START EASY

Since August 1, 2019, Mazovia Development Agency Plc was implementing the project "Smart tools for quick and easy business start-up in Europe: the once-only challenge" with the acronym START EASY as part of the INTERREG EUROPE program. The first phase of the project last until July 31, 2022, the second phase (implementation) until July 31, 2023.

Budget: 158,958.00 EUR (EU funding of 85%)

Objectives:

START EASY was a project of the Government of Catalonia that aimed to improve regional policy and provide intelligent tools that enable companies to start their business and develop, combine and integrate the principles of "think small first". The project aimed to promote interregional experience exchange, to combine regional knowledge and provide mutual learning opportunities, and to facilitate the development of joint policies and new action plans. Increasing the education of the local community will contribute to reducing the concerns related to starting a new business, and thus to the increase in the number of newly established companies and startups.

    The task of Mazovia Development Agency Plc in the project was to identify good practices and new administrative tools through consultation with interested parties and learning from other EU regions. Increasing education of the local community will contribute to reducing concerns related to starting a new business, and thus to the increase in the number of newly established companies and startups.

    During the Regional Stakeholder Group (RGI) meetings, information on the current situation were exchanged, as seen through the eyes of stakeholders. The diversity of partners, the presence of larger and smaller centres (LGUs), Business Environment Institutions, start-ups, SMEs, and Scientific Institutions, enables the exchange of experiences and learning from each other. It was important for us to get information from the subregions on their current situation, on what needs to be changed, how the business start-up procedure works, what is the situation of start-up companies, and which services the local administration provides to the entrepreneurs. The Regional Stakeholder Group worked at the local level to analyze regional needs, identify good practices, identify problems and difficulties, and seek solutions together. The worked out practices wasincluded in the regional action plan and, in the second phase, implemented in selected subregions.

    Partnership

    • Government of Catalonia (ES) - project leader,
    • Metropolitan City of Bologna (IT)
    • Lithuanian Innovation Center (LT)
    • Lublin Science and Technology Park (PL)
    • Economic Council of East Flanders (BE)
    • Mazovia Development Agency Plc (PL)
    • Ministry of Economics of the Republic of Latvia (LV)

    Outcomes

    The I phase of the project, and exchange of experiences that took place, provided the opportunity to learn about good practices on OSS from all project partners and to collect stimuli to improve our local state of play. During the interregional learning events, we developed a shared knowledge regarding several critical issues. At the end of the I phase of the project, we created a Regional Action Plan that included the activities to be carried out in the II phase of the project.

    The activities aim to support the implementation of the Strategic Objectives of the Regional Innovation Strategy for Mazovia 2030 dedicated to the promotion and implementation of innovative solutions in public administration (linkage with Regional Innovation Strategy for Mazovia until 2030 - Strategic Objective 2.5. Promotion of implementation of innovative solutions in public administration units and scientific institutions) and reduce the differences between the NUTS regions of Warsaw Capital and Mazowieckie Regional (NUTS PL91 and PL92).

    The activities described in Regional Action Plan were formally included in the policy instrument RIS Implementation Programme 2021-2022 in its revision made in 2022. In concrete, a Thematic Task Area (TTA) was included in the Implementation Programme: The Promotion, training, and provision of supporting activities for substantive staff and local authorities of LGUs, aimed at promoting innovative solutions in public administration focused on creating OSS or creating and introducing new services to the existing OSS. This Thematic Task Area has three main objectives:

    1. the promotion of innovative solutions in public administration. 
    2. the provision of knowledge and know-how on the creation of OSS in the Mazowiecki Region. 
    3. creating and developing additional services to existing OSS.

    These objectives were achieved through the following activities outlined in our regional action plan: 

    • webinars / information meetings for local government units.
    • workshops for local government units.
    • consultations for local government units.
    • study Visits in OSS Warsaw.

    Recommendations and standards for building OSS and servicing entrepreneurship developed under the START EASY project were presented to local self-government units. Local authorities were sensitized to the needs of entrepreneurs, received knowledge about the benefits of building the OSS and guided along the way to the implementation of the OSS.
    During the workshops, local government units received a practical set of knowledge on topics such as:

    • how to map relevant stakeholders;
    • how to determine what type of OSS to choose, considering information such as resources available, possible expenses and their amount, etc.;
    • the type of services included in the OSS (including new services or change to existing service offers);
    • how to perform a self-evaluation of existing OSS.

    During the workshops and consultations, LGUs, together with the MDA's experts were also analysing their situation, discussing potential new services under their existing OSS. To complement the knowledge provided by MDA experts, the study visits in OSS Warsaw – Centre of Entrepreneurship Smolna (CES) was organised. During these study visits, local government units were able to obtain details on the methods of financing the activities of OSS and individual OSS services. All these activities will eventually contribute to supporting entrepreneurship in the region and bridging the gap between NUTS PL91 and PL.

    More information here: START EASY | Interreg Europe