Annual report demonstrates impact of EUREKA research initiative
The latest EUREKA Annual Report clearly illustrates the impact of this intergovernmental research initiative as it marks its 20th anniversary. Its key mission is to raise the productivity and competitiveness of Europe's industries and boost national economies on the world market, strengthening the basis for lasting prosperity and employment. July 2004 to June 2005 proved to be the fourth best year in EUREKA's history in terms of the number of new projects decided. A new two-part format for the annual report helps to differentiate between EUREKA’s long-term and yearly goals and achievements: 1. The 16-page EUREKA Initiative 2005 details EUREKA’s achievements in driving co-operative research and supporting industrial needs, global competitiveness and innovation in Europe. It illustrates how EUREKA makes a substantial contribution to increasing Europe’s competitiveness; and 2. The eight-page 2004-2005 Annual Report – Going Dutch focuses on major achievements under the EUREKA Dutch Chairmanship, and provides key statistics. Overall, a record project involvement of SMEs at 42% and industrial participation at 70%, with nearly €1,600 million committed from public and private sources, shows how EUREKA’s unrivalled network enables companies, research centres and universities to refine and exploit the technologies essential for European competitiveness, job creation and a better quality of life. EUREKA’s strategic initiatives define ambitious tasks, following objectives outlined by the relevant industrial sector, while individual innovative projects meet the needs defined by project participants themselves. Highlights of the Dutch EUREKA Chairmanship included: · A presentation to the European Parliament Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE) Committee in Brussels in March 2005 on EUREKA’s key role in enabling Europe to reach the Barcelona objectives; · The EUREKA XV Interparliamentary Conference in May 2005 that focused on the need to raise R&D investment in Europe; · The EUREKA Industry Day in Schipol in June 2005, calling for better funding coordination between member countries; and · The ‘EUROSTARS’ proposal to establish a joint national/EU programme for R&D-performing SMEs. Printed copies of the annual report are available in English from the EUREKA Secretariat. In addition, the two parts of the reports can be downloaded in English from the EUREKA website at: http://www.eureka.be. French, German, Spanish and Italian versions will be available both as printed copies and for downloading in mid November.The EUREKA Initiative aims to strengthen European competitiveness by promoting cross-border, market-oriented, collaborative R&D. It enables industry and research institutes from 35 member countries and the EU to collaborate in a bottom-up approach to developing and exploiting innovative technologies. EUREKA is marking 20 years of pan-European innovation in 2005. Since 1985, substantial public and private funding has been deployed through this intergovernmental network to support leading edge R&D. More information about EUREKA may be found at http://www.eureka.be while additional information about 20 years of EUREKA can be found at http://www.eureka-20years.net.