Initial data from the evaluation of Intervention II «Business Partnerships with Research Organisations» reflects the participation of Thessaly, the sectors attracting the highest funding, and the geographical distribution of approved projects.
On 9 September 2026, the evaluation results of Intervention II «Business Partnerships with Research Organisations» of the «Research - Innovate 2021-2027» Action were published.
Based on the initial processing of the available data from RIS3 Thessaly Monitoring System and the published list of approved projects, an initial picture of the regional research and innovation ecosystem's participation is formed.
The data are provisional and may change following the completion of the appeals process and the issuance of final inclusion decisions.
26 approved proposals with the participation of bodies from Thessaly
Overall, under Intervention II, applications had been submitted 386 proposals involving 198 different bodies from Thessaly, with a total requested public expenditure of €165.42m.
At this stage, 26 sentences included among the approved ones, with the participation of 24 different organisations and a total approved public expenditure of approximately €11.62m.
The approved proposals correspond to 6,73% of the proposals submitted with participation from Thessaly, while the 24 bodies correspond to 12.12% of the different entities that had participated in the submissions. The approved public expenditure amounts to approximately 7% of the initially requested public expenditure.
Strong presence of the University of Thessaly
His role is important University of Thessaly to the approved research and innovation partnerships.
The University of Thessaly, excluding the structures in Lamia, participates in 13 of the 26 approved projects, with an approved public expenditure amounting to approximately €5.86m.
The remainder of the funding primarily concerns businesses of different legal forms, reflecting in practice the collaborative nature of this specific Intervention and the connection of research activity with the business community.
Agri-food and biosciences attract the lion's share of funding
The initial processing of the results shows clear thematic concentration of funding in two key areas.
The Agri-food Complex it is in first place, with 9 approved proposals and a public expenditure of approximately €4.76m.
Here is the sector Life sciences – Health – Pharmaceuticals, with 7 approved proposals and a public expenditure of approximately €3.69m.
The two sectors come together 16 out of the 26 approved proposals and approximately 72.7% of the total public expenditure which is currently being recorded.
The image particularly confirms the strong presence of Agri-food in Thessaly's research and innovation ecosystem, as this specific sector leads both in terms of the number of approved proposals and the amount of funding.
Significant geographical concentration in Larissa and Volos
The spatial dimension of the results is also of interest.
Based on the initial geographical processing of the data, the The Municipality of Larissa accounts for approximately 45.2% of the total approved public expenditure.
Together, the Municipalities Larisa and Volos account for 76.4%, whereas with the addition of the Municipality of Karditsa the percentage stands at 86.7% of total public expenditure.
Consequently, the rest of Thessaly currently accounts for approximately 13.3% of the approved public expenditure, a feature that highlights a significant spatial concentration of research and innovation activity.
Of particular interest is also the comparison between submissions and approvals. In the initial submissions, Volos accounted for a significantly larger requested public expenditure, approximately €73.1m, versus €43.4 million from Larissa. In the approved projects, however, the picture is reversed, with Larissa moving into first place with approximately €5.25m, versus €3.62m for Volos.
What the first picture shows about Thessaly's innovation ecosystem
The results of Intervention II constitute yet another important data source for monitoring regional research and innovation activity.
The first image highlights, on the one hand, its strong position Agri-food and Life Sciences – Health – Pharmaceuticals and on the other hand its significant presence University of Thessaly in business and research organisation collaborations.
At the same time, the marked geographical concentration of approved funding in specific urban centres is a factor that warrants further monitoring, particularly in relation to the dissemination of research and innovation opportunities across the Region as a whole.
Ο RIS3 Mechanism of Thessaly continues the monitoring and processing of data, aiming for a better understanding of the dynamics, needs and emerging opportunities of the regional ecosystem.
The image will be updated following the completion of the objections procedure and the publication of the definitive allocations.
Source: Thessaly RIS3 Monitoring System and published evaluation results of Intervention II of the «Research – Create – Innovate 2021–2027» Action.