Research and innovation potential is very unevenly distributed across Europe. The excellence and participation of widening countries in research and innovation will be strengthened and expanded in order to improve this situation.
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The Horizon Europe work programme part "Widening Participation and Spreading Excellence" is divided into two areas. "Widening Participation and Spreading Excellence" aims to reduce the research and innovation gap between R&I leading and lagging behind countries. It aims to tackle the innovation divide in Europe towards a more cohesive Research and Innovation ecosystem in Europe. The National Contact Point (NCP) for Widening is happy to answer your questions about this section of the programme and assist you with the application process. The area "Reforming and Strengthening the European R&I System" is also part of the work programme, but is advised by the NCP for ERA.
The success of European research and innovation policy is measured by the ability of all involved actors to fully leverage their potential. Therefore, the following objectives are set within the Widening programme area:
Encourage institutional reforms and transformation processes of the R&I system at national and regional level in widening countries in line with ERA principles;
Mobilise national investments in R&I capacity in widening countries;
Raise the bar for excellence of R&I actors in widening countries in partnership with outstanding European and international institutions (‘win-win situation’);
Increase number of participations and success rates of widening actors in research and innovation projects in other parts of Horizon Europe (notably in Pillars 2 and 3);
Promote the creation of new innovation ecosystems, interconnect and scale up existing ones by a set of measures, which include place-based and international collaboration between academia and business in widening countries;
Foster brain circulation, including inter-sectoral mobility for researchers and innovators and turn it into brain gain for widening countries.
Scientific excellence, the expected impact and the proper implementation of projects are the parameters to measure the quality of proposals. In addition, geographic criteria are considered as well.
In Horizon Europe, the budget for activities aimed at widening participation and spreading excellence has increased compared to Horizon 2020. At least 3.3 % of the overall programme budget is reserved for this purpose. This funding primarily benefits participants from widening countries.
Horizon Europe relies on a mix of proven and new measures from Horizon 2020. The guiding framework is the political agenda for the further implementation of the European Research Area. Scientific excellence and competitiveness are closely linked to the capacities of national and regional innovation ecosystems. Due to structural factors, many widening countries are relatively disadvantaged in this regard. The measures in the Widening area therefore actively emphasize and create synergies with EU Structural Funds (for example, in "Teaming" and "Regional Innovation Valleys"). A central role in linking these measures is played by the strategic priorities defined in the regional innovation strategies (RIS3).
Here you can find all open and upcoming calls from the 2026-2027 Work Programme with participation possibilities for German institutions at a glance.
The EU has supported the establishment and modernisation of centres of excellence in Widening countries for many years. To increase their sustainability, a network of centres of excellence shall be established.
Link: Funding & Tenders Portal
Institutions from Widening countries can participate in ongoing research or innovation projects (RIA, IA) from Pillar II or EIC Pathfinder via the Hop-on Facility. To be eligible, the projects must not yet have a Widening partner. Successful applicants will take over an additional work package.
Link: Funding & Tenders Portal
Successful Horizon Europe projects require not only excellent researchers and good ideas, but also professional support. The Research Management Facility strengthens research management capacities in Widening countries through the training of research managers, knowledge transfer, and multidisciplinary and transnational cooperation.
Link: Funding & Tenders Portal
The ERA Fellowships are not an independent call but an additional funding option within the MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships (MSCA-PF) call. The goal is to support more international researchers in implementing their research projects in Widening countries.
Link: Funding & Tenders Portal
Link: Funding & Tenders Portal
The EIC Pre-Accelerator is an individual funding measure for small and medium-sized enterprises from Widening countries. The EIC Pre-Accelerator is designed to meet the needs of DeepTech companies and supports them in further developing their innovative idea, business model, or technological maturity. Competitiveness and investor attractiveness should increase as a result.
Link: Funding & Tenders Portal
The establishment of an ERA Chair offers excellent researchers the opportunity to set up their own research group. The host institutions from the Widening country applies together with the interested researcher.
ERA Research Managers shall increase the institutional capacities for research management in Widening institutions, improve institutional culture and performance and raise the host institution’s competitiveness. The host institution applies together with the interested research manager.
In an Excellence Hub, actors from the academic sector cooperate with business, policy, and civil society representatives to form a so-called Quadruple Helix innovation ecosystem. The call supports the cooperation of two innovation ecosystems that jointly create action plans, develop innovation agendas, and support the transfer of results.
Link: Funding & Tenders Portal
Widening countries – described in the work programme – are: Albania, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Cyprus, Egypt, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Tunisia, Türkiye, Ukraine and the Outermost Regions (defined in Article 349 TFEU).
