The Innovation Fund has announced a public call for the second phase of the GovTech program, intended for companies and research organizations to develop innovative technological solutions tailored to the needs of the public sector.
The total budget is two million euros.
"The GovTech program connects the public sector with the innovation ecosystem, with the aim of solving specific challenges of public administration through the application of modern technologies," the Fund said.
In the first phase of the program, public sector institutions reported specific challenges for which there were no adequate solutions on the market.
The Fund's expert committee selected the challenges with the greatest potential for solving through innovative technological approaches. The list of selected challenges is available on the Fund's official website.
"In the second phase of the program, companies and scientific research organizations have the opportunity to submit proposals for innovative solutions to selected challenges. Projects that are selected after evaluation will receive financial support for prototype development, pilot testing, or adaptation of existing technologies to the needs of the public sector," the Fund said.
Acting Executive Director of the Innovation Fund, Katarina Lalović, explained that in this phase of the GovTech program, they are opening up space for the innovation community to offer practical and applicable solutions to defined challenges.
"We expect projects that will quickly show results and improve the quality of public services for citizens, and we encourage companies as well as scientific research organizations to apply and submit their solutions," added Lalović.
The public call, as emphasized by the Fund, represents an opportunity for companies and scientific research organizations to, with financial support, develop and test their solutions in cooperation with public institutions.
The Fund invited interested entities to actively engage in the program and offer innovative solutions to specific challenges of the public sector.
The right to participate in the public call is open to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises - including newly established enterprises, as well as organizations for research and knowledge dissemination, i.e. research organizations.
The maximum amount of funding per project depends on the type of solution - up to 200 thousand euros for the development of a completely new solution that does not exist on the market and up to 100 thousand euros for the development and adaptation of an existing solution to the needs of the public sector.
The grant can cover up to 80 percent of total eligible costs for companies, or up to 90 percent for research and knowledge dissemination organizations, while the remaining amount is provided from the applicant's own funds.
Projects should result in technologies ready for practical application in the public sector, with a maximum project duration of up to 18 months.
The public call and complete documentation are available on the Fund's official website www.fondzainovacije.me.
Applications are submitted exclusively online, via the portal www.programifonda.me, no later than March 13th at 15 p.m.
In order to provide additional support to interested applicants, the Innovation Fund will organize an Info Day in Podgorica on February 9th, starting at ten o'clock in the Science and Technology Park.
During the public call, online Open Doors sessions will be organized via the Zoom application. The access link will be published on the Fund's website and social networks.
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