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# 52015DC0034

**REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Interim Evaluation of the Joint Baltic Sea Research and Development Programme BONUS /\* COM/2015/034 final \*/**

  

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL

Interim
Evaluation of the Joint Baltic Sea Research and Development Programme BONUS

1.
INTRODUCTION

This Report
presents the results of an Interim Evaluation in compliance with Art. 13 of the
Decision (862/2010/EU) of the European Parliament and Council concerning the
participation of the Union in a Joint Baltic Sea Research and Development
Programme (BONUS) undertaken by several Member States. The Decision requires the
Commission to undertake an Interim Evaluation of BONUS no later than 31
December 2014 to assess progress towards the objectives set out in the
Decision, as well as proposing recommendations to further enhance integration,
quality and efficiency of implementation (including scientific, management and
financial integration). The Interim Evaluation also assesses to what extend the
financial contributions from the Participating States[1] are
appropriate, given the demands of their national research communities.

An Independent Panel
with five experts has undertaken the Interim Evaluation of BONUS and their findings
are provided within a detailed Evaluation Report[2].

This Report summarises
the main conclusions of the Interim Evaluation and includes the Commission's
observations.

2.
CONTEXT AND OVERVIEW OF BONUS

The Baltic Sea is unique: semi-land locked, one of the world’s largest brackish water bodies,
partially covered by winter ice, surrounded by nine States, eight of whom are EU
Members. The Baltic Sea environment has been seriously affected by many
pressures; both natural and man-made. These include pollutants such as dumped
chemical weapons and heavy metal compounds. Also high levels of nutrients are
linked to oxygen depleted dead zones, algal blooms and impacts on the natural fauna
and flora. The unique biodiversity of the Baltic Sea Region has been further
affected by the introduction of non-endemic alien organisms, fishing, maritime
traffic, offshore activities, changing weather patterns, growing economies with
increasingly intense agricultural practices and expanding coastal populations.
These pressures have seriously reduced the capacity of the Baltic Sea to
provide the sustainable goods and services upon which the region depends
directly and in terms of social, cultural and economic benefits.

The European
Council in 2007 highlighted concern for the status of the environment in the
Baltic Sea, as reflected in the Communication from the Commission to the
European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee
and the Committee of the Regions concerning the European Union Strategy for the
Baltic Sea Region.[3]

Science can address
these challenges and provide solutions to the urgent environmental problems facing
the Baltic Sea. As a consequence, there was a need for a qualitative and
quantitative stepping-up of research in the Baltic region through the
development and implementation of a fully-integrated approach, whereby the
relevant research programmes of all the bordering States could be streamlined
and focused in order to address the complex and urgent issues in a coordinated,
efficient and effective manner.

In response and
following previous progress towards greater research integration supported by an
ERA-NET[4]
from 2003 to 2008 and an ERA-NET Plus from 2007 to 2012, the Council invited
the Commission to present a proposal for an initiative under Article 185 of the
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (former Article 169 of the
Treaty establishing the European Community) for the Baltic Sea Region, which enables
the EU to participate in research programmes undertaken jointly by several
Member States. Article 185 initiatives seek to establish a durable integration
of national research programmes to overcome fragmentation and integrate at scientific,
financial and managerial levels.

BONUS was established
following the Decision[5]
of the European Parliament and Council as an Article 185 joint undertaking of Denmark,
Germany, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Finland and Sweden (“the Participating
States”) with the participation of the EU.

The overall
objective of BONUS is to “enhance the Baltic Sea Region's research capacity
so as to underpin the development and implementation of 'fit-for-purpose'
regulations, policies and management practices, to respond effectively to the
major environmental and key societal challenges the region faces now and will
face in the coming years and to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the
Baltic Sea Region's fragmented environmental research programming and approach
by integrating the research activities in the Baltic Sea System into a durable,
cooperative, interdisciplinary well integrated and focussed multi-national
programme. BONUS shall also contribute to the establishment and structuring of
the European Research Area (ERA) within the Baltic Sea Region".[6]

To achieve this objective,
BONUS is required to establish a policy-driven Strategic Research Agenda,
increase integration and coordination between cross-border and cross-sectorial
public research programmes, raise the research capacity of less research
intensive Baltic States, establish appropriate implementation modalities for a
joint management legal entity and governance structure and launch
cross-thematic, strategically focussed and multi-partner joint calls for
proposals.

