Building a regional innovation hub: five lessons from Science and Technology Park Niš

However, innovation activity remains concentrated in a few larger hubs. For regional ecosystems, the challenge is to create opportunities that reflect local strengths while connecting entrepreneurs, researchers, and companies to wider networks.

Science and Technology Park Niš (STP Niš) offers an example of how a regional innovation hub can contribute to this process. Established in 2020 as one of Serbia’s four science and technology parks, STP Niš supports startups and technology companies in Southern and Eastern Serbia while working with the broader innovation community in the region.

Its experience highlights key lessons that can serve other similar institutions throughout the world:

Lesson 1: Regional hubs need to build their own identity

Regional innovation hubs often look toward more established ecosystems for inspiration. However, STP Niš’s experience shows that success does not come from becoming a smaller version of a larger center. It comes from understanding local strengths and building around them.

Aleksandra Ristić, Business Development Advisor at STP Niš, says:

We see STP Niš as part of Serbia’s progress, not as a copy of what already exists in Belgrade or Novi Sad, but as a regional hub building something of its own.

Southern and Eastern Serbia have important foundations for technology development: the University of Niš, engineering talent, technical expertise, and a long electronic industry tradition. STP Niš’s role is to connect these resources with the support, networks, and opportunities startups and technology companies need to grow.

For regional hubs, this means developing an approach that reflects their own context. Every region has different strengths and challenges, and support models need to be adapted accordingly.

Lesson 2: Support programs start with understanding real needs

Creating a startup hub requires more than infrastructure and activities. It requires knowing what founders, companies, and other ecosystem actors need at different stages of development.

“One of the main challenges we faced was that we were building the ecosystem while also building the institution itself,” Aleksandra explains.

In its early years, STP Niš worked on multiple fronts: attracting companies, building trust, developing programs, and helping more people recognize entrepreneurship as a viable opportunity.

The team focused on learning directly from the community. “Instead of assuming what startups and companies needed, we listened, tested different formats, and gradually improved our support,” Aleksandra says.

This approach shaped programs such as Launcher, STP Niš’s early-stage startup support program, which created a more structured pathway for founders in the region.

Another example of quality support is that today 30 startups operate from STP Niš facilities, while the wider startup community includes more than 45 startups, including virtual members. Support includes mentoring, workshops, business development, networking, and connections with investors and international opportunities.

Lesson 3: Regional hubs create value beyond the companies they host

A science and technology park is often measured by the startups located inside it. For STP Niš, however, its role extends beyond its physical space.

The Park works with early-stage teams, students, researchers, technology companies, regional partners, local institutions, and organizations involved in developing innovation activities across Southern and Eastern Serbia.

Aleksandra proudly shares: “We contribute to Southern and Eastern Serbia by making innovation support more accessible and more practical for people and companies in the region.”

A significant part of this work is connecting groups that do not always naturally collaborate: entrepreneurs, academia, industry, and public institutions.

The impact of this work is not always immediately visible through traditional startup metrics. Building regional innovation capacity also means creating stronger relationships, improving access to expertise, and helping more people participate in entrepreneurial opportunities. Aleksandra explains:

We see ourselves as a bridge between local potential and wider opportunities and as a place that helps Southern Serbia build its own voice within the national startup landscape.”

Lesson 4: International expertise works best when it strengthens local capacity

Regional ecosystems also benefit from access to experience and knowledge beyond their immediate environment.

STP Niš has been working with the Swiss Entrepreneurship Program since 2024. Through this partnership, Swiss EP has supported the Park’s startup programs by connecting the team with international experts, including Faris Šehović and Maja Voje.

For STP Niš, the value of this cooperation comes from practical experience that can be applied locally. Aleksandra describes:

Swiss EP contributes to our impact by giving us access to a strong international pool of validated experts who bring hands-on startup experience and can add real value to the support we provide to startups.

She emphasizes that the right expertise depends on the right match: “What is especially important for us is that these experts are carefully selected and matched with the right topic and need,” she adds.

The lesson is that international knowledge creates the most value when local organizations can adapt it to the challenges of their own communities.

Lesson 5: Ecosystem development requires consistency over time

Building an innovation ecosystem is a gradual process. It requires organizations that continue to learn, adapt, and invest in relationships over the long term.

For STP Niš, this journey has included establishing the Park, developing startup programs, strengthening partnerships, organizing ecosystem events, and expanding its capacity as the community has grown.

Among these milestones are Launcher, its early-stage startup program, and the Forum of Advanced Technologies, which has become an important meeting point for discussions about technology, innovation, and industry transformation.

Another important milestone is the expansion of STP Niš’s capacity. The need for additional space emerged in less than three years, reflecting the rapid growth of the community and increasing demand from technology companies and startups. The construction of additional space for new member companies is now nearing completion, creating room for further growth, support, and new services.

The Park’s development shows that ecosystem growth is not defined by a single achievement but by continuous and consistent progress.

Aleksandra and her team are aware of that, so she shares:

We would say that ecosystem building takes time. You need patience, consistency, and people who are willing to keep improving things step by step.

Building innovation capacity beyond major centers

STP Niš’s experience shows that regional innovation ecosystems grow through a combination of local understanding, practical support, and long-term commitment.

While every region follows its own path, the principles remain similar: build on existing strengths, listen to the community, connect different actors, and improve continuously.

For Serbia’s startup ecosystem, regional hubs like STP Niš are an important part of ensuring that innovation opportunities can develop beyond the country’s largest centers.