1. GENERAL INFORMATION
The main objective of the Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area (PRIMA) is to build research & innovation capacities and develop innovative solutions addressing critical problems in the fields of water management and agro-alimentary systems in the Mediterranean, a region heavily affected by climate change, urbanization, migration and population growth.
PRIMA top priorities include water scarcity, food security, the Mediterranean diet and its health benefits, as well as the need to reorganize the production potential of Mediterranean countries in these sectors and create new jobs.
The PRIMA initiative is implemented through a special, 10-year (2018-2028) programme, approved in July 2017 by a European Parliament and Council Decision, in accordance with Article 185 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). The programme will be financed with a total of 490 million EUR, of which 220 million EUR will be granted from «Horizon 2020», the EU framework programme for research and innovation, and the remaining amount will be contributed by PRIMA participating countries’ national funds.
Greece will contribute 10 million EUR to the PRIMA initiative over a ten-year period (2018-2028), secured underthe national Public Investments Programme (PIP).
The programme is managed by the PRIMA Foundation, an entity established by participating countries, including Greece, in the form of a non-profit organization under private law, based in Barcelona and governed by Spanish law.
2. VISION
Sustainable innovation for agro-food systems and water management aimed at advancing Euromediterranean cooperation and promoting socially inclusive prosperity and socio-economic development in the Mediterranean countries.
3. objectives
- Supporting the development and implementation of innovative solutions in order to improve the efficiency and sustainability of food production and water supply in the Mediterranean basin, with the aim of promoting prosperity and boosting the productive potential in these fields.
- Promoting stability and socio-economic development in the Mediterranean region, in the context of a strengthened Euro-Mediterranean cooperation and the EU foreign policy regarding Southern Neighbourhood.
- Supporting the creation of new knowledge- and skills-based jobs in the Mediterranean region.
4. THEMATIC PRIORITY AREAS
- Sustainable water management for arid and semi-arid Mediterranean areas
- Sustainable farming systems under Mediterranean environmental constraints
- Mediterranean food value chains for regional and local development.
5. PARTICIPATING COUNTRIES
- EU Member States: Croatia, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain.
- Mediterranean third countries: Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Israel, Tunisia and Turkey.
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6. FUNDING MODES
- Projects financed under the «Horizon 2020» Framework Programme, directly from the PRIMA Foundation. These are managed in accordance with the conditions/procedures laid out for «Horizon 2020» (Regulations (EU) no 1290/2013 and (EU) no 1291/2013) with minimal derogations.
- Activities funded at national level either in the context of international calls (e.g. ERA-NETs) or through national programmes.
Greece participates in the PRIMA programme through the General Secretariat for Research and Technology (GSRI), which has been appointed as the funding body for Section 2 projects. The programme is addressed to higher education institutions, research bodies, private and public sector enterprises of all sizes, as well as other entities active in the above fields, and will be focused, by and large, in the implementation of international cooperation projects.
For more details on the programme, please consult the PRIMA website (http://www.prima-med.org/)
