Foreign Investments and Local Development: The ICT System in the Province of L’Aquila

The ICT production system that can be identified in the Province of L’Aquila consists of two segments: the remains of the L’Aquila electronic hub, which has been in crisis since the eighties, and the Marsican area, dominated by the Micron plant. Both clusters were generated by the "extraordinary intervention" policies for the Mezzogiorno, and are exposed to strong international competition in the challenging circumstances brought about by the 2009 earthquake. Firms in the system have fruitful relations with the University of L’Aquila and other research centres, but their links with the local economy are weak. Regional policies aim at creating an innovation pole led by Micron.