Second Swiss contribution: Funding programmes for countries in Central and Eastern Europe

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SNSF is launching 3 new funding programmes as part of the second Swiss contribution to selected EU member states. The programmes will strengthen research in these countries as well as collaboration with researchers in Switzerland.

Switzerland's contribution supports countries that have joined the EU since 2004 (EU-13) or that are subject to strong migration movements. The contribution should help to reduce economic and social inequalities in the enlarged EU. Switzerland is committing 1.3 billion francs, to be used by 2029. This commitment is an expression of solidarity and consolidates the basis for stable economic and political relations with the EU and its member states.

Scientific cooperation

The funds are earmarked for programmes and projects in various fields, which are tailored to the needs of the partner countries. Some of the EU Member States which will benefit from the Second Swiss Contribution have decided to allocate a portion of the dedicated funding for research collaboration with Switzerland.

On behalf of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), the SNSF is launching three new funding programmes that will be implemented together with the relevant organisations in Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Poland, and Romania. Laure Ognois, Head of the International Cooperation Department: "With this funding, we are strengthening science in the partner countries and our partnership with the EU in general. At the same time, research in Switzerland will benefit from the considerable potential of Central and Eastern Europe."

PROMYS for researchers in Bulgaria

The first to start will be the PROMYS programme. It is aimed at researchers from the EU-27 countries or Switzerland, who worked in Switzerland for at least one year as doctoral students or postdocs and who now aspire to an assistant professorship in Bulgaria. They can apply for their own salary, the salaries of project staff and other research costs. Under the terms of the grant, they will receive a maximum of 625,000 francs for a project duration of five years. The SNSF can finance three PROMYS projects in total, and the call will be launched in the second half of August 2023.

The other two programmes will support multilateral research projects in the partner countries (MCJRP) and scientific exchange between Bulgaria and Switzerland (SCIEX). Information on these programmes will follow.