ExpectedOutcome:
Projects are expected to contribute to the following expected outcomes:
- Contributing to implementing the political priorities of the new European Commission, in particular in relation to the objective of ‘A stronger Europe in the world’, and in relation to the EU communication on the comprehensive Strategy with Africa, aiming to support building knowledge economies
- Economic growth and job creation in the EU and in Africa, contributing to the AU Agenda 2030 and relevant EU policies, and enhancing the visibility of EU R&I at the international scene
- Transfer and internationalisation of demonstrated technologies and know-how, both to and from the EU and Africa
Scope:
Competition has become global and so is innovation. To compete effectively in new and emerging markets, European and African SMEs need to develop partnerships with their strategic counterparts to generate joint business opportunities in new product-market combinations. Developing a new product-market combination with a strategic partner can be very challenging for SMEs on both continents in terms of technological & financial risks, and market barriers. Before starting, it is essential to assess first the technical feasibility as well as developing a deep understanding of the business environment, including the financial, legal, market and cultural aspects in the targeted markets. This instrument will allow European and African SMEs to develop a partnership beyond conventional market studies, sales channels and export aids. This Horizon Europe funded ‘INNOWWIDE Bridging Facility’ precisely covers these risks, by supporting innovative European and African SMEs in conducting Viability Assessment Projects (VAPs) in Europe and Africa, creating the favourable conditions needed to increase the uptake of European and African innovative solutions in each other’s markets. An SME friendly bottom-up approach applies, with no specific technical areas to be addressed.
The VAPs will be selected following a series of open calls organised by the action. The proposal for undertaking the action should define the organisational process for selecting the VAPs for which financial support will be granted, including the process of selecting, allocating and reporting on the use of independent experts and ensuring no conflicts of interest.
At least 75% of the EU funding shall be allocated to financial support for the third parties carrying out the selected VAPs.
The calls should specify that each VAP should include a wide variety of activities to explore the practical, technological and commercial viability of an innovative solution in particular in terms of how it needs to meet local conditions and demands.
Proposals must detail the different types of activities for which a third party may receive financial support such as market studies, partner search and networking, approaches for client/user involvement including societal, behavioural and cultural aspects, and other activities aimed at overcoming barriers for market introduction and uptake.
Proposals must clearly detail the criteria for awarding financial support and simple and comprehensive criteria for calculating the exact amount of such support, which may not exceed EUR 60 000 for each VAP. The award criteria must be objective and non-discriminatory.
Each VAP shall be led by an entity established in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe associated country and shall involve at least one entity established in an African country.
The open calls must be published widely, and Horizon Europe standards with respect to transparency, equal treatment, no conflict of interest and respect of confidentiality must be adhered to. The results of the calls must be published without delay, including, for each VAP, a description of the project, the legal name and country of the third party, the start date and duration of the project, and the amount of the award.
Proposals should specify how they will promote the calls, how they will monitor and report on call results and how they will assess the quality of the outcomes and experiences from the VAPs, as well as how they will provide regular in-depth analyses and which indicators will be used for measuring the impacts achieved. Analyses should draw up R&I policy conclusions on questions such as which additional joint R&I activities in third countries should be supported, what framework conditions for R&I cooperation need improving, and what further R&I support services should be implemented.
The Commission does not intend to implement the action and will not fund the topic HORIZON-WIDERA-2022-ERA-01-31.
Cross-cutting Priorities:
Artificial IntelligenceDigital AgendaInternational Cooperation
