Transparency and openness of European research and innovation partnerships can be significantly improved through relatively simple measures concluded the study that was commissioned to support the EU Council discussions on the interim evaluation of Horizon 2020 during the Estonian Presidency.
The study “Increased coherence and openness of European Union research and innovation partnerships” carried out by the Technopolis group analysed the rationale and functioning of the Horizon 2020 partnership instruments in view of their ability to produce European added value.
The study suggests that the Commission and Member states should take action to simplify the complex structure of the partnership landscape to extend and capture the full European research and innovation potential. It gives seven recommendations for improving the transparency and openness of partnerships:
- Commission and Member states should jointly establish a systematic approach enhancing and ensuring openness and transparency during the preparation and selection of new partnerships.
- Commission and Member states should jointly establish a systematic framework for setting KPIs and collecting relevant monitoring data.
- Commission should establish common processes for identifying, analysing, introducing, managing, monitoring the impact and dissolving of partnerships and partnership instruments.
- Commission should require/encourage establishing multi-layered partnership models to lower the threshold and allow easier access of new entrants.
- The number of partnership instruments should be reduced and focus on and develop further the most potential ones.
- Partnership instruments should be redesigned based on a dual approach – long-term common agenda with dynamic short-term project level commitments, and more stable long-term commitments with significantly higher ambition for radical and systemic innovation.
- Societal driven R&D and innovation should be strengthened in the Framework programme by introducing and fostering mission oriented approaches and large scale experimental platforms.
Research and innovation partnerships funded for the Horizon 2020 and the next EU Framework Programme will be one of the discussion topics during the informal meeting of research ministers taking place in Tallinn on 25 July 2017. The recommendations will also contribute to the Council Conclusions on the interim evaluation of Horizon 2020 and the next Framework Programme, to be adopted by the end of the Estonian Presidency.
Read the final report of the study here