BONUS is a EUR
100 million programme, with a maximum European Union financial contribution of EUR
50 million and matched within that limit by the national contributions from the
Participating States. Up to 25% of the national contributions may be provided in-kind
as infrastructure provided free of charge for use by beneficiaries within BONUS
projects.

The implementation
of BONUS is undertaken by a European Economic Interest Grouping (BONUS EEIG)
established in Helsinki. The Secretariat is responsible for administrative,
financial and contractual management and reports to a governing Steering
Committee. The Steering Committee comprises representatives of all
Participating States and is the programme's highest governing body. The Steering
Committee takes decisions and mandates the Secretariat’s work. The Commission
has permanent observer status within this body.

The Decision
requires implementation of BONUS in two phases: an initial strategic phase and
a subsequent implementation phase. Within the initial strategic phase, BONUS
EEIG has established a Strategic Research Agenda and agreed the necessary
detailed implementation modalities. These modalities generally follow FP7 and
concern rules for financial management, funding rates and reporting
requirements, which are specified within an Implementation Agreement, concluded
between the Commission and BONUS EEIG in October 2012 following an ex-ante
audit of BONUS EEIG's capacity to manage the programme and the subsequent
follow-up of critical recommendations.

Conclusion of
the Implementation Agreement launched the implementation phase of BONUS. The
implementation phase is required to last at least 5 years until October 2017 and
mainly comprises the publication of calls, selection of proposals and support
of collaborative research projects. Further activities include dissemination, regularly
updating of the Strategic Research Agenda, interfacing with science policy,
collaborating and sharing best practice with relevant science communities in
other European sea basins.

In November
2012, BONUS published its first calls concerning Viable Ecosystem and Innovation.
Following evaluation, 7 Viable Ecosystem[7]
and 13 Innovation projects[8]
were recommended for support. The Viable Ecosystem grants have been
placed in early 2014 and the Innovation grants followed later in 2014. A
third call concerning Sustainable Ecosystem Services was published in
January 2014 and as such was not subject to this evaluation.

A variety of
dissemination events have taken place including cooperation with the Helsinki
Commission (HELCOM)[9]
the Baltic Sea Region Programme[10]
and the European Parliament.

3.
INTERIM EVALUATION REPORT OF THE INDEPENDENT
EXPERT PANEL AND COMMISSION OBSERVATIONS

The Evaluation Report
covers progress of BONUS towards achieving the objectives set out in Article 2
and Annex I of the Decision as well as the extent of integration, the quality
and efficiency of implementation.

The Commission
considers the methodology applied by the Expert Panel sound. The main data
sources used for the assessment were documents concerning the BONUS programme, related
EU policies and other programmes associated with the Baltic Sea Region.
Interviews have also been undertaken with a wide range of internal and key
stakeholders. These allowed for a triangulation of data and have thus contributed
to robust conclusions. For example, the expert panel have observed a meeting of
BONUS's governing Steering Committee, which has enabled them to confirm that
research projects are correctly selected only on the basis of a ranked list established
on the basis of excellence in accordance with scores provided by independent
expert evaluators and in line with FP7 rules.

Since at the
time of the Interim Evaluation, it was too early in the implementation phase to
draw conclusions from research supported by BONUS, it is reasonable that preliminary
conclusions have been drawn from the scope of research supported and the results
from research grants within similar fields supported by the preceding ERA-NETs.

Sections 3.1 to 3.5
provide a summary of the experts’ conclusions within the Evaluation Report and
the Commission position on these is expressed in section 4.

3.1
      Relevance

The objectives of
BONUS were established in response to the multiple natural and human induced pressures,
which are causing serious harm to the environmental status of the Baltic Sea and its capacity to sustainably provide the goods and services upon which the
region depends.

As result of
regulation the Baltic Sea's environment has improved in recent years, however the
enhancements have not been as much as expected and toxic algal blooms, oxygen
depleted dead zones, alien species, depleted fisheries and crowded marine space
remain characteristic of the Baltic Sea.

