European Research Area Partnerships

European Research Area (ERA) Partnerships are initiatives through which the European Commission and public and/or private partners commit to supporting the development and implementation of a Research and Innovation (R&I) program.

Created in 2000, following the Lisbon Strategy, the partnerships contribute significantly to achieving the European Union's (EU) political priorities in accordance with the EU Strategic Agenda.

Following the evaluation of the previous Framework Program, Horizon 2020, which proposed an expanded model of partnerships, including Public-Public Partnerships and Public-Private Partnerships, the European Commission decided to deepen the strategic dimension of partnerships, improve their openness and transparency, and link them to EU policy priorities. This approach, formalized in the new Horizon Europe (HE) Framework Program, focuses on fewer and larger partnerships, now called European Partnerships, capable of having a strong impact in their target area.

See European Partnerships in which the FCT, alone and/or in association with other national institutions, represents Portugal.

Benefits of EEI Partnerships for the Scientific Community

The FCT's participation in European Research Area Partnerships allows the national scientific community to obtain funding to develop its research in international consortia, through projects supported following joint Calls for proposals.

The national scientific and technological system finds a wide range of opportunities in these partnerships, starting with the possibility for Portugal to influence European and international strategic research and innovation agendas, among which we highlight:

• effective international collaboration, through the coordination and participation of national researchers in international projects (such as, among others, the exchange of scientists and students, training, and the initiation of new lines of research);
• the participation of the national scientific community in large-scale international projects with access to cutting-edge R&I infrastructure that Portugal does not have;
• the affirmation of the national community in an international context through the coordination of joint transnational projects;
• the promotion of the national scientific community through its integration into international evaluation panels, scientific advisory committees, thematic workshops, among others;
• o networking, knowledge sharing, and the creation/consolidation of international networks with the participation of national scientists;
• the increased impact of the research produced.

EEI Partnership History

Over time, the framework programs have proposed inclusive and open approaches to excellence in R&I in European regions and enhanced support for European Research Area partnerships with the public and private sectors, with a view to pooling resources and building more effective programs.

Several partnership instruments have been launched with the participation of the FCT, such as ERA-NETS (European Research Area Networks), EJP (European Joint Programs), JTI (Joint Technology Initiatives), Article 185 Initiatives, JPI (Joint Programming Initiatives), and International Consortia.

Some of these instruments are still active and can be consulted on the pages indicated on the FCT website.