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Horizon Europe

Horizon Europe is the main Research and Innovation Funding Programme of the European Commission.

Horizon 2020

Horizon 2020 is the previous Funding Programme. There are no longer calls, but projects can run until 2024.

Digital Europe

Digital Europe is a Funding Programme focused on bringing digital technology to businesses, citizens and administrations.

Other EU Funding

There are many other relevant EU funding programmes, managed by several agencies and directorates.

European Defence Fund

The European Defence Fund (EDF) is an EU initiative established in 2017 to promote collaboration among member states in defense research, development, and procurement. It provides financial support for projects enhancing defense capabilities and fostering a competitive European defense industry, aiming for strategic autonomy and integration.

Your NCP contact for this programme

Image of Mark Antonissen

Mark Antonissen

mark.antonissen@vlaio.be

+32 2 432 43 05

About this programme

Complementing and amplifying Member States’ efforts, the Fund promotes cooperation among companies and research actors of all sizes and geographic origin in the Union, in research and development of state-of-the-art and interoperable defence technology and equipment. The Fund supports competitive and collaborative projects throughout the entire cycle of research and development for a bigger impact on the European defence capability and industrial landscape.

It strongly encourages participation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in collaborative projects and fosters breakthrough innovative solutions.

The EDF was preceded by two test programmes with limited duration and budget – the Preparatory Action on Defence Research (PADR) and the European Industrial Development Programme (EDIDP).

The European Defence Fund (EDF)

Discover the EDF by watching the video (EN/DE/FR)

EDF Budget

A budget of close to €8 billion for 2021-2027 is dedicated to the European Defence Fund. €2.7 billion to fund collaborative defence research and €5.3 billion euros to fund collaborative capability development projects complementing national contributions.

For info on how to become active, read how to get started with EDF.

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Testimonial

image of Miricle - Mine Risk Clearance for Europe

Miricle - Mine Risk Clearance for Europe

The Miricle project, ‘Mine Risk Clearance for Europe’, obtained funding under the European Defence Industrial Development programme call ‘Underwater control contributing to resilience at sea’. The main objective of the project was to achieve a European and sovereign capacity in future mine warfare and create a path for the next generation ‘made in Europe’ countermeasure solutions. In order to realise this objective, Miricle addressed various stages: studies, design, prototyping and testing. These stages inter alia included the successful testing of an XL Unmanned Underwater Vehicle, a protototyped mine disposal system and multiple innovative systems to detect buried mines. Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ), was one of the five Belgian partners in the consortium. Within the project, VLIZ was able to forward its research on the acoustic imaging of the seabed to spatially map and visualize buried structures and objects - in this case buried mines - in the highest possible detail. VLIZ also led the work on ‘Port and Offshore Testing’, building on the expertise of the institute in the field of marine operations and technology.