The Baltic Sea is almost entirely enclosed, with a low rate of recirculation and complex
interdependencies between ecosystems, human activities, land and sea. The
Evaluation Report highlights the continued importance of the integrated
approach of BONUS. It is emphasised that the involvement of all Baltic Sea
States is essential since it supports a common understanding and coordinated
actions to address the challenges facing the Baltic Sea.

In response, BONUS
has undertaken wide stakeholder consultation and developed in agreement with
all Participating States a policy-driven Strategic Research Agenda that defines
the essential research needs and priorities to be addressed to improve the
environment of the Baltic Sea and to enable sustainable development, which will
support the economies of the Baltic States.

The Strategic
Research Agenda[11]
was updated in January 2014 following another wide stakeholder
consultation.

BONUS continues
to overcome the regions' previously fragmented environmental research programming
and has established a durable, cooperative, interdisciplinary and multinational
research programme. It provides knowledge to underpin science-based management
and sustainable development for a better future of the Baltic Sea.

The integration that
has been achieved between national research programmes within BONUS has been possible
following ten years of increasingly close cooperation supported by the preceding
ERA-NETs.

Overall, the
Panel concludes that the original objectives, which justified the establishment
of BONUS remain relevant and implementation of the Strategic Research Agenda
will support research and innovation that continues to address the ongoing
challenges facing the Baltic.

3.2
      Effectiveness

The Evaluation Report
considers that BONUS has achieved a high level of transnational scientific
integration through the common definition of research topics and a common excellence-based
evaluation of project proposals undertaken by independent experts without
regard to nationality. This approach together with networking activities has
created a transnational research "community" which has substantially
reduced fragmentation of Baltic Sea Research and reinforced integration between
national research programmes.

The Evaluation
Report found that BONUS EEIG's operational management is guided by a comprehensive
and appropriate set of procedures. Financial oversight is ensured by an Executive
Director and a qualified Financial Manager. BONUS EEIG was considered to
operate effectively as a dedicated implementation structure undertaking
operational management and ensuring the application of common funding rules.

Following
interviews and observation, the governing Steering
Committee was considered to be effective, with trust between its members and a
constructive problem-solving approach. The Commission attends as observer within
the Steering Committee and its interjections were considered valuable to support
constructive discussions within the legal framework of BONUS.

Common funding
rules and a single budget for each BONUS call for research proposals ensure
financial integration. Projects are selected following a centralised evaluation
undertaken by independent experts applying FP7 rules and strictly on the basis
of a list ranked by score without considering other factors, such as national
quotas.

At
the time of the report, the European Union and the Participating States have jointly supported 20 research projects to the value of EUR 32 million addressing
important topics such as reducing nutrient inputs from the shore, boosting
sustainable fisheries, supporting improved monitoring of the marine environment
and the effects of combined marine activities. Following a third call, grants
supporting further projects that were successfully evaluated by independent
experts applying FP7 rules are now being finalised and additional calls will be
implemented until completion of the BONUS programme in 2017.

Within
the Innovation call, enterprises comprised 25% of successful
beneficiaries, 16% of these were SMEs. However, due to the more basic research
drive approach, only 3% of the successful beneficiaries within the Viable
Ecosystem call were SMEs and consequently, measures are needed to increase the
participation of SMEs.

Drawing
upon the scope of projects supported and the outcomes from related research
supported by the previous ERA-NETs, the Evaluation
Report considers that the quality of BONUS supported research is expected to be
high and widely cited.

The Evaluation
Report valued the programme's proactive communication policy, which regularly
publishes newsletters, bulletins and specific briefings. BONUS participates
within relevant organisations such as HELCOM, JPI Oceans[12] and
ICES[13].
BONUS is also a frequent keynote speaker within marine research events and within
other events related to research collaboration, e.g. the European Maritime Day,
the EurOcean conference and the EU Baltic Sea Region Strategy Forum. BONUS EEIG
has surveyed the effectiveness of its dissemination activities and will use these
results to sharpen its focus and increase the take-up impact of its
communications to maximise the impact.

