The European Commission has finally published a full guide to advise researchers on grant agreements for the EU’s current research and innovation funding programme, Horizon Europe, which started in 2021.
The Annotated Grant Agreement is intended to help applicants to Horizon Europe, and beneficiaries of funding from it, understand the often complex agreements they must sign before starting a project.
The Commission published a draft version of the guide in 2021, when the seven-year programme started. Ever since then, researchers receiving EU funds have been waiting for the publication of the non-draft version.
The 418-page document avoids technical vocabulary, legal references and jargon as it seeks to help researchers find answers to the questions they have when setting up or implementing their EU-funded projects.
Mattias Björnmalm, secretary-general of the Cesaer group of science and technology universities, hailed the publication of the guide on social media, saying: “The day that EU funding beneficiaries and experts have been waiting for since the start of Horizon Europe in 2021 is finally here!”
