Horizon Europe is a 7-year European Union scientific research initiative, successor of the Horizon 2020 programme and the earlier Framework Programmes for Research and Technological Development. The European Commission drafted and approved a plan for Horizon Europe to raise EU science spending levels by 50% over the years 2021–2027.
The proposal called for €100 billion in research and innovation spending for years 2021–2027. Of that sum, €2.4 billion is earmarked for the Euratom nuclear research programme and €3.6 billion is put away for an umbrella investment fund, called InvestEU. After accounting for 2% annual inflation, in 2018 the funding for Horizon Europe amounted to €86.6 billion. [1] [2]
Wealthier EU members have expressed opposition to the increase in funding, with Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte saying the draft budget was "unacceptable". [3]
To pay for the €100 billion science spending, the Commission's plan calls for cuts to agriculture and cohesion funding by 5 per cent. Additionally, the plan seeks to tie funding to adherence to the rule of law in member states, including judicial independence. [3]
Compared to the previous framework programme Horizon 2020, some changes in terms of cost reporting have been implemented with the objective to simplify the grant management process. [4]
Horizon Europe adopts five missions:
The budget of €95.5 billion for Horizon Europe, which was launched in 2021, is up from the €77 billion budget for its predecessor, Horizon 2020. [6] [7] [8]
Independent observers had predicted the final approved funding to be much lower after completion of the lengthy negotiations with the European Parliament and EU member states. [9] Former EU commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation Carlos Moedas, along with many advocacy groups, had pushed for a more expansive EU science budget. In order to build political support for the budget increase, he used American originated ideas of " moonshots" to focus research efforts and boost the public interest. [10]
Horizon Europe supports European partnerships in which the EU, national authorities and / or the private sector jointly commit to support the development and implementation of a programme of research and innovation activities. To be deemed a Horizon Europe Associated Member is to engage in "the closest form of cooperation in research and innovation for non-EU countries, by providing, as far as possible, the same rights and obligations to these countries' research and innovation entities as those accorded to entities of EU Member States." [11] Associated Countries are "non-EU countries that pay into the Horizon Europe budget to be treated equally to the EU Member States for the purposes of the programme." [12]
Horizon Europe expanded its partnerships beyond the 27 member states of the EU, this includes:
Associated non-EU countries | |||
---|---|---|---|
State | Joined | Note | Ref |
Albania | 1 July 2022 | [13] | |
Armenia | November 2021 | [13] [14] | |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | December 2021 | [13] | |
Canada | pending | associated to Pillar II | [13] |
Faroe Islands | 1 June 2022 | [13] | |
Georgia | December 2021 | [13] [15] | |
Iceland | 6 October 2021 | [13] | |
Israel | December 2021 | [13] [16] | |
Kosovo | December 2021 | [13] | |
Moldova | 22 November 2021 | [13] | |
Morocco | pending | [13] | |
Montenegro | December 2021 | [13] | |
New Zealand | December 2022 | associated to Pillar II | [13] [17] |
North Macedonia | December 2021 | [13] | |
Norway | 6 October 2021 | [13] | |
Serbia | December 2021 | [13] | |
South Korea | 25 March 2024 | [18] [19] | |
Switzerland | pending | [13] | |
Tunisia | 1 July 2022 | [13] | |
Turkey | January 2021 | [13] [20] | |
Ukraine | 1 January 2021 | The Agreement entered into force in June 2022. "associated third country" status was applied retroactively from 1 January 2021 |
[13] [21] [22] |
United Kingdom | January 2024 | associated to the entire Programme, with the only exception of the EIC fund |
[13] [23] |
In addition, the following countries are interested in exploring the concept of association to Horizon Europe:
State | Note | Ref |
---|---|---|
Australia | [26] | |
Japan | [26] | |
Singapore | [26] |