ZAGREB, 28 March 2021 - The framework program for research and innovation Horizon Europe for the period from 2021 to 2027, worth €95.5 billion, was presented at a video conference at the Science and Education Ministry last Tuesday.
Horizon Europe is the leading EU program for research and innovation that will provide support in creating and expanding new high-quality knowledge and technologies, strengthening the impact of research and innovation on developing and supporting innovative solutions in industries and society for the sake of dealing with global challenges.
All types of innovation will be promoted, including revolutionary innovations, the introduction of innovative solutions on the market, and the optimizing of program results to enhance their impact in the strengthened European research area. EU policy implementation will be supported as well.
Science and Education Minister Radovan Fuchs believes the new framework program is a good opportunity for Croatia to strengthen its research community. He says his ministry will support by implementing the necessary reforms and making the necessary investments.
Supporting research excellence, quality research, connecting the academic community and the business sector are some of the key tasks in Croatia's national development strategy, he says, calling for investing additional effort to increase the absorption of available funds.
Speaking of the program's prospects from the point of view of Croatia as the youngest EU member, Fuchs said that it was his ministry's duty to create favorable conditions for the development of research and innovation, stressing that the ministry had enhanced the capacity to implement the Horizon 2020 program and would do the same for Horizon Europe.
European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth Mariya Gabriel told participants in the online presentation that during its presidency of the EU in the first half of 2020, Croatia had contributed to negotiations on the Horizon Europe program, which resulted in an agreement with member states and the European Parliament in December 2020.
The EU now has an ambitious program for the next seven years which will enable the establishment of a pan-European network of researchers who will work together to create new ideas and enable their implementation, which will have an impact on Europe's development, she said.
She called on the competent institutions in Croatia to study the program thoroughly and actively participate in informative events on the program, such as one to be held in June.
Gabriel said the event would provide information on the first pillar of the program, called Excellent Science, which aims to reinforce and extend the Union's science base's excellence and enable investment in world-class research infrastructure.
Gabriel said that the meeting would also discuss researchers' mobility, a topic important for the Croatian academic community as more than 60 Croatian research organizations participate in Horizon 2020.
She recalled that the second pillar of the program, called "Global challenges and European industrial competitiveness," encourages programs that will result in concrete solutions to EU citizens' benefit in areas such as digital technology, environment, and energy.
The third pillar, "Innovative Europe," is geared towards encouraging new, advanced solutions needed by Europe. Gabriel said she believed that Croatia's efforts to increase its presence in the European research network would be fruitful.
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