Programme Category
Programme Name
Programme Description
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.
Identifier Code
Call
Summary
As part of the EU Action Plan on Cable Security, it was announced that the Commission, together with voluntary Member States, will work on Cable Integrated Surveillance Mechanisms per sea basin (‘Regional Cable Hubs’) to enhance the detection capacity against threats to undersea cables as they are critical infrastructure.
Taking into account the fact that these cables are covered by the scope of NIS2 Directive that follows an all-hazards approach, it is crucial to protect their physical environment from events such as malicious acts, including cuts as integral part of the cable cybersecurity measures.
The objective is to support the progressive establishment of Regional Cable hubs, one per sea basins of the EU, whose role will be to concretely enhance threats detection and operational security around these strategic infrastructures.
Detailed Call Description
This action is therefore aimed at supporting the set-up of processes, tools and services for detection and analysis of emerging threats, to establish a near real time situational awareness to protect the undersea cables. It includes the capacity to aggregate data and security information from all available sources (including established systems such as the Integrated Maritime System, or CISE, or National Cyber Hubs) and analyse them in an automated way. The action will support also the establishment of a reporting incident function and a procedure for information sharing between relevant national authorities.
Additionally, structured partnership with private sector to enhance the voluntary information sharing for cable security as well as the potential and progressive integration of the relevant defence dimension capacities – in a dual use approach – could be considered in the action.
Should the participating Member States so decide, the regional cable hubs could coordinate the deployment and activation of modular repair equipment across a sea basin. Finally, the scope could also cover the acquisition of additional capacities, equipment, tools, instruments or services useful for the enhancing the resilience and security of undersea cables.
Call Total Budget
Financing percentage by EU or other bodies / Level of Subsidy or Loan
70%
Thematic Categories
- Information and Communication Technologies
- Information Technology
- Public Administration
- Research, Technological Development and Innovation
- Small-Medium Enterprises and Competitiveness
Eligibility for Participation
- Businesses
- Central Government
- Large Enterprises
- Legal Entities
- Other Beneficiaries
- Private Bodies
- Researchers/Research Centers/Institutions
- Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)
- State-owned Enterprises
Eligibility For Participation Notes
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))
- EEA countries (Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein).
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).
Please note however that all topics of this call are subject to restrictions due to security reasons, therefore entities must not be directly or indirectly controlled from a country that is not an eligible country. All entities will have to fill in and submit a declaration on ownership and control.
Call Opening Date
Call Closing Date
National Contact Point(s)
Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy
Directorate of Research and Innovation
Eleana Gabriel
Telephone: +357 22 691918
Email: egabriel@dmrid.gov.cy
EU Contact Point
For help related to this call, please contact ECCC Applicants Direct Contact Centre at applicants@eccc.europa.eu