Commission adopts proposal for a Pact for Research and Innovation in Europe
The Commission adopted its proposal today for a Council Recommendation on ‘A Pact for Research and Innovation in Europe’ to support the implementation of national European Research Area (ERA) policies. The Pact proposal defines shared priority areas for joint action in support of the ERA, sets out the ambition for investments and reforms, and constitutes the basis for a simplified policy coordination and monitoring process at EU and Member States’ level through an ERA platform where Member States can share their reform and investment approaches to enhance exchanges of best practices. Importantly, to ensure an impactful ERA, the Pact foresees the engagement with research and innovation stakeholders. Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice-President for A Europe fit for the Digital Age, said: “The pandemic has shown us the importance of uniting research and innovation efforts that swiftly bring results to the market. It has shown us the importance investment in jointly agreed strategic priorities between Member States and the EU. The Pact for Research and Innovation we propose today, will facilitate better collaboration and join our efforts to tackle research and innovation objectives that matter the most for Europe. And it will allow all of us to learn from each other.” Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, said: “The Pact for Research and Innovation is the first milestone in our ambition for a simplified and more efficient European Research Area. The objective of the Pact is to foster the future dialogue process with key actors putting a clear emphasis on sharing best practices and facilitating the collaboration of Member States to invest in and coordinate on common research and innovation objectives.” The Pact was announced in the Commission’s Communication on ‘A new ERA for Research and Innovation‘ of September 2020 and endorsed by Council Conclusions on the new ERA in December 2020. You will find more information here.
