Title: Support for innovation in a small municipality: the case of Livani, Latvia

Authors: Marika Rudzite

Addresses: Development Planning Department, Livani District Council, Rigas Iela 77, Livani LV-5316, Latvia

Abstract: Today, when Latvia has joined the European Union, it is very important to analyse Latvia|s situation – where it is compared with other EU countries. The culture of innovation is still limited in Latvia. Local authorities, as public actors closest to citizens, have an important role to play in practical implementation of the innovation support documents and programmes. This paper describes: (i) the role of local municipalities in implementation of regional Innovation Strategy in Latvia, (ii) the strengths of local authorities for supporting the development of innovative entrepreneurship and (iii) the local initiatives of Livani District Council to promote innovations.

Keywords: local municipality; innovation support; Latvia; innovation strategy; regional strategy; development projects; e-study; human resources; entrepreneurship; sustainable development; knowledge-based economy; local authorities.

DOI: 10.1504/IJFIP.2006.009312

International Journal of Foresight and Innovation Policy, 2006 Vol.2 No.2, pp.146 - 158

Published online: 16 Mar 2006 *

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