The 7th Framework Program

Brief description:

The Seventh Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development (FP7) has been created by the European Union to support research-related initiatives across member states in order to achieve economic growth, boost employment and enhance competitiveness. It operates alongside a number of other programmes which share ambitious research, education and innovation goals. The programme awards grants to projects which successfully negotiate a rigorous and highly competitive selection process. The scheme runs from 2007 to 2013.

The objectives of FP7 cover four main categories, namely, cooperation, ideas, people and capacities. The programme has a total budget of over € 50 billion, two thirds of which is earmarked for the Cooperation programme to foster collaborative research across Europe and other partner countries in ten areas:

• Health

• Food, agriculture and fisheries, and biotechnology

• Information and communication technologies

• Nanosciences, nanotechnologies, materials and new production technologies

• Energy

• Environment (including climate change)

• Transport (including aeronautics)

• Socio-economic sciences and the humanities

• Space

• Security

Full details of FP7 can be found on the CORDIS website. A good overview is provided in the FP7 In Brief booklet.