BONUS's
impact is likely to be increased by its open data access policy and the use of
publicly available data-bases for metadata, which will make the results more
widely available and enable a better understanding of the mechanisms, which
threaten the environment of the Baltic Sea.

BONUS
supports a Young Scientist Club with events to promote broader career skills
such as skills for presentation of research to a non-scientific audience. Such
events support the capacity of researchers to engage with a wider community and
consequently increase the impact from their work.

National
funding commitments from the Participating States have been provided at the start
of the BONUS programme for its entire duration. Some of the Participating
States have committed more funds than others. Experience from the first BONUS calls
shows a mismatch between the national funds committed and the corresponding
funds needed to support the successful national beneficiaries following the
outcome of each evaluation. In some cases, the national funds foreseen are insufficient
to support the demand from their successful national beneficiaries. So far, this
has been overcome by flexibility from the Participating States concerned that
have provided additional funding. However, establishing these case-by-case
solutions has caused uncertainty and delayed the time to grant.

Another
issue concerns the proportion of the national contributions to BONUS provided a
in-kind as infrastructure for use free of charge within BONUS projects. BONUS
EEIG had foreseen that the value of in-kind contributions would be 25% of the
total national contributions, which is the maximum value allowed in the
Decision. However, early indications are that less national in-kind
infrastructure contributions have been provided than expected. If continued,
the foreseen cash contributions from the Participating States will be
insufficient and will need to be increased to compensate for this shortfall.

3.3
      Efficiency

The BONUS
Secretariat employs seven persons and the Evaluation Report assesses this as
being sufficient to manage the programme with limited spare capacity in case of
sickness, holiday etc. The running costs of BONUS are limited to EUR 5 million
within the Decision and the Evaluation Report considers that at 5% of total
costs, this represents good value. The Evaluation Report also notes that the Participating
States provide additional resources to the Secretariat outside of the BONUS Art.
185 structure to support additional activities such as workshops, publications
and dissemination. Consequently, EUR 5 million does not fully cover all
activities linked to the running of the BONUS programme. If additional activities
outside of the scope of the Art. 185 would be taken into account, the full
running costs would be closer to EUR 7 million, which is similar to the proportion
of management costs applicable within EU research projects.

The Evaluation
Report notes that the strategic phase took longer than the 18 months foreseen,
mainly due to difficulties formulating detailed implementation modalities
within the required legal framework, which could be agreed by all parties
concerned.

The average
proportion of relevant national research funds channelled through BONUS was
estimated to be 14% within the Evaluation Report.

The
Evaluation Report states that the administration of national funding
contributions separately by each National Funding Institution[14] has
caused unnecessary complexity. As a consequence, for each call, BONUS EEIG must
conclude separate funding agreements with each National Funding Institution
concerned to ensure correct payments of national funds, the application of
common funding rules and to ensure audit rights. National Funding Institutions
then administer their payments to their respective beneficiaries in line with
the funding agreement. This multiplies the funding streams and administration.
At project level, each beneficiary receives two streams of funding and must two
reports to BONUS EEIG and nationally. It is obviously not efficient to manage
multiple funding streams in this way within an integrated programme.

Compared
to other Art. 185 initiatives, BONUS is small. However, the administrative requirements
are similar, regardless of the size of funding concerned. Consequently, the
administrative burden for BONUS is relatively high in proportion to its size.

3.4
       EU added value

The
Evaluation Report notes that the Baltic is a complex environment with many
interconnected actors in diverse fields ranging from transport, tourism,
fisheries, planning and agriculture. The Baltic Sea is an almost enclosed
environment, where the principles of a circular economy need to be applied to
ensure long-term sustainable development. The Baltic Sea is mainly surrounded
by EU Member States, consequently it is a region where a coordinated
macro-regional EU action such as BONUS provides a large impact.

The EU intervention
helps to overcome fragmentation and facilitate the creation of a critical mass of
knowledge and financial resources to address the challenges facing the Baltic Sea. The contributions of Participating States have provided a direct 50% leverage
towards the EU's investment. The Evaluation Report considers that BONUS's objectives
could not be achieved without the intervention of the EU.

