Clusters4Health: European project launched to strengthen collaboration between European and Ukrainian healthcare clusters

The Clusters4Health project was officially launched on 12 and 13 March in Iași, Romania, marking a significant step towards closer cooperation between European and Ukrainian healthcare clusters. This initiative, co-funded by the European Union under the COSME CLUSTERUA programme, aims to create a more innovative, resilient and sustainable healthcare ecosystem.

A strategic project for healthcare innovation

The 24-month project was launched at the Medical Simulation and Training Centre of the University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Iași, Romania. Clusters4Health is built around three key pillars:

• Connecting the healthcare ecosystems of Europe and Ukraine, promoting the sharing of expertise and resources.
• Supporting start-ups and promoting innovation through the European-Ukrainian Clusters Acceleration Lab, an acceleration laboratory dedicated to new businesses in the medical and health-tech sector.
• Developing a joint Europe-Ukraine roadmap for collaborative projects aimed at creating a more sustainable and intelligent healthcare system.

The strategic role of European clusters

Clusters4Health is led by a network of five European clusters and two Ukrainian clusters, coordinated by the IMAGO-MOL cluster (Romania). The partners involved are:

• Clust-ER Health – Emilia-Romagna (Italy)
• Biocat, BioRegion of Catalonia (Spain)
• Klaster LifeScience Krakow (Poland)
• Oslo Cancer Cluster (Norway)
• IMAGO-MOL Cluster (Romania, coordinator)
• Rivne Interregional Medical Cluster (Ukraine)
• Cluster ‘ProMedMan’ (Ukraine)

CLUSTERO – Romanian Cluster Association is also participating in the project to facilitate transnational collaboration.

According to Alina Căpitanu, Vice-President of Imago-Mol Cluster, the project is “a fundamental initiative to strengthen collaboration between European and Ukrainian healthcare clusters through knowledge transfer, innovation and skills development. Thanks to our consortium’s experience, we aim to generate a concrete impact on the Ukrainian healthcare system and create opportunities for sustainable development.”

From an industrial perspective, Nataliia Dziuba, head of the ProMedMan Cluster, emphasised that “Clusters4Health will help Ukrainian medical device manufacturers integrate into European markets, improving competitiveness and strengthening the resilience of the healthcare sector.”

A real opportunity for the future of healthcare

Despite the difficulties associated with the ongoing war, the initiative represents a real opportunity for development in the Ukrainian healthcare sector. Tetiana Vorontsova, President of the Rivne Interregional Medical Cluster, said:

“The opportunity to collaborate with leading European healthcare clusters and adopt best practices is now a reality thanks to Clusters4Health. This will enable us to develop innovative healthcare ecosystems and move ever closer to European standards.”

Clusters4Health represents an extraordinary opportunity to promote knowledge exchange, accelerate innovation and directly support Ukrainian start-ups and healthcare companies, thereby helping to strengthen the entire European healthcare sector.

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.