Belgian grants to participate in the latest Horizon Europe call for proposals: you haven’t heard of them yet?
Brussels, 01.04.2021-. Finnova Foundation and Startup Europe Awards wanted to lend a hand to all those entrepreneurs with disruptive ideas who wish to participate in the latest Horizon Europe call for proposals, and to do so they have searched for the different grants that Belgium offer for this purpose. But first of all, for those who might not know it… What is Horizon Europe?
Horizon Europe is a €95.5 billion financial instrument (including €5.4 billion Next Generation EU fund) implemented by the European Union in favour of innovation and research and whose aim is to ensure Europe’s global competitiveness. Besides, Horizon Europe is seen as a powerful tool to boost economic growth and job creation and has the political support of European leaders and Members of the Parliament who state that “research and innovation are an investment in our future!
By combining research and innovation, Horizon Europe promotes business growth and employment in a smart, sustainable and inclusive approach, underscoring excellent science, industrial leadership and the social challenges we currently face.
The aim is to ensure that the European Union develop world-class science, removes barriers to innovation and makes it easier for the public and private sector to work together to generate innovation.
Moreover, thanks to its simple structure with reduced bureaucracy, Horizon Europe is open to all and allows participants to concentrate on what is really important, ensuring that new projects get off the ground quickly and achieve results faster.
And now, entrepreneurs, do you want to know what grants Belgium offers SMEs when applying for Horizon Europe?
- EIC Accelerator
EIC Accelerator is addressed to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and startups that are developing disruptive innovation projects and are looking for additional financial support to complete their research and development from the prototype phase to a full commercial product.
This programme aims to identify and support cutting-edge technologies and innovations capable of international scalability. It is open to companies from any EU Member State or an associated country. Projects must have a duration of between 12 and 24 months.
The EIC Accelerator supports SMEs (<250 employees and <50M turnover) through a non-repayable grant of 0.5 to 2.5 million at 70% for the development of their innovative projects, and optionally and additionally, up to 15 million euros of capital investment through the EIC Fund to expand your innovative idea and take it to the international market.
- NCP Wallonie – The Horizon Europe subsidy
NCP Wallonie is an incentive for SMEs, universities, colleges and approved research centres located in the Walloon Region to submit European projects. What does it do? It covers the costs linked to the preparation, presentation and negotiation of the project.
The amount changes depending on whether they are SMEs (€3,500) or universities, colleges and research centres (€1,750).
- Flanders Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Flanders Innovation & Entrepreneurship helps, encourages and supports business innovation in Flanders in collaboration with other local actors and with the support of international commitments such as EUREKA, Entreprise European Network and Horizon Europe.
Flanders Innovation & Entrepreneurship supports companies through grants so they continue to grow, transform and innovate as well as to promote networking among SMEs. There are three types of grants: the growth grant, the innovation grant and the R&D projects grant, all of which addressed to SMEs.
- InnovFin – EU Finance for innovators
InnovFin – EU Finance for innovators is an international Belgium grant to all the member states of the European Union and associates countries to provide funding instruments of research and innovation projects in small and medium businesses.
It offers loans, guarantees and financing from a joint initiative launched by the European Investment Bank and the European Investment Fund in cooperation with the European Commission. Its main objectives? To facilitate and accelerate access to finance for innovative companies and organisations in the European Union.
- Sowalfin
Sowalfin is a grant for entrepreneurs and small businesses in the Walloon Region from which you can access grants and guarantees to cover bank financing, playing a complementary role to the banks and in collaboration with various partners, such as Walloon Invests.
What are you waiting for to apply?
About Finnova Foundation
European Foundation for innovation funding. It is a European foundation based in Brussels whose objectives are to promote public-private cooperation through innovation to address social challenges such as employment, training, entrepreneurship, the United Nations SDGs, the circular economy, etc. Finnova organises the Startup Europe Awards, an initiative of the European Commission and the Finnova Foundation, to recognise the best European startups in the social field.
For more information: www.finnova.eu
About Startup Europe Awards
It is a methodology of the European Commission’s DG CONNECT, implemented by the Finnova Foundation since 2016. The SEUAs are an open innovation tool for identifying disruptive startups that promotes public-private collaboration and raises awareness of the importance of self-entrepreneurship as a driver of employment. In addition to generating alliances that help to meet the SDGs of the United Nations and the actions of the European Green Deal, thus contributing to the circular economy, the fight against climate change and sustainable tourism.
For more information: www.startupeuropeawards.eu/seua/