Project Partners
 4 Zalokosta Str. 10671 Athens Web: www.help-forward.gr Contact: |
FORTH/HELP-FORWARD is the coordinator of the SAccess project. Moreover, FORTH/HELP-FORWARD is heavily involved in the activities related with the wide dissemination of information on South Africa’s’ programmes research and innovation programmes that are open to European researchers’ participation. |
 SE-101 58 Stockholm Web: www.vinnova.se Contact: |
VINNOVA will be mainly involved in the project activities related with the adaptation and dissemination of information on South African programmes/calls that welcome European researchers’ participation. |
 CSIR South Gate Entrance - Building no. 53 Meiring Naude Road Brummeria 0001 Pretoria Web: www.dst.gov.za Contact: |
DST is responsible for providing comprehensive information to project partners on the SA S&T landscape, SA funding programme accessible to EU researchers, and mapping of the SA research and innovation capacity available to EU researchers. |
 Le Sextant - 44, bd de Dunkerque - CS 90009 13572 Marseille Cedex 02 Web: www.ird.fr Contact: |
IRD is the leader of the WP4 “Assessing EU participation and feedback to the JSTCC”. The objective of this work package is to collect, evaluate and present information regarding EU participation in South African research and innovation programmes, as well as to contribute with relevant data to the policy dialogue within the context of the South African – European Union joint. The IRD is also involved in dissemination activities to increase knowledge about opportunities in South Africa to European researchers. |
 Via Cavour, 71 00184 Rome Web: www.apre.it Contact: |
APRE is the Leader of the Dissemination Work Package and therefore in charge of the dissemination plan of the project. Together with the other project partners APRE develops the promotional material, organizes info days in different European countries and assists European Researchers in applying for calls launched within the South African Research, technical development and innovation Programmes. |
FORTH/HELP-FORWARD
FORTH/HELP-FORWARD is the strategic alliance of the Research and the Industrial world in Greece. It was established by the Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas (FORTH) and the Federation of Greek Industries (FGI) in 1991, with the support of the General Secretariat for Research and Technology (GSRT) and aimed primarily at the promotion of the participation of Greek firms and laboratories in the EU RTD programmes. Since December 1995, enforced with the cooperation of the Federation of Industries for Northern Greece (FING), FORTH/HELP-FORWARD has become a member of the Innovation Relay Centre (IRC) Network with the mandate of promoting RTD results exploitation and European co-operation in research and technology. Since then, FORTH/HELP-FORWARD renews successfully every four years its mandate as an IRC. Since 1999, FORTH/HELP-FORWARD has been the National Contact Point (NCP) in Greece for the 5th and the 6th Framework Programme (FP) and since 2007 it has been appointed as the NCP for the 7th FP. FORTH/HELP-FORWARD has participated in 30 projects (13 as co-ordinator, 27 of them European), all of them related to provision of services to SMEs, laboratories and public organisations in Greece and abroad on research, innovation and technology transfer issues (information, mediation, partner search, advisory and training services).
Its mission is to make Greek enterprises and research laboratories more competitive via technology transfer, to facilitate the exploitation and utilisation of RTD results, to strengthen the links between research and industry, to promote and facilitate innovation in enterprises and to contribute towards enhanced European cooperation.
FORTH/HELP-FORWARD holds considerable experience and a long record of providing special services to innovation organisations in third countries in assisting to set innovation related services. The provided services include: personnel training in innovation issues, organisation re-engineering for improving their internal structure, support for setting innovation services e.g. partner search, proposal drafting, help-desk.
It has been the advisor for the set-up and the operation of Innovation and Research Programmes Promotion Centres in Bulgaria (1997-2000), Romania (1997-1999) and Cyprus (1999-2000). More recently, it has been the advisor of the FP National Information Points in Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaidjan under the INTAS ININ schemes (2003-2006). In 2003, HELP-FORWARD has also given a series of seminars for the benefit of NIPs and researchers of all the NIS (in Moscow, Kiev, Tbilisi, Almaty) for their participation in FP6 (under other two INTAS projects). In FP7 FORTH/HELP-FORWARD will be the mentor of the NCPs in Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia (including assessment of their current operation, provision of advice to the NIPs and their customers, training). H-F will also be involved in the definition of policy priorities for the synergies of S&T with Innovation policies.
Following the success of the INCONTACT project which FORTH/HELP-FORWARD coordinated, currently, FORTH/HELP-FORWARD is the coordinator of the INCONTACT – one world project, the second phase of the official project of the INCO NCPs, aiming to increase the capacity of the INCO NCP network. Apart from coordinating the Access4EU project with South Africa, FORTH/HELP-FORWARD is a WP in the respective Access4EU projects with India, Mexico, and Brazil. With regards to the BILAT initiative, FORTH/HELP-FORWARD is a WP leader in the BILAT SILK project supporting the operation of the Chinese NCPs. In addition, H-F is a WP leader within the INCONET project for Central America, Gulf Countries, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Caucasus and South East Asia.
VINNOVA
VINNOVA (The Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems) is a State authority that aims to promote growth and prosperity throughout Sweden. Our particular area of responsibility comprises innovations linked to research and development. Our tasks are to fund the needs-driven research required by a competitive business and industrial sector and a flourishing society, and to strengthen the networks that are such a necessary part of this work. VINNOVA is also the National Contact Point organisation for Sweden, regarding the 7th Framework Programme for Research of the EC. VINNOVA has all NCPs in its International Department and provide information and advice concerning all aspects of the EU Framework Programmes. VINNOVA also monitor Sweden's progress in the framework programme and compile statistics and perform evaluations and analysis of results. We give advice and support on all EU framework programmes, from research priorities to applications and contract issues.
