# Preparatory action for setting up joint programmes among innovation ecosystems actors
EUACC page: https://www.euacc.ai/calls/HORIZON-EIE-2025-02-CONNECT-01
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## Public content

**topic id:** HORIZON-EIE-2025-02-CONNECT-01
**call id:** HORIZON-EIE-2025-02
**title:** Preparatory action for setting up joint programmes among innovation ecosystems actors
**programme:** Horizon Europe
**cluster:** EIE
**status:** closed
**deadline date:** 2025-10-15T00:00:00+00:00
**deadline model:** single-stage
**start date:** 2025-05-14T00:00:00+00:00
**url:** https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/opportunities/topic-details/HORIZON-EIE-2025-02-CONNECT-01
**description:** Expected Outcome:Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:
• Open dialogue, prepare the ground and facilitate the agreement among Member States, Associated Countries, and/or their regions, in cooperation with public and private sector and research and innovation actors, towards more dynamic, inclusive, gender diverse, and connected innovation ecosystem, via co-planning, co-implementation, and co-investments around areas outlined in the New European Innovation Agenda[1];
• Prepare joint long-term programmes and action plans fostering collaboration, common innovation-support activities, and the creation of common knowledge assets among EU, national, regional and/or local level innovation ecosystems, enhancing synergies and complementarities of their programmes and encouraging the alignment of their innovation policies and related policies impacting innovation, for example, innovation procurement strategies, in line with the New European Innovation Agenda, establishing, if relevant, links to the Regional Innovation Valley[2]. ;
• Ensure the inclusion of diverse innovation players from across the quadruple helix[3], and several EU territories;
• Foster synergies with other EU funding programmes, including Cohesion Policy instruments and any other funding instruments, including national or regional public funds, and private funds, to complement Horizon Europe support for innovation ecosystems.
 Scope:The topic will allow national, regional and/or local authorities in charge of innovation policies and programmes from Member States, Associated Countries and/or their regions, and other research and innovation actors, to prepare joint multi-annual programmes of activities and action plans with the aim of strengthening the performance and capacity of their innovation ecosystems, their efficient interconnection and their alignment towards EU-level priorities, in line with the New European Innovation Agenda[1], to jointly tackle challenges at EU, national, regional, and local level.
The topic will allow applicants to prepare and agree on a common programme of activities and action plans. The applicants are encouraged to consider a project duration of 12 to 18 months and in their proposals they should:
• Identify areas and activities of cooperation to enhance the coordination and directionality of their research and innovation investments and policies and improve the efficiency and performance of the EU's innovation ecosystems, fostering their interconnection and scale-up: • The proposals are encouraged to focus on one or several thematic/technological areas of common interest in line with one or more EU priorities, including the “burning challenges” specified in the New European Innovation Agenda, as well as the Green Deal, the RePowerEU Plan[5], circularity[6] and digital transformation[7] and the priorities set out in the Communications by the European Commission on biotechnology and biomanufacturing[8] and advanced materials[9];
• The proposals should take into account gender equality objectives[10].
 
• Explain their links to the New European Innovation Agenda and how the projects will contribute to its objectives;
• Plan their long-term action: the applicants are encouraged to consider planning of at least three (3) years towards engaging in the joint cooperation activities set out in the frame of the projects;
• Provide a justification on the need for those joint activities that should be scalable at European level and demonstrate their strong EU added value, explaining the potential for growth and competitiveness foreseen in the targeted sector
• Explain how the proposed action plans enhance synergies of EU, national and/or regional funds and programmes, and encourage the alignment of their innovation agendas;
• Explain the process that they plan to follow, with an open, clear, realistic, and impact-oriented approach, including relevant guidance mechanisms and tools;
• Present what common knowledge assets are expected from the proposed action plans, and the benefit of the intended beneficiaries of the plans;
• Design pilot schemes for specific actions, with the possibility to test them with non-compulsory FSTP schemes;
• Present the targeted milestones to be achieved.
• Ensure inclusiveness and diversity with the involvement of varied innovation actors from the quadruple helix, for example, individual inventors, industry, startups, scaleups and SMEs investors, innovation hubs, business associations, clusters, public and private buyers of innovative solutions as well as citizens and civil society organisations.
 The proposals for the development of a joint long-term action plan may include the following two (2) phases:
• A first phase to foster close dialogue among key stakeholders for strategy/partnership building, mapping, and analysis of existing national and/or regional and/or local innovation agendas/strategies/policies/plans/activities. Proposals are welcome to cover a diverse range of innovation actors that are relevant for the fulfilment of their goals and to foresee ways to motivate their inclusion. Activities are encouraged to consider existing tools, knowledge and expertise, including the methodology and governance tools tested and developed in the context of the Regional Innovation Valleys or the knowledge and expertise of the EIT KICs with place-based approaches to innovation;
• A second phase dedicated to the concretising, setting up, and finalising the joint action plan(s) and allocation of the activities over a period of the proposed action plans.
 The implementation of the proposed action plans is not part of this topic, unless the project uses FSTP. For the implementation part, the successful proposals under the topic may seek further financial support from other EU programmes, including Horizon Europe and/or other public and/or private programmes.
[1] A New European Innovation Agenda, COM(2022) 332 final.
[2] More information under New European Innovation Agenda - Flagship 3
[3] A model of cooperation between industry, academia, civil society and public authorities, with a strong emphasis on citizens and their needs.
[4] A New European Innovation Agenda, COM(2022) 332 final.
[5] RePowerEU Plan, COM/2022/230 final
[6] Hubs for Circularity
[7] European Digital Innovation Hubs Network (europa.eu)
[8] COM(2024) 137 final
[9] COM(2024) 98 final
[10] See for instance the Horizon Europe regulation for horizontal gender equality principles, the ERA policy agenda 2022-2024, and the Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025.
**conditions:** General conditions
1. Admissibility Conditions: Proposal page limit and layout
described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes.
Proposal page limits and layout: described in Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System.

