Brasília – Brazil is going to use European experience to create business opportunities in its local productive arrangements (APLs, in the Portuguese acronym) during major events, such as the FIFA World Cup 2014 and the 2016 Olympic Games. The measures for fostering these opportunities and making the APLs more competitive are being discussed today (30th) and tomorrow (1st), in Brasília, during the seminar Brazil – European Union: Innovation in Productive Arrangements.
“We are going to show what the trends are in European APLs and how they use innovation to build more competitive business models,” said the Innovation Incentive director of the Brazilian Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade, Marcos Vinícius Souza.
The APLs are clusters of companies operating in the same sector, in the same region, that interact and develop partnerships with local players, such as teaching institutions and governments.
During the event, a case study will be presented on a Brazilian delegation that went to several European countries in order to see how they use innovation to boost the economy of the APLs. Next, specialists and government representatives will discuss what may be applied to the Brazilian reality.
For Souza, European strategies in traditional sectors such as garment, textiles, and wood and furniture, may help Brazil. These industries have innovated in order to compete with producers from China and Eastern Europe. The director underscores that innovation must not be understood simply as technological advance and genetic improvement, but also as a different approach to brand development.
Another point to be considered is the continent’s practice of hosting international events. “A large share of this experience will be used during the Cup. We have seen how European public policies create opportunities during major events, such as the London Olympics, and are able to leverage a few clusters,” said Marcos Vinícius.
According to him, in order for this to happen, Brazil must overcome the lack of cohesion between federal-, state- and municipal-level organisations, and entrepreneurial associations. “Once we have raised awareness and united the players, then we will draw a map of the types of investment that may benefit the clusters,” he said.
To the secretary of Regional Development Policies of the Ministry of National Integration, Henrique Villa, the clusters’ growth must be addressed as a relevant matter. “They are an important tool for reducing social inequalities,” he said.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
