The MERID project (Middle East Research and Innovation Dialogue) proposes a comprehensive action to intensify and encourage research and innovation cooperation between the EU and the Middle East region, directly involving partners from Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Palestine, directly involving partners from Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Palestine. The project intends to build upon the experience carried out in countries of the region that have already participated in the previous framework programmes, and therefore are at a relatively advanced stage of research cooperation with Europe, like Egypt and Jordan. Attention is paid to calibrating in the most appropriate way the intervention logic of the project, adapting actions to the specific needs of the target countries and their research constituencies. The needs of Iran and Iraq will for sure prove different from those of countries where cooperation with the EU has a proven track record behind. The project is the first attempt to systematise support to the policy dialogue and involvement of research communities of Iran and Iraq in the H2020 programme, as well as an initiative that seeks to give continuity to collaboration frameworks already established between the EU and Middle East countries. The project has high potential to deliver long-lasting impact and structuring effects on cooperation between the EU and the Middle East region. It focuses on enhancing direct cooperation among researchers and on laying or consolidating preconditions, in the region, fostering joint research projects and initiatives with the EU, establishing optimal framework conditions for international cooperation and increasing coordination between policies and programmes. These objectives will be achieved through series of different on-line and in-person activities, among which are meetings of researchers, brokerage events, info-days, training and coaching, webinars and other tools, relevant for this project proposals.

BLACK SEA HORIZON has been designed to sustainably enhance bi-regional STI cooperation between the EU and the Black Sea region. The result of the project’s STI dialogue support will be an improved knowledge base about EU’s external environment and of the current framework for STI cooperation as well as an increased awareness to contribute to the elimination of remaining obstacles and to further intensify the bi-regional STI cooperation based on a jointly developed EU-Black Sea STI Cooperation Programme. To facilitate the pooling of resources the project will establish a group of committed funding parties, endowed with a functional call infrastructure and a clear set of rules and regulations, ready to implement a joint call for proposals. The participation of Black Sea researchers in HORIZON 2020 will be operationally facilitated through (i) identified common research topics taken-up in future calls for proposals, (ii) provision of up-to-date relevant information and good practices to participate in HORIZON 2020 to a large group of researchers, (iii) an increased number of joint research proposals through direct face-to-face meetings of, (iv) a young generation of social scientists trained in HORIZON 2020 and ready to promote and back up future RTI cooperation and (v) an increased readiness of programme owners both from the EU and Black Sea countries to engage jointly in JPIs and future COFUND ERA-NETs. Furthermore, the project will increase understanding of cluster policies and cluster management, establish direct business contacts between cluster managers from the EU and target countries and raise awareness on the programming of as well as on the advantages of inclusive, sustainable and social innovation. The project’s results will be broadly disseminated to increase awareness on bi-region STI cooperation activities and opportunities and will be exploited towards an enhanced introduction of the Black Sea region to the ERA.

The aim of the MSCAdvocacy project is to provide direct support to better align MSCA cooperation mechanisms of 20 key partner countries and 6 regions with the European Commission’s Global Approach to Research and Innovation. The project will become the strategic link between 1) the European Union’s external policy objectives, 2) bilateral and bi-regional S&T agreements with key partner countries and regions, 3) the corresponding R&I cooperation roadmaps and action plans, and 4) MSCA promotion in the field. With MSCA being the central international component of Horizon Europe (HE), its researcher mobility programmes directly contribute to the objective of the EC’s Global Approach such as strengthening commitment to international openness and fundamental values, rebalancing towards a level playing field and reciprocity, ensuring a free exchange of ideas and fostering research in key areas such as a green transition, the digital transition, global health, and innovation. However, in several key partner countries and regions MSCA do not seem to reach their full strategic potential in line with the objectives mentioned above. Hence, the project will do its part in supporting the strategic alignment of participation and cooperation mechanisms for MSCA to the priorities set on policy level. This will be achieved by 1) reviewing broader policy orientations and monitoring existing cooperation mechanisms with the target countries and regions relevant for MSCA; 2) conducting a Coordination and Support Mission to the targeted countries and regions in order to promote MSCA cooperation opportunities; 3) adressing analyses, reviews, and policy briefs to bilateral and bi-regional R&I policy dialogues; 4) and providing recommendations for long-term strategic promotion in MSCA consistent with EU R&I bilateral and bi-regional cooperation roadmaps and action plans.

The project 'STI International Cooperation Network for EaP Countries Plus (EaP PLUS)' aims to stimulate cooperation between researchers from the EaP countries and EU MS and enhance the active participation of the Eastern Partnership countries in Horizon 2020 Framework Programme. Building on the results of the predecessor FP7 project 'IncoNet EaP', the project will eliminate remaining obstacles to EU-EaP STI cooperation through a number of innovative and targeted actions: (a) strategic priority setting through supporting EU-EaP policy dialogue and through maximizing the impact of the association to Horizon 2020; (b) stronger interaction between researchers & participation in H2020, i.e. Info days, cooperation with scientific diaspora, and grants for networking; (c) promotion of the research-innovation interface supporting communities of excellence, i.e. co-patenting analyses, clustering schemes, promotion of the technology platforms concept to EaP countries; (d) optimal framework conditions and increasing coordination in policies and programmes through training seminars for STI policymakers, increased coordination and synergies between policies and programmes of EU/MS and EaP, i.e. JPIs, COST, national programmes; (e) communication and outreach through innovative actions