Abstract
In the last ten years the European Union has devoted specific attention and resources to the establishment of so-called \emph{macro-regional strategies}, with the aim of joining together particular transnational areas according to a functional rather than administrative perspective. The present work is the first one that focusing on the youngest EU macro-regional strategy (EUSALP) highlights strengths and weaknesses of the macro-region in terms of both performance and territorial assets. The analysis is based on an original database gathered at NUTS3 level. Given the geo-morphological heterogeneity of the overall region, the identification of three distinct macro-territorial areas (Plain, Peri-alpine and Alpine) allows a more meaningful analysis, with the final objective of providing some policy suggestions to improve the competitiveness of the whole area through a smart specialization strategy