A greater focus on user experience would help lift the burden of the next EU Framework Programme
Photo credits: Monica Schofield
More than at any time in recent years, Europeans need to be able to work together in ways that are meaningful and restore their faith in European institutions as enablers rather than a hindering bureaucracy. To this end, simplification isn’t just a word, it is an existential necessity.
Research and innovation is no exception, and the commitment of EU research commissioner Ekaterina Zaharieva to the topic is welcome. But she is not the first commissioner responsible for the Framework Programme to say simplification is a priority. Twenty years ago, former commissioner Janez Potočnik’s said the same for FP7. Much red tape was avoided by his idea of involving the users of the Framework Programme to review implementation proposals before they were set in legislative stone.
In subsequent years, however, the user perspective faded from view. The Framework Programme has almost doubled in size while staffing has…
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