HORIZON BLOG: European R&D policy newsbytes (archived)

The European Union and the African Union are working on developing a new Innovation Agenda which is set to put research and innovation at the centre of their cooperation. 

The draft plan has four objectives: translate knowledge into innovation; strengthen innovation ecosystems; develop higher education and R&I partnerships; and scale up existing tools. 

With the plan, “the EU and AU Heads of States reconfirm the central role of research and innovation and Horizon Europe in the overall cooperation between the EU and Africa," said EU Research Commissioner Mariya Gabriel.

The latest version of the plan came out on 14 February, but the document is still being finalised. For those wishing to contribute, a public consultation is open online.  

The AeroSpace and Defence Industries Association of Europe (ASD) is urging the EU to unblock the UK’s association to the Horizon Europe research programme, joining the ranks of other research and industry organisations calling for a swift resolution.  

ASD is worried the stalemate is blocking EU-UK cooperation in two Horizon Europe industrial partnerships for aviation research, the Clean Aviation Partnership and SESAR partnership for air traffic management.  

The European Commission and UK agreed the latter will join Horizon Europe on equal terms with EU member states back in 2020 but the EU has since made association conditional on the resolution of post-Brexit trade disagreements.  

The EU and African Union (AU) has proposed a plan for turning ‘brain drain’ into ‘brain gain’ ahead of this week’s African Union and European Union summit, which was met with praise by universities on both continents. 

The Guild of European Research-Intensive Universities and the African Research Universities Alliance (ARUA)  welcome the plan’s focus on strengthening existing R&I funding programmes, the establishment of new ones to strengthen higher education, and a strong focus on boosting universities’ research capacity. These goals place universities at the centre of EU-AU cooperation, giving them a key role in “the development of knowledge economies throughout Africa for sustainable development and transformation,” said Ernest Aryeetey, secretary general of ARUA.

Jan Palmowski, secretary general of the Guild, said the proposals were significant “for universities in themselves, but for what they will enable universities to achieve for the transformation of African societies, and for relations between the AU and the EU.”

The government has told the ministry responsible for communications to start technical talks with the EU on potential cooperation.  

Switzerland is a founding member of the European Space Agency which is responsible for developing satellites for Copernicus, while the EU manages its data and services. 

If associated, Switzerland could have a say in shaping the programme, ensure its access to Copernicus data and enable its companies to participate in public procurement.  

The country’s potential association to the EU research programme Horizon Europe, which is tightly linked to Copernicus, fell through last year following political disputes between Switzerland and the EU. 

The plan, to be presented in an informal meeting of defence ministers in Paris, maps out how the EU can boost its research, innovation, development and technology to reduce EU’s dependencies in security and defence.  

This includes identifying critical technologies, ensuring civilian research programmes explore defence-related projects, increasing EU-wide cooperation, and better coordinating with the US and other NATO members.  

The roadmap is EU’s bid to get member states to invest in defence technologies developed inside the EU, allowing the bloc to rely less on foreign powers for its defence needs.  

Last year, the EU launched its first €7.9 billion European Defence Fund (EDF) aiming to reduce EU dependence on technologies from outside the bloc. By the end of the year, it is set to have invested €1.9 billion in research.  

But EU member states are still reluctant to work together on joint defence research projects. French President Emmanuel Macron has expressed frustration with this and has vowed to push to get all member states on board with reinforcing the EU defence industry.  

Sergej Možina, Slovenia’s science diplomat in Brussels, has been elected co-chair of the new ERA Forum, the body that will establish the policy agenda of the European Research Area (ERA) and decide on actions needed to foster a single market for research

Each of the 27 member states will have one representative in the forum, while the Commission will have one representative.

This setup will allow university, research and business associations to join the Commission and member states in shaping specific policy actions in ERA.

The European Commission today revealed a €6 billion plan for developing an EU broadband mega constellation in space to support edge computing, Internet of Things and autonomous driving. 

The Commission hopes to start a new public-private partnership with industry and member states to make the project a reality, proposing a €2.4 billion EU investment, including €430 million from the Horizon Europe research programme. 

The system would provide government and commercial services, enabling quantum-secured internet connection all around Europe and Africa. It’s a move towards securing the EU’s strategic autonomy, as Starlink in the US and OneWeb in the UK continue expanding their broadband mega constellations. 

“It represents what we need to be doing as a continent that is increasingly aware of its geo-political responsibilities and conscious of the need for technological sovereignty, dual infrastructure and also the need for shared or common infrastructure that will enable us to progress together,” said EU internal market commissioner Thierry Breton. 

The plan foresees development starting next year, with initial services opening as early as the end of 2024. If everything goes according to plan, the broadband should be fully operational from mid-2027. 

The Guild of European Research-Intensive Universities is joining calls on the African Union (AU) to develop excellence and infrastructures for research in African universities ahead of February’s EU-AU summit.

Joining sixteen leading African universities, the Guild argues public universities are the biggest research players in the continent but receive too little funding to fulfil their potential, leading to brain drain and overreliance on research partners from outside the continent.

Jan Palmowski, secretary general of the Guild, said strengthening African universities “must now become a central pillar of the new AU-EU strategic partnership.”

Researchers and innovators in the entire Western Balkan region can now participate in Horizon Europe on an equal footing with their EU counterparts after Albania became the last country in the region to sign up to the €95.5 billion EU research programme.

In the previous Horizon 2020 research programme, researchers and innovators from around 1000 organisations in the Western Balkans received €170 million in direct EU contribution.

The European Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) will invest €1.3 billion in preventing, preparing for and responding to cross-border health emergencies in its first year as a full-fledged programme. 

In its first year of running, HERA, modelled after the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) in the US, will contribute to the EU’s response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and reinforce preparedness for potential future health threats.

EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides said HERA will be “the EU's health security watchtower for future health threats, as well as a key player for health crisis preparedness at global level.”