EU and Canada conclude negotiations for association to Horizon Europe

On November 24th at the Canada-EU Summit 2023, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the conclusion of negotiations for Canada’s association to Pillar II of Horizon Europe.

Horizon Europe is the EU’s key funding programme for research and innovation with a budget of €95.5 billion. The programme facilitates collaboration and strengthens the impact of research and innovation in developing, supporting, and implementing EU policies while tackling global challenges. It supports creating and better dispersing of excellent knowledge and technologies.

The signing of the Association Agreement between Canada and Horizon Europe is expected to take place in 2024, pending the completion of all necessary validations on both sides. Once signed, researchers and organizations in Canada will be able to receive funding under Pillar II of Horizon Europe. Pillar II is the largest collaborative part of the programme that is primarily focused on shared global challenges: climate, energy, digital economy and health, with a budget of €53.5 billion.