A3MATLANTIC: Strengthening the sustainable growth and competitiveness of the SMEs that make up the productive fabric of the Blue Economy sectors in the Mid-Atlantic.

In 2013, in Funchal (Madeira), the management commission for the constitution of a Macaronesian Marine-Maritime Cluster was signed, which in 2018 acquired the name of the Macaronesian Marine-Maritime Alliance (A3M) and brings together entities from the triple helix. The A3M’s mission is to promote socio-economic activity, sustainable investment and growth based on scientific and technical knowledge in the marine-maritime field, through active regional, national and international collaboration. Since May 2023, the Azores Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIA) holds the presidency of the A3M.

The proposal aims to support the governance of the A3M by broadening its scope of action, taking the alliance beyond the MAC territories, in order to generate a strategic positioning agenda in the decision-making centres at European and international level. A3MAtlantic will focus its activity on the promotion of innovation and internationalisation of SMEs:
– strengthening the A3M alliance for the strategic positioning of the MAC territories, raising
this initiative as a tool in Europe to make blue policies permeable at the regional level
– by launching awareness-raising, advice and support actions for SMEs.
– encouraging the development of training skills (upskilling – reskilling – Cross-Skilling).
– encouraging the participation of regional companies in international markets.