1.3.2022
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
C 99/169 Thursday 8 July 2021
2.
Calls on the Member States to adopt a Pact for Research and Innovation in Europe that includes the following commitments to be achieved by 2030: to increase public spending on R&I from the current average level of 0,81 % of GDP to 1,25 % in a manner coordinated across the EU; to increase national public R&D funding of joint programmes and European partnerships from its current level of just below 1 % to 5 %; and to jointly agree on the priority areas for ERA action (horizontal as well as thematic);
3.
Underlines the strong link between R&I and entrepreneurship, which creates opportunities for setting up new unicorns, start-ups and SMEs; recalls the importance of creating a digital ecosystem which would contribute to technological innovation and the scaling-up of SMEs mainly through ‘ERA Innovation Hubs’;
4.
Acknowledges the pivotal role of universities and academic institutions in creating vibrant R&I ecosystems; highlights the central role of students as the next generation of innovators in these ecosystems;
5.
Insists that in the context of the ERA, the terms ‘research’ and ‘innovation’ are not limited to technological innovation, but embedded as cross-cutting topics of broad relevance to all aspects of the social sciences and the humanities and fully integrated into each of the general objectives;
6.
Believes that the review of the ERA should include a horizontal approach for strengthening cooperation between research institutions, including universities; calls for increased budgetary support for university alliances, as well as the establishment of an enabling framework that allows alliances to develop in a flexible manner; believes, furthermore, that university cooperation should not be limited to alliances alone, but that more funding schemes should also be available for universities to cooperate outside the alliances;
7.
Underlines the importance of creating synergies between higher education, research institutions and civil society organisations, as genuine partners in the context of R&I, as well as industrial alliances, thereby fully leveraging the dual role of universities; reiterates, in this context, the necessity of creating favourable conditions and opportunities for researchers by using high-quality research infrastructure; calls on the Commission to ensure the inclusive design of these partnerships based on transparency, a balanced representation of the stakeholders and continuous openness, and to offer sufficient opportunities for such divergent stakeholders to take part;
8.
Underlines that any calls for funding must be transparent and announced well in advance; stresses further that the joint industrial technology roadmaps should take better account of ‘bottom-up’ input and inclusive participation, and not take industry alone as the primary source of input, but also accept input from the most recent state-of-the-art R&I, as well as from consumer organisations and social partners;
9.
Calls on the Member States to translate the ‘new ERA’ into concrete policies and funding actions aimed at contributing to the ‘green’ and ‘digital’ twin transitions, the implementation of an ambitious European Green Deal and industrial strategy, a resilient recovery and unmet medical needs; stresses the importance of adequate links within and between innovation and industrial ecosystems and their actors, including academia, industry, the public sector at various levels, the general public and civil society across the EU to ensure that research results are applied faster in the economy and society; underlines, in this context, the vital role of SMEs in addressing innovation and technology development and the potential of traditional SMEs that still needs to be unlocked; emphasises the role of the ‘ERA hubs’ as a tool to ensure the availability of high-quality science in all EU cities and regions, and also for boosting regions where there are opportunities for sustainable growth;
10.
Is concerned that the process of improving the quality of R&I systems is slowing down and is showing uneven progress across the Union (3);
11.
Underlines the important role played by R&I during the COVID-19 pandemic in coming up with multi-sectoral and transdisciplinary solutions to overcome the crisis; in this regard, welcomes the ERAvsCorona action plan as an example of a rapidly defined and well-targeted action undertaken together with Member States;
(3)
See the ERA Progress Report 2018.