Presidency Conference on Synergies in the Research and Innovation Funding in Europe
At the very beginning of the Czech Presidency in the Council of the EU, the Conference on Synergies in the Research and Innovation Funding in Europe will be arranged in Prague from 7th to 8th July 2022. The event will bring together high-level representatives of the EU Member States and the European Commission to discuss the effective use of a wide range of national and European funding instruments to support research and innovation. Among other things, the Prague Declaration on Synergies in the Research and Innovation Funding in Europe will be presented at the conference.
The conference entitled “Synergies in the Research and Innovation Funding in Europe” is organised by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports in a close cooperation with the Czech National Agency for International Education and Research as the first event of the research agenda of the upcoming Czech Presidency in the EU Council. The conference will provide a high-level forum for participants to debate how to remove persistent obstacles to the implementation of synergies in the research and innovation funding in Europe, and thereby how to harmonise most efficiently the implementation of national and European financial instruments aimed at supporting the science and technology advancement.
“I am very pleased that the research agenda of the Czech Presidency in the Council of the EU starts with the debates on the topic of synergies in the research and innovation funding. The European landscape of research and innovation funding instruments is extremely rich and includes a broad range of the EU and national programmes. It is, therefore, of critical importance to use these funding instruments in a complementary way and also look for ways to link the instruments to the implementation of sectorial policies aimed at the post-pandemic recovery, the green and digital twin transition of the European economy and strengthening its international competitiveness at the global level. Synergies are a tool for maximising public and private investments in research and innovation in Europe and must be given due attention,” says Petr Gazdík, Minister of Education, Youth and Sports, the host of the conference.
Research and innovation in Europe are funded by numerous financial instruments. At the EU level, this is particularly through the Horizon Europe EU Framework Programme, the EU Cohesion Policy Funds, the Recovery and Resilience Facility or the Digital Europe Programme. Simultaneously, research and innovation are funded from national budgets of the EU Member States and from private resources by individual companies or foundations. Synergies in the research and innovation funding are prerequisite for exploiting the full potential of the scientific and technological cooperation in the EU, as well as for bridging the research gap and closing the innovation divide in the European Research Area. Also, for these reasons, synergies are one of the key priorities of the Czech EU Council Presidency in the area of research.
The purpose of the conference is to debate the specific reasons that, for the time being, prevent from the exploitation of the full potential of synergies, both in plenary and parallel break-out sessions, which will focus on the topic of synergies when it comes to funding of the research infrastructures, European Partnerships and Missions or innovation. The conclusions of the conference will be presented in the form of the “Prague Declaration on Synergies in the Research and Innovation Funding in Europe”, which will then be submitted to the EU Member States for their political support.
The conference will be held from 7th to 8th July 2022 at the Prague Congress Centre as a hybrid event, where online viewers will be able to watch the webstream alongside approx. 300 participants present at the conference venue.
Further information on the event, including the programme, speaker introductions and the registration form for participation, is available on the conference website https://synergies2022.eu/.
