The project supports SMEs in the 8 participating regions to increase and improve their use of ICT. In the first module the ICT use among 100 SMEs/region will be surveyed. On the basis of this study 30-50 SMEs/region will receive an ICT audit and the proposed solutions will be implemented. The audit and its implementation will then be evaluated. This evaluation together with other important experiences gained in the project will be developed into a best practice guide.

The European Union has huge differences between regions. A central reason for this situation is the disadvantage that rural and semi-rural areas have in terms of gaining access to the latest technologies, which are best supported in larger urban areas. The aim of "Regional Strategies and Solutions to Enhance ICT" (ICTs for SMEs) is to strengthen rural regions through the implementation and use of ICTs for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), helping to overcome the disadvantages faced by businesses in these areas.

Expected Outcomes

The main outcome will be to improve access by SMEs to ICT and to reduce the current disparities in service support between rural and urban areas. This will include the creation of regional SME Support-Centres which will connect SMEs, local authorities and the transnational partners. Outcomes also include on-site support to provide technical assistance for ICTs, the running of training programmes through e-learning and workshops and conferences. Web-space will also be provided to allow business-to-business transactions (B2B) enabling e-procurement and e-commerce, and ?best-practice? solutions will be developed for SMEs and made available across the North Sea region.

Activities

ICTs for SMEs is divided up into three modules. The first module, Strategy Development, will produce a study investigating the problems, needs and requirements of SMEs in using ICTs, a description of available state of the art techniques and initial development of possible solutions for SMEs based on these first results. Regional Support Structure, the second module, will be based on the results of the first module, and will build a regional support-structure that is tailored to the prevailing conditions in the regions. The central structure of the project, the regional SME Centres, will offer education to locally based partners within this module. The final module, Web Platform, will provide an internet-based communications platforms for both SMEs and the project in general. The platform will be used to disseminate project results and for video conferencing and will also include an information centre about the project partners.

Reported Outcomes

Better broadband access for small and medium-sized enterprises has been achieved through the support by the ICT for SME?s (Information and Communication Technologies for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises) project. The use of information technology is crucial for maintaining economic competitiveness particularly in remote rural areas. The ICT support structure created for SMEs under the project will be continued permanently in the form of a planned ICT support centre. The overall aim of the project is to be able to help SMEs further their knowledge and ability to create value through proper use of Information Technology. To understand the effect of different tools and actions, such as training programs etc., the survey was conducted in all regions (with the exception of Belgium). By the end of 2005, 600 surveys on local businesses have been performed and 120 SME underwent an ICT audit. As a result, 15 training measures were developed and 170 SME were supported. The results of the questionnaires have been targeted and different ICT training solutions have been developed to meet the needs. Regional support structures ("learning centres") have been established or strengthened, in particular in Arvika (SWE) and in the Netherlands. The audit and its implementation will then be evaluated. This evaluation together with other important experiences gained in the project will be developed into a best practice guide. Some results of the evaluation has shown that in Osterholtz, the powerful internet linking system provided an increase of the use of IT in each small enterprise in the region. Help desks and support structures as well as data banks with best practices were implemented for local enterprises.