DST
The DST is the national government authority responsible for science, technology and innovation policy in South Africa (SA). The DST includes among its key activities the development of strategic partnerships / collaborations with the international science and technology (S&T) community; the internationalising/branding of SA’s S&T capabilities, and improving the quality and depth of information to support development and investment decision-making and driving improvements in the quality of S&T activities against the backdrop of internationally recognized benchmarks.
The DST has been responsible over the past decade, in partnership with the European Commission (EC) Directorate-General Research for the coordination, monitoring and promotion of cooperation under the SA-EU Agreement – this has included SA participation in FP4, FP5, FP6 and FP7. The Department has also engaged in a regular S&T policy dialogue with the EC through the annual SA–EC Joint Science and Technology Cooperation Committee (JSTCC) meetings.
SA is one of the most successful Third Country participants of the Framework Programmes. SA’s participation in the Framework Programme improved significantly during FP6 with over 120 project participations by SA researchers, and SA being ranked amongst four non EU participants such as the United States of America, The People’s Republic of China and the Russian Federation, in terms of successful FP6 participation by non-EU countries. South Africa’s success in achieving levels of FP7 participation equal to that of Brazil is the result of a concerted national effort to promote S&T cooperation with the EU, pursued over more than a decade. The Department has over the past five years been overseeing and guiding the work of a comprehensive NCP Network it established. The work of the SA NCPs has been especially successful under the first phase of ESASTAP in FP6 and has built on these gains in FP7.
The Department is currently implementing ESASTAP2, a bilateral Specific Support Action, under the FP7, which contributed to SA’s more than 99 FP7 participations. The DST also plays a leading role in efforts to promote regional S&T cooperation between the EU and Africa – and is therefore also actively contributing to the FP7 INCO-Net for Africa – CAAST-Net. The Department has since 2003 operated a fully-fledged S&T Representative Office in Brussels – incorporated as part of the SA Mission to the EU. The Representative Office is tasked with maintaining SA’s strategic and high-level science and technology relations in Europe, including advancing SA’s Framework Programme participation.
IRD
The Institut de Recherche pour le Développement is a French public research institute that has been working in Southern countries for over sixty years. It operates under the joint authority of the French ministries responsible for research and overseas development.
All its work – in research, consultancy and capacity-building activities – is designed to assist the economic, social and cultural development of Southern countries. The work hinges around six priorities: poverty reduction, migration, emerging diseases, climate change and natural hazards, access to water, ecosystems.
In close collaboration with their colleagues in partner institutions, 858 researchers, 973 engineers and technicians and 341 local staff were at work in some fifty countries in 2008. They took part in numerous national, European and international programs.
In September 2008 the IRD moved its head office to Marseille. It has 30 other establishments including two in Metropolitan France (Bondy and Montpellier), five in the French overseas territories (la Réunion, French Guiana, Martinique, New Caledonia and French Polynesia) and 23 in countries of the intertropical zone in Africa, the Mediterranean, Asia and Latin America.
Through AIRD, the Agence inter-établissements de recherche pour le développement, the IRD has the task of mobilising French and European universities and major research bodies to work on priority research issues for development in the South.
The founder members of AIRD are Cirad, the CNRS, the Conférence des Présidents d’Université, Inserm, the Institut Pasteur and the IRD.
APRE
APRE is a non-profit research organisation, created upon the joint initiative of the Italian Ministry of Research and the European Commission in 1989, and grouping together more than 100 member organisations, including both public and private research centres, industries, industrial associations, chambers of commerce, science parks and 40 universities, with the main objective to promote the participation on national and European RTD programmes. APRE received (2001) the Quality Certification for its Project, training and promotion activities regarding research programmes (ISO EN 9001:2000). During its 20 years of experience APRE has been participating to several projects (about 90) co-financed by the European Commission (DG Research and DG Enterprise).
A renamed experience on training in training activities (courses, workshops, info-days and seminars) complete its skills. Coming from the Third EC Framework Programme, as well the subsequent ones (FP4, FP5 and FP6) and now in the Seventh Framework Programme APRE has been appointed by the Italian Ministry of Research and the European Commission as host organization of the Italian National Contact Points for all the themes and sectors as well as expert of the Information, Communication Technology Thematic group in the CIP Programme by the Ministry of Innovation and Technologies.
For EC funded project purposes, APRE' segmentation capabilities encompass:
- a strong experience in the Executive Management as coordinator (4 projects in FP6) or WP Leader. APRE was also responsible for progress monitoring (financial and technical) and reporting to the European Commission for a FP6 Integrated project - AQUASTRESS - and now for the FP7 Infrastructure project - CHARISMA. APRE is also expert in contractual issues as the Italian Legal and financial NCP;
- a significant aptitude in dissemination and training activities. Coordinator of 2 Support Action for the dissemination of Research results and WP leader for the Dissemination WPs in many EC funded projects. Thanks to its national and international networks (i.e. the NCP network, the Enterprise Europe Network, the APRE partners Network, etc) APRE has the opportunity to assure a wide and focussed dissemination at national, European and International level;
- a deep knowledge of the International Cooperation sector thanks to the projects where APRE is coordinator (INCO-NET Projects: ENLACE (Central America), EUCARINET (Caribbean); ACCESS4EU Projects: Canada, India and Mexico, WP leader and partner in INCO-NET Projects: PACENET (Pacific), WBC INCO-NET (Western Balkan Countries); BILAT Projects: China, India, Mexico, USA, Canada, Egypt and Argentina; ACCESS4EU Projects: South Africa, USA. Moreover, APRE has been nominated by the Italian Ministry of Research as Italian National Contact Point for EU-Africa partnership 8.
