved by overseeing the program.

Following the successful completion of the five-phase selection process, the winner of the Innovations in American Government Awards will receive a grant of $100,000 and each finalist is eligible to receive a $10,000 grant, upon the conclusion of a project proposal.

The deadline for applications is the 15th of April 2016.

Please click here to learn more about the Awards.

Interesting Initiatives

IP Europe: the Voice of European Organizations recognizing the Value of Intellectual Property

Ericsson, Airbus, France Brevets and the Fraunhofer Institute in its role of academic advisor are among the organizations that collaborate to IP Europe, an initiative launched in January 2016 to support patent protection for R&D intensive European companies and encourage non-discriminatory standardization policies that guarantee the fundamental right for inventors to receive a fair compensation. To achieve this goal, IP Europe will focus on three pillar activities:

  • dissemination of information about new European rules and policies that affect the company’s ability to gain fair revenues from R&D investments;
  • lobby activities and meetings with EU representatives to influence policies that might have an impact on patents and R&D investments;
  • circulation of information about EU programs that might help a company in leveraging its portfolio and securing investments for its projects.

To learn more, please click here.

Publications

The Global Talent Competitiveness Index 2015-16

The Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI) is an annual study carried out by INSEAD and the Human Capital Leadership Institute of Singapore (HCLI) that examines talent competitiveness over more than 100 economies. This year’s theme 'Talent Attraction and International Mobility' focused on the important link between talent mobility and economic prosperity.

Switzerland, Singapore and Luxembourg ranked respectively in the first, second and third place on talent competitiveness. By analysing the scores, the report managed to identify some common patterns, differences and similarities across the countries. Mobility is a fundamental factor of talent development and the report shows that nowadays the debate moved from the focus on brain drain versus brain gain to brain circulation. Both the country of origin and the country of destination can now benefit from this paradigm shift. The report argues that the creative talent becomes a real asset for a country only if such international mobility and brain circulation are encouraged.

The report also suggests that countries have to adopt a more positive attitude and intensify their efforts towards solutions with regard to international migration flows. History proves that the circulation of talents across borders has always generated benefits and countries addressing such migration flows can take advantage by attracting high-skilled professionals and students. A further important determinant of talent attraction is the quality of management practices including two major elements: the first is the professionalism of management and the second one is the attention paid towards employee development.

The report also discusses that some countries are raising international interest by proving a strong potential as “talent magnets”. As a matter of fact, Indonesia, Jordan, Chile, South Korea, Rwanda and Azerbaijan are becoming increasingly attractive destinations for talents worldwide.

Read more insights here.

The Small, Medium and Micro Enterprise Sector of South Africa

Since 2008 the global economy changed significantly. The 2008/2009 global financial crisis impacted on economic policies, interest rates and political administration. All these factors had relevant consequences on the small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) landscape of South Africa. The report on “The Small, Medium and Micro Enterprise Sector of South Africa” released by the Stellenbosch University and commissioned by the Small Enterprise Development Agency – SEDA (INSME Sustaining Member) aims at analyzing these changes and provides an overview of the current situation.

The report points out a set of common challenges and risks that South African SMMEs are facing. Limitations to access finance have been found above all in the start-up phase: given their conservative nature, South African banks and lenders tend to invest in small businesses in their later stage. South African SMMEs also tend to have lower levels of R&D capacities than developed countries. Prominent authors suggest that this might be due to the failure of small businesses to form stable upward linkages with larger firms. Evidence also shows that a shortage of skills such as accounting and sales capabilities is affecting negatively small businesses in the service sector and acts as constraint to employment growth. The report additionally provides a statistical profile of SMMEs in South Africa by analyzing economic, geographic and demographic data as well as their financial position.

Check the whole report here.

Recommended Website

The World Database for Islamic Banking and Finance

In the global financial system, Islamic Finance is experiencing an exponential growth that is expected to continue at a rapid pace. This is mainly due to the growing interest towards services and products that comply with the basic precepts of Sharia law of banks, including non-Islamic banks. “Islamic finance could account for a substantial share of financial services in several countries, meeting the preferences of significant numbers of people, enhancing financial inclusion and intermediation, and contributing more broadly to financial stability and development” as stated by Mr. Mahmoud Mohieldin Senior Vice President for the 2030 Development Agenda, United Nations Relations, and Partnerships at the World Bank.

The World Database for Islamic Banking and Finance includes a comprehensive collection of websites and relevant sources of information related to Islamic Banking and Finance.

The database is a virtual window showcasing relevant training institutes, international associations and networks, Islamic and central banks accompanied by a short description of the entity and the links to their websites. The database also offers a panorama of magazines and journals providing a constant update on news, events and the latest development in the industry. In addition, the website features a section dedicated to the most prominent Scholars leading the debate on Islamic Finance worldwide along with their references to get access to the most recent papers, their latest works and achievements.

Learn more here.

Recommended Newsletter

United Nations University Innovation and Technology Weekly Roundup

The Innovation and Technology Weekly Roundup is the newsletter issued by the United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology. The Institute studies technological development from a social, political and economic perspective with a special focus on creation, diffusion and access to knowledge. UNU-MERIT also addresses governance in domestic and global organizations, ranging from risk assessment to policy analysis, from design to evaluation.

