Horizon 2020 conference for Western Balkan region

A conference on the Western Balkan region’s participation in Horizon 2020 will take place on 27-28 March in Vienna, Austria. It aims to provide the opportunity for new partnerships to be created.

The conference will focus on calls in selected areas of secure, clean and efficient energy, ICT and inclusive, innovative and reflective societies.

The conference will bring together 200 scientists, science policymakers and industry representatives from the Western Balkan region, South East Europe, Danube region and other EU countries. It will provide scientists with a platform for networking and promoting dedicated projects or innovative products.

The quality and quantity of scientific output from Western Balkan countries is behind that of EU countries. Insufficient funding, facilities, human resources and regulations have been identified as the main causes of this poor performance.

The region is still attempting to recover from the mass emigration of scientists, engineers and technicians during the 1990s. R&D expenditure is also a problem. The Western Balkans applied for 38 patents in the United States in 2012, while leading US research universities applied for an average of 25. Each of these patents require more R&D investment for these countries.