Education and technology: Scholarship competition

The European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) would attract billions of złoty to Wrocław if the city is successful in its bid to host the institute's headquarters, claimed a report by financial advisory giant Deloitte revealed by daily Puls Biznesu last week.

An EU directive authorizing the EIT project came into force earlier this month and cities in Central Europe were quick to voice interest in hosting the institute. Wrocław was the only city in Poland to express an interest, whereas the German cities of Aachen, Karlsruhe and Nuremberg are all vying for the role. From Hungary, Budapest has joined the race while Austria and Slovakia have launched a joint Vienna-Bratislava bid.

The EIT project is meant to found a rival for the US' Massachusetts Institute of Technology - it will be a European education and R&D center with a strong focus on business innovation. "Although Europe already has excellent education and research institutions, their representatives are often isolated from the business world and do not obtain together the 'critical mass' necessary for innovation," says the institute's mission statement.

Deloitte director Sebastian Mikosz noted that the institute could have a broadly beneficial effect on Wrocław. "Thanks to the investment, by 2021 the growth of consumption would reach zł.6.3-7.8 billion, depending on the scenario. From this, additional fiscal revenues would stand at zł.593-739 million," he told Puls Biznesu.

According to Deloitte's report, each złoty invested in the center could result in revenues 2.5 times as large, but this does not include the potential effects of the scientific achievements. "One can expect that this influence could be assessed in tens of billions of złoty," said the report. The European Union will invest €2.4 [zł.8.2] billion in the EIT project by 2013.