Horizon 2020: 80 Billion Euros to Boost European Competitiveness

"We need a new vision for European research and innovation in a dramatically changed economic environment." -- Maire Geoghegan-Quinn, European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science[1]

Even as fears of the Euro's demise continue apace, the European Commission has unveiled its proposal for Horizon 2020, a six-year, EUR 80 billion (USD 108 billion) financial program that is a key component of Innovation Union, a Europe 2020 flagship initiative meant to increase Europe's global competitiveness as part of the drive to stimulate economic growth and create new jobs. It is a staggering amount; bigger than the GDP of Bangladesh, Vietnam, Morocco, Slovakia and more than 120 other countries ranked by the International Monetary Fund.[2]

INNOVATION CAPACITY: THE EUROZONE CLOUD'S SILVER LINING

Starting in 2014, Horizon 2020 features a wide spectrum of initiatives to boost investments in research and innovation across Europe, and marks the first time all such EU funding is grouped under a single program. In addition to providing access to finance, some of the commission's objectives include the development of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and eliminating administrative hurdles. One key goal is to reduce the time between grant applications and funding disbursements by an average of 100 days so that projects hit the market sooner.

"Europe is currently facing very serious economic challenges," said Maire Geoghegan-Quinn, the European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science. "But there are reasons for optimism. High on that list is the enormous and still largely untapped research and innovation capacity that we have in Europe."[3]

SCIENCE, SUSTAINABILITY, SINGLE MARKET

Horizon 2020 will provide EUR 24.6 billion (USD 33.2 billion) to boost scientific research, EUR 18 billion (USD 24.3 billion) to invest in Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) and SMEs, and EUR 31.7 billion (USD 42.8 billion) to "help address major concerns shared by all Europeans such as climate change, developing sustainable transport and mobility, making renewable energy more affordable, ensuring food safety and security, or coping with the challenge of an ageing population," including sustainable agriculture, bio-economy and resource efficiency.[4]

The commission said that Horizon 2020 will be supported by additional measures aimed at "breaking down barriers to create a genuine single market for knowledge, research and innovation."[5] The European Parliament and the European Council will deliberate on the commission's proposals with a goal to reach an agreement by the end of 2013.

UNIFIED MONETARY POLICY? YES. UNIFIED FISCAL POLICY? NO

Asserting both the need of a unified eurozone and the unique capability of EU investment, Geoghegan-Quinn said, "It is fitting that the new programme should have a name with an optimistic ring that evokes vision, new possibilities and an ambitious view of what EU-funded research and innovation can achieve. Because it is only at an EU level that we can mobilise sufficient resources to tackle societal challenges. Only through EU funding can we help our researchers and innovators to join forces and work together across national borders. And only the EU can organise continent-wide competition to stimulate our researchers towards greater excellence."[6]

In a nice bit of PR for the program and a display of European unity, the name of the program is the result of an EU-wide competition in which the public voted on a shortlist of names suggested by citizens. The winning name of "Horizon" was the suggested by two teachers -- Marcela Endlova from the Czech Republic and Beata Zyngier from Poland. If that kind of unity translated into a common fiscal policy, then perhaps a future Euro debt crisis may be averted, if there is a future for the Euro. But Horizon 2020 is a tidy sum, and if it can spur economic growth while also putting Europe on a sustainable path, it is well worth fighting for. Perhaps more of Europe's teachers should be involved.

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