EC-South Africa scientific cooperation Agreement enters into force
The Agreement on scientific and technological cooperation between the European Community and South Africa entered into force on 11 November 1997, following completion of the necessary procedures by both parties. The Agreement promotes cooperation, on the basis of mutual benefit, between researchers and scientists in the two parties. Under the Agreement, South African research entities may participate in all the specific programmes of the Fourth Framework Programme, while Community research entities may participate in South African research projects in similar fields. Other forms of cooperation will include shared use of research facilities, visits and exchanges, participation in seminars and workshops, training of researchers, and other areas agreed jointly. The Agreement will be renewed for the Fifth Framework Programme and subsequent RTD Framework Programmes, unless one or both parties wishes to terminate the arrangement. Cooperation under the Agreement will be administered by a Joint Science and Technology Cooperation Committee, made up of representatives of the Commission and of South Africa. In order to resolve questions over intellectual property rights arising from cooperative activities, the Agreement makes provision for Joint Technology Management Plans (JTMPs) to be established at the outset by participants in joint research activities. Each party will be responsible for funding its own participants' participation in the others' projects, with no transfer of funds, except in the case of South African participation in the INCO programme. The Agreement takes account of South Africa's unique circumstances as an industrialized and a developing country. Therefore South African entities will be able to participate in the specific programme for International Cooperation (INCO) on the terms of a developing country.
Countries
South Africa