FARMINGTON, Mo. (NewsFirst) – The Farmington Regional Chamber of Commerce has announced a new partnership with the Southern Missouri Innovation Network, known as Innovate SOMO.

The partnership is expected to open up major educational and job opportunities for the Farmington region. Innovate SOMO, headquartered in Cape Girardeau, aims to unlock the full potential of entrepreneurship and innovation to transform communities in the southernmost 47 counties in Missouri.

The network’s creators say they have raised nearly $10 million in state and federal competitive grants and private contributions to support the expansion of programs and resources delivered through the network.

The Innovate SOMO network is expected to provide programs and services to nearly 1,200 entrepreneurs and workers, assist in the building of more than 60 new businesses, and create over 500 new high quality jobs. The annual economic impact from these efforts is expected to be more than $37 million.

For more information about local availability of these programs or services, contact Candy Hente, Executive Director of the Farmington Regional Chamber, at (573)756-3615. To learn more about the Innovate SOMO network, visit InnovateSOMO.org.