The bidding phase for the innovation tender “Digital solutions and services for the socio-economic development of peripheral territorial communities through the creation and enhancement of cultural tourism destinations,” worth a total of about 10 million euros, has been concluded.
The call registered an extraordinary participation, with as many as 52 research and development proposals submitted by more than 160 economic operators, confirming the growing interest in innovative solutions aimed at the revitalization and sustainable promotion of Italy's cultural heritage.
The initiative is part of the broader strategy of the Smarter Italy innovative procurement program, which aims to stimulate public demand for innovation as a lever to respond to the country's social, economic and environmental challenges.
The theme chosen - the enhancement of cultural tourism - is particularly relevant and aims to boost the economic development of peripheral or lesser-known areas of the country by promoting quality, intelligent tourism that respects local communities.
The proposals received will now be evaluated by the committee, which will select the most promising solutions to be launched to the next stage of the co-development process. The goal is to get to test, in real-world settings, tools and technologies capable of improving the visitor experience, protecting cultural heritage, enhancing inclusive enjoyment, and fostering local development.
The result achieved testifies not only to the effectiveness of the innovation procurement tool, but also to the vibrancy of the national entrepreneurial fabric and technology supply chain, which is ready to get involved in projects with a strong social impact.
Another important achievement of this innovation research and development pathway is the involvement of actors such as startups, SMEs, universities, research centers and third sector entities. This fosters collaborative innovation (open innovation), in which novel solutions arise from the contamination between different experiences and points of view, strengthens the industrial ecosystem by generating more widespread economic impact, and increases participation, social relevance and overall procurement effectiveness.
The initiative is the result of a co-design process lasting about 18 months that involved through public consultations more than 1,200 market players, PAs, universities, research centers, third sector entities and museum institutions, and gathered the expression of interest to participate in the call from about 500 entities.
A path characterized by maximum transparency - evidence of this is the approximately 31 hours of video recordings of the events held on the topic and available on AgID's Youtube channel dedicated to innovative procurement - which facilitated collaboration among economic operators while stimulating their competitiveness.
The procurement is funded by the Ministry of University and Research, implemented by the Digital Italy Agency as the contracting station, and promoted by the Department for Digital Transformation under the Smarter Italy program.
