The National Cluster Program (PNC) of Costa Ricawas declared of public interest, which will give a great boost to collaborative networks and can further enhance the economy and create more jobs.
The President of the Republic Carlos Alvarado signed the decree this past Wednesday. This aims to improve productivity, competitiveness, innovation, linkages and employment at the national and territorial level.
At the same time, it urges government institutions, national and international organizations, local governments, and the private and academic sectors to collaborate with the execution of the PNC. In addition, it asks that they collaborate in the cluster initiatives that are developed in the national territory.
Collaborative networks
Clusters are collaborative networks that involve companies of all types and sizes, academic and public institutions, and local governments.Financial entities that contribute part of the economic resources to launch projects for the benefit of certain initiatives also participate.
The purpose of the clusters is to work on the continuous improvement of competitiveness and productivity. Therefore, it also seeks the continuous development of long-term competitive advantages in the various regions of the country.
These initiatives also seek to involve all the actors in the process. In this way, collective business strategies will be generated to create, grow or transform the industry in which they participate.
“This decree was designed as the result of a collaborative process, in which the Inter-American Development Bank, with its extensive experience in the field of clusters in Latin America, collaborated by analyzing how these Cluster Programs work in other countries and helped to discern which one should be the best approach to operationalize the program in Costa Rica”, said President Carlos Alvarado, after signing the decree.
Win-win
According to the President, this mechanism improves the value proposition. The foregoing because it is based on the development of a business model that integrates the various actors always seeking a win-win.
The decree enables the Ministry of Labor and Social Security and the Ministry of Economy, Industry and Commerce to align and take advantage of their respective regulatory frameworks to support this initiative.
The decree authorizes State institutions to allocate resources and the appointment of officials’ time, to the extent of their possibilities, to contribute to the program’s objectives.
Multiple sectors
Currently, the PNC supports around 20 cluster initiatives in various regions of the country. Productive activities are supported such as: tourism, agribusiness, information technology and communication. It also includes cybersecurity, biotechnology, life sciences, medical devices, logistics, marine industries or forestry.
The executive decree that was signed is No. 43425-MEIC-MTSS. The president was accompanied at the signing by the Minister of Labor, Silvia Lara Povedano, and the Minister of Economy, Industry and Commerce (MEIC), Victoria Hernández Mora.
