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- Ελληνικά
The meeting of the Informal Council of Ministers on Research, organised on 14-15 February 2024 by the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU), was attended by Dr Nicodemus Damianou, Deputy Minister of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy.
During the Council, Ministers exchanged views on the design of the next Framework Programme (FP) for Research and Innovation (R&I), emphasising its transformative character and its alignment with societal needs and challenges of the European Research Area and Member States. In his intervention, the Deputy Minister expressed Cyprus' support for this approach, noting that it is in line with the aim of the new national R&D strategy to maximise the impact of investments in the sector in terms of addressing socio-economic challenges and enhancing the country's competitiveness. In addition, the Deputy Minister noted that the design process of the new FP should take into account the specific characteristics and different levels of maturity of the R&D ecosystems of the Member States, in order to ensure wider participation and cooperation in the Programme.
In the context of the Council, the importance of technological progress for enhancing EU competitiveness and addressing global challenges, such as decarbonising industry, was also discussed, with Dr Damianou focusing on the importance of technological progress for the EU's competitiveness and addressing global challenges such as decarbonisation of industry. An important role in this direction, Dr Damianou stressed, can be played by the introduction of targeted tax and other incentives to further promote investment in green technologies, as well as a favourable regulatory framework that encourages knowledge transfer between academic and research institutions and businesses.
On 16 February, the Deputy Minister participated in the Ministerial Conference organised by the Belgian Presidency on international cooperation in the field of R&D, in the margins of which more than 40 countries and organisations adopted a joint declaration on the common principles and values that should govern international cooperation in this field. The joint statement is the subject of a Multilateral Dialogue launched by the EU from 2022 with the participation, in addition to the Member States, of third countries participating in Horizon Europe, countries with an active scientific and technological cooperation agreement with the EU and the Member States, as well as other European and international organisations.