The
Evaluation Report observes that BONUS has developed an efficient cooperation
mechanism using memoranda of understanding to enable entities from the Russian Federation to participate without any EU support. The Commission considers that
this participation is valuable to facilitate common approaches to tackling issues
of EU concern within the Baltic.

3.5       Coherence

BONUS
is a cross-cutting initiative, which is appropriate for the diverse challenges facing
the Baltic Sea.

The Evaluation
Report refers to BONUS's important contribution to the EU Strategy for the
Baltic Sea Region and its object to "save the sea". For
example, BONUS is explicitly referenced within the Commission Reports on "Governance
of Macro-Regional Strategies"[15],
"The Added Value of Macro-Regional Strategies"[16],
"Implementation of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region"[17]
and
the Communication "European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region".[18]

BONUS
also supports innovation, which contributes to supporting a sustainable "Blue
Economy" in line with the objectives of the Commission Communication "Blue
Growth opportunities
for marine and maritime sustainable growth"[19] and the
specific reference to BONUS made within the Staff Working Document "A
Sustainable Blue Growth Agenda for the Baltic Sea Region".[20]

BONUS
is acknowledged to contribute towards sustainable fisheries within the Baltic Sea in line with the EU Common Fisheries Policy.[21]
Also, BONUS addresses the land/sea interface and supports establishment of
common approaches to measurement of 'Good environmental status' in line with
the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive.[22]

BONUS
is coherent with the work of the Helsinki Commission (HELCOM) and the administration
of the Helsinki Convention, which is the principal international agreement to
protect the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea. BONUS is observer within this
body and the Evaluation Report emphasises the importance of BONUS research towards
implementation of the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan.

4.
CONCLUSION

The Evaluation
is considered sound and reflects the outcome of a logical analysis based on an appropriate
methodology undertaken by a panel of highly qualified experts. On this basis,
the Commission considers that BONUS is progressively achieving its objectives
and has successfully established an integrated Research and Development
Programme to tackle the challenges facing the Baltic Sea. BONUS overcomes
fragmentation of research programmes, brings together a variety of skills and
focusses this effort on creating the essential knowledge and innovative
solutions to overcome the Baltic Sea's environmental problems. It is
noted that due to the cross-cutting nature of BONUS and the different research
funding structures within the Participating States, it is difficult to clearly quantify
the proportion of national resources mobilised through BONUS.

BONUS's
macro-regional approach to the Baltic and its catchments has enabled stronger
impact than a broader programme directed towards the EU as a whole could have
achieved. The establishment of closer links between BONUS and the Baltic Sea
Region Programme further enhances the impact and is in line with the objectives
of Horizon 2020[23],
which also seeks to further enhance synergies between research and European
Structural and Investment Funds.

BONUS
integrates research programming, supports establishment of a European Research
Area and contributes to several key policies, notably: the EU Strategy for the
Baltic Sea Region, the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive, the EU Common Fisheries
Policy and the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan.

Whilst
a durable integration has been achieved with a particularly high level of
scientific and managerial integration, there have been difficulties concerning financial
integration.

To strengthen the potential outcomes of
BONUS, the Evaluation Report recommends to:

1.
Develop a synthesis of the research supported by
BONUS since its start as an ERA-NET until its current status as an Article 185.
This should highlight the achievements and impacts.

2.
Move towards the pooling of national funds to
reduce the number and complexity caused by different funding streams. This
would ensure more efficient management, reduce time to grant and overcome
difficulties associated with applying common funding rules within national
administrations.

3.
Take steps to increase the provision of in-kind
infrastructure contributions to BONUS projects. For example, national
administrations could provide incentives to partly subsidise the provision of
infrastructure to BONUS. If the in-kind provision of infrastructure cannot be
increased, further national cash contributions will be necessary to ensure that
BONUS is fully implemented.

4.
Take steps to ensure that BONUS projects build
synergies and network with other projects and initiatives within the Baltic Sea
Region.

5.
Increase the interaction between the BONUS
Advisory Board and the Steering Committee by, for example, virtual online
meetings.

