| Joint Programming in Research – the Path to a New Era of Research Cooperation in Europe? |
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bridges vol. 19, October 2008 / Letter from Brussels By Martin Schmid  Officials of the Research DG in the European Commission could become frustrated when looking at how small the great Framework Program appears compared to the overall research expenditure of Member States. The budget of FP71 for 2007 is about 5 percent of the total public expenditure on R&D in the EU27. Even if a leverage effect is taken into account and other European cooperation schemes are included, the percentage of public expenditure for research committed on a European Level is hardly above 15 percent. This also means that by far the larger part of research promotion in Europe is based on national strategies: 27 national strategies focused on 27 national research systems. And because those national strategies are designed in the same world and even on the same continent, they are driven by more or less the same societal and economic challenges.The Research Framework Programs, which started back in 1984, did a good job bringing researchers together all over Europe. The concept of collaborative research projects contributed to a very well networked European research community. But attempts to coordinate the research policies of Member States in order to build up critical mass and avoid duplication have achieved very little so far. Although a shift from collaborative projects towards joint programs - such as the ERA-Nets2 , Initiatives according to Article 169 of the EC treaty3 , and "joint technology initiatives"4 - was started with the FP6, this remains patchwork and common planning is still missing. Access to the full article is free, but requires you to register. Registration is simple and quick – all we need is your name and a valid e-mail address. We appreciate your interest in bridges. |