2. Eligible Countries
described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes.
A number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects. See the information in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.

3. Other Eligible Conditions
This action requires the participation, as beneficiaries, of at least three (3) independent legal entities from three (3) different Member States or Associated Countries, of which at least one (1) is established in a 'moderate' or 'emerging' innovator region and at least one (1) in a 'strong' or 'innovation leader' innovator region.
The Regional Innovation Scoreboard is taken as a reference, and in the case of entities representing national authorities, the European Innovation Scoreboard. The applicants must use as a reference the latest version of the documents mentioned above at the time of the call opening. Associated Countries which are not included in the European Innovation Scoreboard and are ranked below 25 on the latest Global Innovation Index are considered as ‘moderate’ or ‘emerging' innovators. In cases of Associated Countries not included in any of the previously mentioned references, the participation rank of the country in the Horizon Europe programme (Horizon Europe country profile) will be taken as a reference and countries ranked below the average will be considered as ‘moderate’ or ‘emerging' innovators.

described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes.

4. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion
described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes.

5a. Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds
are described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes.

5b. Evaluation and award: Submission and evaluation processes
are described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual.

5c. Evaluation and award: Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement
described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.

6. Legal and financial set-up of the grants
Beneficiaries may provide financial support to third parties. The support to third parties can only be provided in the form of grants. The maximum amount to be granted to each third party is EUR 60 000.

Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021 authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme – the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2021-2027) – and in actions under the Research and Training Programme of the European Atomic Energy Community (2021-2025). [[This decision is available on the Funding and Tenders Portal, in the reference documents section for Horizon Europe, under ‘Simplified costs decisions’ or through this link: https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/docs/2021-2027/horizon/guidance/ls-decision_he_en.pdf]].

described in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Specific conditions
 described in the [specific topic of the Work Programme]

Application and evaluation forms and model grant agreement (MGA):
 Application form templates — the application form specific to this call is available in the Submission System
Standard application form (HE CSA) 
Evaluation form templates — will be used with the necessary adaptations 
Standard evaluation form (HE CSA) 
Guidance
HE Programme Guide 
Model Grant Agreements (MGA)
Lump Sum MGA 
Call-specific instructions 
Detailed budget table (HE LS) 
Information on financial support to third parties (HE) 
Information on clinical studies (HE) 
Guidance: "Lump sums - what do I need to know?"

Additional documents:
 HE Main Work Programme 2025 – 1. General Introduction
HE Main Work Programme 2025 – 10. European Innovation Ecosystems (EIE)
HE Main Work Programme 2025 – 14. General Annexes
HE Programme Guide
HE Framework Programme 2021/695
HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764
EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509
Decision authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme
Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment 
EU Grants AGA — Annotated Model Grant Agreement 
Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual 
Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions 
Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement
**action type:** HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions
**budget:** 
  **budget Years Columns:** 
    - 2025
  **budget Topic Action Map:** 
    **110879:** 
      -         **action:** HORIZON-EIE-2025-02-CONNECT-01 - HORIZON-CSA HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions
        **budget Year Map:** 
          **2025:** 5000000
        **deadline Dates:** 
          - 2025-10-15
        **deadline Model:** single-stage
        **expected Grants:** 5
        **max Contribution:** 1000000
        **min Contribution:** 1000000
        **planned Opening Date:** 2025-05-14
    **110880:** 
      -         **action:** HORIZON-EIE-2025-02-CONNECT-02 - HORIZON-COFUND HORIZON Programme Cofund Actions
        **budget Year Map:** 
          **2025:** 35000000
        **deadline Dates:** 
          - 2025-10-15
        **deadline Model:** single-stage
        **expected Grants:** 5
        **max Contribution:** 8000000
        **min Contribution:** 5000000
        **planned Opening Date:** 2025-05-14
**keywords:** HORIZON-EIE-2025-02-CONNECT-01, HORIZON-EIE-2025-02, Demand driven innovation, Entrepreneurship, Innovation and diversity (e.g. gender), Innovation management, Innovation methodologies, Innovation policy, Innovation strategies, Innovation support services, Innovation systems, Knowledge and Technology transfer, Market development, Market studies, Market-creating innovation, Open innovation, Private investment, Project financing, Related to SME and start-up support, Related to industrial policy, Related to regional development, SME support, Smart Specialisation strategies, Spin-off companies, Start-up companies, Technology transfer
**last synced at:** 2026-11-09T17:23:17.403+00:00

## Review record

No independent verification record is available.

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