The newsletter is released every Friday and provides a weekly selection of the most important innovation and technology developments all over the world.

To subscribe to the newsletter, please click here.

Events

Highlighted events

18th Microcredit Summit on “Frontier Innovations in Financial Inclusion”

From the 14th to the 17th of March 2016
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

Organized by the Microcredit Summit Campaign in collaboration with the Arab Gulf Program for Development (AGFUND) and sponsored by Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development (INSME Vice-President)

According to the Global Findex 2014 issued by the World Bank, there is an increasing potential to promote financial inclusion among vulnerable and socially excluded groups in the Middle East and Africa. These regions have experienced considerable success in this field so far, but the outreach is still low when compared to other regions.

To give a concrete contribution to the debate, the Microcredit Summit Campaign and the Arab Gulf Fund Program for Development (AGFUND) with the sponsorship of Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development (INSME Vice-President) organize the 18th Microcredit Summit on “Frontier Innovations in Financial Inclusion” from the 14th to the 17th of March 2016 at Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

The Summit will feature prominent speakers as the Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus, Founder of Grameen Bank and the Yunus Centre, H.R.H. Prince Talal Bin Abdul Aziz, President of AGFUND, Saudi Arabia, H.E Queen Sofía of Spain and S.E. Hussain J. Al Nowais, Chairman at Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development. More than 700 leaders from microfinance institutions, global development organizations, foundations, social investment firms, and corporations alongside high-level government officials will gather in Abu Dhabi to brainstorm on the most innovative pathways to advance national financial inclusion strategies and ensure a wide range of microfinance products and services in favour of marginalized social groups.

Learn more here.


ICSB 2016 World Conference

From the 15th to the 18th of June 2016
New Jersey/New York, USA

Organized by the International Council for Small Business (INSME Member)

The role of entrepreneurship and innovation in advancing the sustainable development goals of a society will be the focus of the 61st Annual International Council for Small Business – ICSB (INSME Member) World Conference taking place in New Jersey/New York, USA from the 15th to the 18th of June 2016.

The Conference will bring together world’s leading scholars, educators, policy makers, business professionals, doctoral students and UN representatives to present and debate forefront topics to contribute to the continued implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.

The ICSB 2016 World Conference will count on the experience of distinguished international speakers representing both the public and private sector throughout a wide array of side events including the ICSB Academy, a full immersion experience in entrepreneurial opportunities and the creation of a new venture targeting students; a Doctoral Consortium, an opportunity for doctoral students to present their thesis proposals and receive useful inputs on what can be improved; a pre-Conference Policy Forum on “Measuring and Evaluating Small Business & Entrepreneurship: Are We Doing It Right?” to examine the tools developed by researchers to measure and assess SME and entrepreneurship development and how these systems can be integrated into policy making.

Learn more on the dedicated website here.

Future international meetings, workshops, seminars selected by INSME

From the 2nd to the 4th of March 2016
GLOBE 2016 - The Leadership Summit for Sustainable Business
Organized by Global Series
Vancouver, Canada

From the 3rd to the 6th of March 2016
Istanbul International Inventions Fair - Inventions, Ideas and New Products
Organized by AFANYA and hosted by the Turkish Patent Institute under the patronage of the International Federation of Inventors' Associations
Istanbul, Turkey

3rd of March 2016
AIPPI/ASEAN Regional Seminar 2016
Organized by the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property – AIPPI
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

8th of March 2016
Conference on Improving Women's Access to Leadership
Organized by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development – OECD (INSME Moral Sponsor)
Paris, France

8th of March 2016
RESET Forum 2016
Organized by EDILE - Economic Development through Inclusive and Local Empowerment in partnership with ANIMA Investment Network (INSME Member)
Marseille, France

From the 9th to the 10th of March 2016
The 1st EU-GCC Collaboration Forum in Science, Technology and Innovation
Organized by the Arab Science and Technology Foundation (ASTF)/Innovation Lab
Dubai, United Arab Emirates

From the 10th to the 11th of March 2016
South African Business Incubation Conference
Organized by the Small Enterprise Development Agency (INSME Sustaining Member)
Johannesburg, South Africa

From the 13th to the 16th of March 2016
ISPIM Innovation Forum
Organized by ISPIM & IAOIP (INSME Members)
Boston, USA

17th of March 2016
2nd Annual Convention on #IMSME Expands Networks for Inclusive Entrepreneurship
Organized by the South African Small and Medium Enterprises Federation
Midrand, South Africa

From the 14th to the 16th of April 2016
1st Euro-Mediterranean Conference 2016 on "Smart Urban Development and Blue Growth opportunities for cities, communities and islands in the Mediterranean basin"
Organized by University of Cyprus – KIOS Research Center for Intelligent Systems and Networks, National Technical University of Athens, School of Rural and Surveying Engineering, Dept. of Geography and Regional Planning, the Smart Cities Mediterranean Cluster, the CNE Business Development Ltd and Papadopoulos and Schinis Production Ltd
Limassol, Cyprus

From the 20th to the 21st of April 2016
OECD Global Symposium on Financial Resilience throughout Life
Organized by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development – OECD (INSME Moral Sponsor)
Amsterdam, The Netherlands

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