The Director General of Innovation and Digital Economy of Catalonia, Daniel Marco, discussed some of the key efforts the government has made and worked towards turning the region into a digital hub in an exclusive interview with Cointelegraph Editor-in-Chief Alex Cohen. Macro’s comments came during the European Blockchain Convention (EBC) 2022.
Mark said that the COVID-19 pandemic in the last two years has really helped to spread the idea of the digital economy, which is a part of the mainstream economy. He went on to cite the example of Europe, which has gone on to digitize the energy deal and several other digital deals.
Macro assumed the position of director of the Government Strategy of SmartCatalonia in 2014, overseeing the initiative to turn Catalonia into a “Smart Country” highlighted throughout the world. And with the advent of blockchain technology and the metaverse, the minister is working to create a fully digital economy inspired by the physical world.
He revealed that the local government is working on the construction of a Catalan metaverse called “Cataverso”. He explained:
“The Cataverse will be linked to the Catalan language and culture. That is what we want to have in this metaverse, that the Catalan entities that are doing things for culture can do it in the metaverse.”
The Director of Innovation for Catalonia went on to explain the government’s plans to turn Barcelona into a digital hub. He said that a lot will depend on talent and that the government has passed various university policies and programs to cultivate that talent among young people. He said:
“We have very solid policies to generate talent that comes from the university, but we are also training a lot with programs such as training plans and other activities because we need different profiles.”
He added that the government is trying to achieve the combination of both, that is, cultivating new talents and attracting more companies with a pleasant work environment.
The official, when asked about the blockchain projects with which tourists in Barcelona can interact, cited the example of a project focused on personal care and some others based on public transport.
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