Digital Europe Programme is the first EU programme that aims to accelerate the recovery and drive the digital transformation of Europe.

Worth €7.6 billion (in current prices), the Programme is a part of the next long-term EU budget, (the Multiannual Financial Framework), and it covers 2021 to 2027. It will provide funding for projects in five crucial areas: supercomputing, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, advanced digital skills, and ensuring the wide use of digital technologies across the economy and society.

The Programme is fine-tuned to fill the gap between the research of digital technologies and their deployment, and to bring the results of research to the market – for the benefit of Europe’s citizens and businesses, and in particular SMEs. Investments under the Digital Europe programme supports the Union’s twin objectives of a green transition and digital transformation and strengthens the Union’s resilience and strategic autonomy.

The academic offer in the area of advanced digital technologies in the EU is still lagging behind other regions of the world, especially when compared to the United Kingdom or the United States[1] even though the number of both bachelor’s and master’s programmes in the EU has increased through the years. Furthermore, apart from delivering excellent programmes in specific digital technologies, there is also a growing demand for interdisciplinary programmes to equip sector specialists with the digital skills to deploy and use advanced digital technologies.

The actions under this topic aim at tackling the lack of academic training offer in advanced digital skills in key digital areas, while triggering a new way of delivering education programmes and training, building partnerships between education and training providers, businesses and research across the EU, and supporting the digital skills necessary for the deployment of digital technologies in strategic sectors.

50%

• Education and training
• Employment
• Health
• Industry
• Information and Communication Technologies
• Information Technology
• Research, Technological Development and Innovation
• Small-Medium Enterprises and Competitiveness

• Associations
• Businesses
• Central Government
• Educational Institutions
• Legal Entities
• Legal Entities under Public Law
• Local Authorities
• Private Bodies
• Researchers/Research Centers/Institutions
• Semi-governmental organisations
• Services Providers
• Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)
• State-owned Enterprises
• Trade Unions
• Training Centres

In order to be eligible, the applicants (beneficiaries and affiliated entities) must:

• be legal entities (public or private bodies)
• be established in one of the eligible countries, i.e.:
  • EU Member States (including overseas countries and territories (OCTs))
  • non-EU countries:
    • listed EEA countries and countries associated to the Digital Europe Programme

Beneficiaries and affiliated entities must register in the Participant Register — before submitting the proposal — and will have to be validated by the Central Validation Service (REA Validation). For the validation, they will be requested to upload documents showing legal status and origin.

Other entities may participate in other consortium roles, such as associated partners, subcontractors, third parties giving in-kind contributions, etc (see section 13 of the call document).

Natural persons — Natural persons are NOT eligible (with the exception of self employed persons, i.e. sole traders, where the company does not have legal personality separate from that of the natural person).

International organisations — International organisations are NOT eligible, unless they are International organisations of European Interest within the meaning of Article 2 of the Digital Europe Regulation (i.e. international organisations the majority of whose members are Member States or whose headquarters are in a Member State).

Entities without legal personality — Entities which do not have legal personality under their national law may exceptionally participate, provided that their representatives have the capacity to undertake legal obligations on their behalf, and offer guarantees for the protection of the EU financial interests equivalent to that offered by legal persons.

EU bodies — EU bodies (with the exception of the European Commission Joint Research Centre) can NOT be part of the consortium.

Associations and interest groupings — Entities composed of members may participate as ‘sole beneficiaries’ or ‘beneficiaries without legal personality’.

Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy
Directorate of Research and Innovation

Eleana Gabriel
Telephone: +357 22 691918
Email: egabriel@dmrid.gov.cy

https://european-union.europa.eu/contact-eu/write-us_en

• Funding & Tenders
• Call document