The Competence Centre on Technology Transfer at the Joint Research Centre, and the European Training Foundation are pleased to announce the publication of a new joint report: Exploration of impact investment for skills creation - Existing actions, emerging trends, implementation modalities, best practice.

This study was set up to provide an overview of impact investment and skills creation in the area of innovation, covering the main features of impact investment, the historical development of the phenomenon, and how it can be linked to the skills creation process. It begins with an examination of the emergence of impact investing and explains its principles and defining features. It maps some existing initiatives at European and local level, presents examples of good and innovative practices in investments with social impact and explores what practices and instruments for impact investment in innovation skills have been and/or could be applied to South-East Europe (SEE), including the Western Balkans (WB). The study identified relevant provisions steering investments with impact on skills contained in both the InvestEU and the Economic and Investment Plan for the Western Balkans and the opportunities these programs offer.  

While the discussion and awareness about impact investment in the region appears to be highly limited, there is a need for developing new instruments (both financial and capacity building ones) to promote and spur impact investment so as to ensure the sustainability in the skills creation and retention process, ultimately resulting in reducing the brain drain and supporting the creation of high value-added jobs.