BoF: Using the Structural Funds in the domain of REN: Past

experience and Future prospective

TNC 2014

19 May 2014, Dublin

Athina Zampara, EC, DG CONNECT, Unit C1 eInfrastructure

Past, present and future:

• - NRENs have already used SF to develop and upgrade their services

• - Presentations from CZ, HU, PL • - Greece:

• Apart from the REN, they are developing HPC activities (procurement of HPC system to be operational in second half of 2014, data storage system)

• - Cyprus has plans to request ESIF funding

ESIF/Thematic Objectives 2014-2020 (of possible interest to NRENs)

TO1. Research and Innovation Ex-ante conditionality: 1. A national or regional smart specialisation strategy is in place2. Multiannual plan for investment in Research and Innovation (e.g. updated roadmap of research infrastructure)

TO2. Information and Communication Technologies Ex-ante conditionalities: 1) Digital Growth strategic policy framework 2) National/Regional NGN plans in place.

RIS3

• Strategy planning for MS: Research and Innovation Strategies for Smart Specialisations (RIS3) – S3 Platform (provides advice for the design of RIS3, information on the emerging fileds of smart specialisation priorities)

What is new? Synergies

• The European Commission and the Member States are mandated to ensure

• - coordination• - synergies and • - complementarities • between the European Structural and

Investement Funds (ESIF), Horizon 2020 and other EC programmes (COSME, Erasmus+, etc)

Synergies …

• - are about obtaining more impacts on competitiveness, jobs and growth by combing ESIF and Horizon 2020

• This can be achieved by: • - cumulative funding (use different public funding

sources in one project, programme, group of projects

• - funding of successive projects or parallel projects

Attention to

• - Non substitution principle (the use of a union funding instrument to substitute the non-union contribution to another union instrument is not allowed)

• - ESIF support is subject to State Aid limitations (whereas Horizon 2020 funding is not)

• - Overlaps and double-financing must be avoided• - Objectives of the projects must align with the

RIS3

Novelties for ESIF

• - More ESIF (<10%) can be spent outside OP territory – if for the benefit of the programme area

• - Emphasis on innovation • - National Contact Points close to national and

regional ESIF policy makers and Managing Authorities

Opportunities

• - To receive funding to further develop NRENs in general as an eInfrastructure provider if appropriate (network, data, hpc services) – Plan where you want to be in 2020! • Research and education community • Public administration • Private domain (e.g. research SMEs)

• - To bridge the digital divide with the less developed countries

• - To help national policies align with european priorities

Questions

• - Do you need to take stock of what has happened in the past?

• - Does TERENA know what NRENs plan to request from MS for ESIF funding?

• - Are there complimentary needs to GEANT that ESIF money could be used for?

• - Could ESIF funding be used for helping the less developed countries?

• - Could ESIF funding be used for boosting innovation (eg supporting private research SMEs)

Obstacles to synergies

• - Do we know what are the main obstacles to using ESIF funding? • past • now and for the future

• - What NRENs did to overcome the obstacles? • CYNET's suggestion: if they knew what other

NRENs did, they could use this information for lobbying in their country

Potential threats?

• - Protect Geant's from politically motivated top-down choices

• - Protect Geant's self-regulated regime

Next steps

• - Investigate your country's RIS3 • - Consult the S3 platform • - Contact the Managing Authorities of the

respective Operational Programmes • - Contact the National Contact Points • - See the multiannual plan for R&I in your country

and the roadmap for Ris – make sure NRENs are there.

•

Actions at EC level

• - What do NRENs need in order to be able to request and use ESIF funding? • concrete actions for EC?• Ask for specific support