6.
Focus communications which highlight the impacts
arising from BONUS towards the needs of specific stakeholder groups:
institutions, conventions, policies, Directorates-Generals of the Commission,
ministries and regional authorities, including those responsible for regional
development.

7.
The Participating States and the Commission
should strengthen strategic communication on the potential of BONUS funded
research results for policy to the different Directorates-Generals involved and
within Horizon 2020. The Participating States should increase their awareness
of the impact of BONUS on their national programmes more widely, e.g. towards
fisheries' management, regional development, coastal zone development,
agriculture etc.

8.
Improve the monitoring of BONUS by more
systematic acquisition and analysis of data on the outcomes and impacts arising
from BONUS by for example ensuring the regular effective surveying of
stakeholders’ opinions and by tracking the trends in the total amount and
proportion of national funds channelled through BONUS.

9.
Target the communication of calls for proposals
towards SMEs and provide additional support towards applications by SMEs and
facilitate their incorporation within developing project consortia.

The Commission
accepts these recommendations, which are considered founded upon an appropriate
analysis and a sound methodology. The recommendations will be taken up in
discussions between the Commission and BONUS EEIG and their implementation will
be followed up as part of the Commission's oversight of the BONUS programme.

Recommendations
two and three concerning the provision of national funds are considered particularly
important. Separate administration of national funds for domestic beneficiaries
has caused a less efficient structure. The lack of a 'real common pot' to pool
national funds risks insufficient national funding being available to support successful
beneficiaries from certain countries within later BONUS calls. To avoid this, the
Participating States must be able to ensure that sufficient national funding is
available to support all beneficiaries within successful BONUS projects. Early
indications also show a potential shortfall in the value of national in-kind infrastructure
contributions provided. Any shortfall will need to be addressed by either providing
more in-kind infrastructure for free use within BONUS projects or by increasing
national cash contributions. Otherwise, a serious shortcoming will be that BONUS
is not be implemented to the programmes expected full financial value of EUR
100 million.

Also,
in line with these recommendations, the Commission will seek to more
systematically acquire and analyse relevant data to improve monitoring of the
impacts arising from the BONUS programme and will strengthen the communication of
relevant outcomes towards relevant services within the Commission.

The Commission
wishes to thank the Expert Panel for their report following the interim
evaluation of the BONUS programme.

[1]               Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Finland and Sweden

[2]               http://ec.europa.eu/smart-regulation/evaluation/search/download.do?documentId=12453881

[3]               COM(2009)
248 final of 10 June 2009

[4]                      An FP7 funding instrument supporting
networking of national research  
http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/coordination/about-era\_en.html

[5]               No.
862/2010/EU of 22 September 2010

[6]               Section I of Annex I to the Decision 862/2010/EU

[7]               http://www.bonusportal.org/bonus\_projects/viable\_ecosystem\_projects\_2012

[8]               http://www.bonusportal.org/bonus\_projects/innovation\_projects

[9]
              Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission – Helsinki
Commission; http://helcom.fi/

[10]
            http://eu.baltic.net/

[11]
            http://www.bonusportal.org/files/2981/Publication\_No.\_14.pdf

[12]             JPI Healthy and Productive Seas: http://www.jpi-oceans.eu/

[13]             International Council for the Exploration of the Sea: http://www.ices.dk

[14]             The possibility for separate
administration of national funds arises from Annex 1, section 3.4 of the

Decision where it states "A Participating State may decide to administer its own national funding and to devote its
cash contributions exclusively to domestic research that is elected at central
level or to have its cash contribution administered centrally by BONUS
EEIG".

[15]             COM(2014) 284, May 2014

[16]             COM(2013) 468, June 2013

[17]             COM(2011) 381, June 2011

[18]             COM(2012) 128, March 2012

[19]             COM(2012) 494, September 2012 and http://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/policy/blue\_growth/

[20]             SWD(2014) 167, May 2014

[21]             http://ec.europa.eu/fisheries/cfp/index\_en.htm

[22]             Directive 2008/56/EC of the European Parliament and of
the Council of 17 June 2008 establishing a           framework for community
action in the field of marine environmental policy

[23]             http://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/en/

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