Digital Transformation Center

The Digital Transformation Center is part of a global network of centres funded by the BMZ (German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development). Its Kosovo activities are hosted in the ITP, jointly financed by the Kosovar and German governments.

Pillars integrated into the centre:

Science and Education: Support for Research Faculties, Institutes, Students and Training Facilities with relation to ICT by connecting theory with practice

Technology for Business: Supporting Kosovo traditional (non-ICT) businesses digitalising their activities

Digital entrepreneurship: Support for tech-startups and innovative ICT businesses

Beyond the individual support for the three pillars, actors from all pillars are connected to develop a thriving digital ecosystem.

To strengthen its foundation, related public agenda-setting, processes and projects are supported and connected with the ecosystem`s needs.

If you are driving digital development – in education, as a business or in any other form – and are looking for opportunities to grow and connect, contact us and become part of the new ecosystem in ITP!

Increase IT skills and job readiness through support for study and training programs; by jointly using facilities and equipment in the ITP, through matchmaking with businesses and the support of joined innovation experiments.

From the higher education side, UBT – University for Business and Technology joins the ITP to offer education programs and connect the youth with the latest innovation and technology trends.
The ITP already has a memorandum of understanding with the University “Ukshin Hoti” – Prizren. Under the umbrella of the digital transformation centre, this cooperation will be further developed.

Next to the formal education, complementary training programs on digital skills are integrated and supported, such as:
Makerspace Innovation Center Prizren, one of the first-movers to the park constantly develops its curricula with the vision to build a generation of innovators with positive attitude – from graphic design to web development.
Ex-Cite which are about to join the ITP to offer trainings on AWS cloud infrastructure and agile methodologies.

Beyond study and training programs, access to national and international sources of knowledge and funding shall be promoted and supported. To increase the capacity for data-intensive research and e-learning, the Kosovo Research and Education Network – KREN and its datacenter – designed to connect Kosovo`s Science and Education institutes – are located in the ITP and supported under the umbrella of the Digital Transformation Center.

Support for Kosovo`s non-ICT businesses digitalising their activities and processes – by training programs to identify one companies’ innovation potential and support of the development and implementation of digital strategies. To ensure opportunities for non-ICT businesses to digitalise their business, tenants are selected to join the ITP which can offer support in digitalising business processes.

As a first step in this direction, ITP is partnering up with “Business Consultants Council (BCC)” to implement the Project “Digital Transformation as a guide to empowering SMEs and Start-Up Businesses”. The project will support improving the digital capabilities of start-up businesses and the digital transformation of SMEs.

By the beginning of 2022, the project will seek to have “test before invest” services for companies on the latest software or technologies in the park as well as consultation and training for their implementation and financing through a “Digital Innovation Hub”.

Establish a 360-degree start-up support system in the ITP.

The selection and promotion of promising ideas and business models are supported by the establishing an “Idea-to-Scale Program” and set-up of the right environment, including Co-Working Spaces and appropriate training programs by Makerspace Innovation Center Prizren, which are already active in the park. Beyond, close links to universities for student incubation shall be established and offering of office spaces right next door which are ideally suited for tech-start-ups and software developers.

Next to promoting the individual pillars, a main goal of the DTC is to better integrate them into a thriving digital ecosystem and establish joined structures. Hence, matchmaking, joined activities and exchange between universities, businesses and support structures will be strongly supported. Also, the establishment of connections or partnerships beyond the local ecosystem (nationally and internationally) will be supported.

A major step will be the establishment of a “Digital Innovation Hub” (DIH) Prizren and integrating it into the international DIH network. The DIH will integrate research and development side with practical business needs: boost business competitiveness by providing an opportunity to businesses to test the latest digital technologies before going into an investment, access to an innovation ecosystem and networking opportunities, as well as support to find investments and access to training for skills development. Within this scope, the cooperation between the private sector and universities is supported by financing applied-research project applications

The project also supports relevant networking events and conferences on digital, science, technology, innovation to take place in the ITP for all relevant actors to get inspired, exchange knowledge and find collaboration partners or match supply and demand.

Check out our events section, e.g. the Home – KosICT 2021, beautifully organized by STIKK, took place in the ITP premises.

A digital ecosystem cannot thrive without the proper foundation of regulations and infrastructure.

Support IT Infrastructure projects in the park (e.g. 5G testbed development, data centre development and Kosovo Research and Education Network Establishment). Close connections in this regard are established to the public KODE – kode, kode project and their activities in the ITP.

Beyond, the digital transformation centre project is open to providing advice on related policy questions – from involvement in the smart specialization strategy development to digital agenda setting – and to building the bridge between political decision making and practical application.

The idea of establishing the ITP as a Digital Transformation Center originates in a German cooperation programme financed by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

The Digital Transformation Centers address these challenges and focus on democratic and participatory processes to strengthen local structures, the economy and society. Along with the BMZ Digital Strategy and its field of action of promoting local innovations, Digital Transformation Centers provide connecting structures in BMZ partner countries.
Here, innovation, technical know-how, participation, IT knowledge, research and entrepreneurship are bundled. In addition, the local and regional operating centres share their experiences in a global network. This enables them to respond quickly to the continuously changing challenges in the field of digitalisation in line with the demand.

Digital Transformation Centers operate with a modular structure, building on existing approaches while taking into account country-specific conditions. The one in the ITP focuses on promoting sustainable economic development. Find more information regarding the global programme under: Digital Transformation Center – Toolkit Digitalisierung