Synergies are one of the priorities of the Czech Presidency of the Council of the EU, aiming to maximise cooperation and reduce fragmentation in R&I.
The current Czech Presidency of the Council of the European Union is seeking to better coordinate science funding. The objective is to maximise the amount, quality and impact of investments in R&I by creating synergies between different funding schemes, especially in less developed and peripheral regions. This approach is in line with the objectives of the new European Research Area (ERA) to build excellence, cross-border cooperation, a critical mass in key strategic areas, and an open single market for R&I (see SwissCore article). The European Court of Auditors plans to release a report on synergies, at the end of September or beginning of October 2022, to reiterate and reinforce the commitment of the European Commission (EC) and Member States to continue removing barriers to synergies at all levels. Depending on the report’s publication date, the resulting Council Conclusions on Synergies are expected either during the Czech Presidency, or later, during the Swedish Presidency in the first half of 2023.
The ministers responsible for research and innovation from the Member States of the EU, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland discussed synergies in R&I funding in Europe during an informal meeting in Prague on 22 July 2022. Previously, on 7-8 July, the Czech Presidency held a conference on ‘Synergies in Research and Innovation Funding’ in Prague to exchange good practices and lessons learned, and to identify bottlenecks blocking the full potential of synergies. Member States and the EC have made a considerable effort to better exploit synergies in Europe. However, the increasing number of funding instruments of the European research and innovation landscape, including the EU Framework Programmes for Research & Innovation, the EU Cohesion Policy Funds, the EU Recovery and Resilience Funds, and the Digital Europe Programme, demands further efforts to avoid duplication and fragmentation of resources. The outcome of the conference fed into the ‘Presidency Prague Declaration on Synergies in research and innovation funding in Europe’ that was presented at the informal meeting and should be endorsed by European research ministers. The conference put a strong emphasis on European Partnerships and the five European Missions. Partnerships are an interesting instrument for synergies as they are long-standing collaborations between private and public stakeholders that have been in place since the 7th framework programme. Missions, as a novel instrument introduced under Horizon Europe, are ideal for testing synergies given their cross-sectoral approach and broad stakeholder engagement, including citizens. Synergies between partnerships and missions will promote the understanding of the two instruments, prevent duplication of efforts, and avoid fragmentation. Research infrastructures as facilities that are indispensable for fundamental and applied research and for advancing technology development were also on the agenda of the conference. Synergies are especially relevant for research infrastructures as they need long-term political and funding commitments at both European and national levels.
Only a few days before the conference, on 5 July 2022, the EC published a Draft Commission notice on Synergies between Horizon Europe and the European Research Development Fund (ERDF) programmes. For the European Union, it is a priority to foster innovative and sustainable economic transformation and to foster excellence in research and innovation (R&I) while addressing and overcoming the persistent innovation divide. Horizon Europe and the ERDF are key instruments to deliver results on these interlinked objectives. The cohesion policy of Article 174 on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) serves to promote and support the development of Member States and their regions, while Horizon Europe emphasises supporting excellent R&I based on Article 179 on the TFEU. Thus, bringing cohesion policy and Horizon Europe closer together has been a high priority for the EC in the last years, especially when preparing for 2021-2027. The following instruments and examples are considered useful to foster synergies:
Seal of Excellence: This seal provided by the EC indicates that a proposal submitted under a Horizon 2020 or Horizon Europe instrument meets the relevant quality requirements, but was not funded due to budgetary constraints. The project is thus recommended as a good candidate for receiving support from other EU or national funding sources. During the first tie of Horizon Europe, this seal is only awarded to single-beneficiary instruments (e.g. the European Innovation Council (EIC) Accelerator, EIC Transition, Marie Sklodowska-Curie actions, Teaming, and the European Research Council (ERC) Proof of Concept).
Transfers from ERDF to Horizon Europe: Member States can use transfers to fund outstanding Horizon Europe proposals when budgetary constraints would otherwise prevent them from being selected for Horizon Europe support. Thus, transfers can provide opportunities to improve participation in Horizon Europe by beneficiaries from regions or Member States that traditionally had a low participation and success rate in Horizon Europe, boost projects in areas identified as priorities through smart specialization, and preserve administrative capacity at a national/regional level in the selection and follow-up of R&I projects. Transfers are especially relevant for single-beneficiary instruments. The first phase of Horizon Europe will allow only transfers for these instruments.
Cumulative funding refers to a project that can receive support from more than one fund, programme, or instrument. It provides the possibility to share the financial burden of a project and to address possible budgetary constraints as it allows up to 100% of a synergy project to be funded from the EU’s budget in so far as relevant State aid rules are complied with. It can be used to support Horizon Europe co-funded or institutionalised European Partnerships and Teaming.
European Partnerships can benefit from the ERDF as a national contribution to co-funded and institutionalised partnerships. Member States decide to provide support from the ERDF to a co-funded or institutionalised partnerships if it complies with the Common Provisions Regulation rules. Co-programmed European Partnerships are not eligible to use the ERDF as a national contribution because there is no option to combine funding.
Combined funding: Teaming reinforces the creation and modernisation of a centre of excellence in a widening country by teaming it up with a leading research institution in another country. It requires complementary funding from a national, regional, EU or private source.
Upstream and downstream synergies arise when EU support provides, namely via Horizon Europe and ERDF programmes, a coordinated and unified framework for all steps of the R&I innovation process (from capacity-building and basic research to commercialisation and uptake of innovative solutions by private enterprises). The European Missions are listed as suitable vehicles for “vertical synergies” – linking early research to technology diffusion and citizen outreach.