The Network of Incubators and Clusters in the Republic of Serbia: Improving the Competitiveness of SMEs through Institutional Support

Cooperation between incubators and clusters can be used as an instrument of institutional support aimed at enhancing SMEs competitiveness and establishment of innovative entrepreneurial ventures. Creating conditions for such cooperation serve as a strategy platform for incubators and clusters and helps fostering technological development. A basic requirement for this development is creating appropriate concentration of professional and competent people and organizations. Emergence of highly concentrated research and development activities is dependent on the support of stakeholders, including obtaining necessary funding. The objective of this paper is: to examine the role of strategy development as a platform for facilitating cooperation networks, including business incubators and outside institutional support as drivers of regional economic development and SMEs competitiveness on the example of Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, Serbia. Practical results that can be achieved through the establishment and development of cooperation networks are diverse. At first place, they contribute to strengthening the cooperation on the level of the urban areas to the level of the region. Second, they facilitate cooperation between industries, universities, institutions and companies in and outside Serbia. And third, they serve as a mean to work together with: experts from different fields; development centres and agencies; organizations for support economic development, development funds; support institutions.