GSS EU Science Funding Gateway

With the objective of guaranteeing a multidisciplinary approach, the selected consortium should be composed of diverse stakeholders (e.g. networks of start-ups, innovators, incubators, accelerators, academia, research and technology organisations, think tanks, NGOs, private and financial sectors, the European Institute of Innovation and Technology’s (EIT) Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs), etc.).

Proposals addressing this topic should in particular contribute to the following outcomes:

• Support the implementation of the AU-EU Innovation Agenda by providing for a convening platform enabling the elaboration and proposal of implementation modalities of specific actions already included in the current AU-EU Innovation Agenda. In particular and in practice, this action would enable the attainment of several short-term actions foreseen in the working document of the Innovation Agenda for two thematic areas (e.g. “Cross-cutting issues” and “Capacities for science”), aiming to:
  • Foster the establishment of links and networks among stakeholders across the innovation value chains, from the generation of ideas to development and implementation of innovations, including private and public sectors, higher education and research organisations, financial institutions, and civil society organisations;
  • Involve citizens in the innovation ecosystems, to improve societal uptake of innovation outputs, and valorise creative and collective intelligence, ensuring also gender equality and active participation of youths;
  • Strengthen coordination and cooperation between AU and EU innovation programmes and various implementing institutions, ensuring knowledge transfer, capacity building and mobility opportunities, consistent with the socio-economic needs of the concerned AU and EU countries or regions.
• Facilitate, conceptually and logistically, the organisation of annual or bi-annual meetings with key innovation stakeholders from the EU and the AU. By doing so, provide a forum for discussion and planning of the implementation of other short-, medium- and long-term actions of the AU-EU Innovation Agenda;
• Provide further de-risking support to Eureka-funded small and medium sized-enterprises (SMEs), that have previously benefitted from Viability Assessment Projects (VAPs) under Eureka’s Innowwide, by shortening the time-to-market of their innovative solutions and enhancing the uptake of innovations in European and African countries.