Danube countries sign research Memorandum of Understanding
The countries and regions bordering on the Danube have signed a Memorandum of Understanding, agreeing to create a stock exchange of research projects that can then be submitted in response to EU calls for proposals. Ministers from the German states of Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania took a boat trip along the Danube on 2 June, and signed the Memorandum on board. The agreement is intended to forge closer research cooperation, particularly in the field of information and communication technologies (ICT). 'The Danube corridor excellence cluster is taking on an increasingly concrete form,' said Austrian Minister for Education, Science and Culture, Elisabeth Gehrer. She referred to past and current joint projects, and in particular joint infrastructure, cooperation between universities and joint funding as evidence of the close relationship between the Danube countries and regions. The repository will store details of all potential joint projects that can be submitted for funding under the EU's research framework programmes. 'Cross-border cooperation in research is today more important than ever, said Ms Gehrer. 'Our neighbouring countries are in the same boat as Austria.' The ministers and government representatives taking the boat trip also agreed to organise a joint Science Day, to take place in Brussels.
Countries
Austria, Germany, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia