Participation of Czech enterprises in Framework Programmes in the Context of Domestic Programmes Supporting Business Research, Development, and Innovation

The contributions from October 2022 were focused on the assessment of the sectoral and size structure of the Czech enterprises participating in the Framework Programmes, as well as on a geographical perspective. This contribution evaluates the context of this participation in the light of other domestic programmes supporting business research, development, and innovation – specifically, programmes managed by the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports. The amount of support that companies participating in the compared programmes draw from public budgets to support their research, development and innovation activities is evaluated. In the case of Framework Programmes, the data source was the current European Commission's eCorda database (as of 31 April 2021 for the FP7, as of 17 May 2022 for Horizon 2020, and as of 15 September 2022 for Horizon Europe). The indicator of the amount of the European Union's contribution to the participants was evaluated, considering only the type of participants “beneficiaries”.

The source of data for domestic programmes supporting business research, development, and innovation was the IS VaVaI database (as of November 1, 2022) managed by the Office of the Government of the Czech Republic – Council for Research, Development, and Innovation. In the financial tables of the projects, the support drawn from the Czech Republic's budget was evaluated, namely for entities with the legal form of a natural person, business company or cooperative. Although Framework Programmes and domestic programmes supporting business research, development and innovation are announced for different periods, the time aspect was not a major obstacle in creating this comparison. In the financial tables of the projects in the IS VaVaI database, the amounts of drawn financial support are calculated separately for each year. The amounts of support drawn from the domestic programmes were thus assigned to the respective seven-year periods in which the Framework Programmes are running.

Note: Amount of support drawn from public budgets (in millions of CZK) by enterprises participating in selected RDI support programmes
Framework Programmes are in brown colour. Programmes administered by the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic in blue tones, by Ministry of Industry and Trade in green tones, by Ministry of Youth and Sports in mauve.
Horizon Europe – data on 15.09.2022. Sources: European Commission – eCORDA – 15.09.2022 (Horizon Europe), 17.05.2022 (Horizon 2020), 30.04.2021 (7th Framework Programme); IS VaVaI – 01.11.2022. Prepared by Vladimír Vojtěch, TC CAS, 03.11.2022

In the case of the 7th Framework Programme, the ratio between it and domestic programmes to support business research, development and innovation was 10:90. Domestic enterprises from the FP7 used up the EU contribution of €77.8 million, i.e. circa CZK 1.9 billion. Among the domestic programmes, similarly large were Alfa under the auspices of the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic (with the amount of aid drawn by enterprises of CZK 2.2 billion) and TANDEM and IMPULS under the auspices of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (with the amount of aid drawn by enterprises of CZK 2.3 billion, and CZK 3.1 billion respectively). The Alfa programme was aimed at strengthening cooperation in research and development between companies and research organizations, especially in the areas of (1) progressive technologies, materials and systems, (2) energy sources and environmental protection, and (3) sustainable development of transport. The TANDEM program focused on improving the cooperation of industrial enterprises and research workplaces. The results of this cooperation should be applied in new technologies, products or services based on further subsequent industrial research. In the IMPULS programme, projects focused on research and development of new materials and materials with hitherto unknown properties, new or improved industrial products and equipment, technologies, systems and services, new information and control products and technologies were supported, including the possible acquisition and verification of samples, prototypes, semi-operational or demonstration devices. Of the compared programmes, in the period 2007–2013, companies drew the most support from the TIP program (CZK 9 billion), which is generally aimed at creating new knowledge for industrial production to increase the competitiveness of Czech manufacturing and develop the know-how of Czech industrial enterprises.

In the Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe programmes, the ratio between them and domestic programmes to support business research, development and innovation is about 20:80. From the Horizon 2020 programme, domestic companies drew an EU contribution of €125.6 million, i.e. CZK 3.1 billion. Similar large amount of support from the Czech Republic's budget enterprises received in the programmes of the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic Epsilon (CZK 3 billion), Alfa (CZK 2.7 billion) and Competence Centres (CZK 2.2 billion). The Epsilon programme (2015-2023) is aimed at improving the position of Czech industry by supporting applied research and experimental development projects in the following priority areas: (1) a competitive economy based on knowledge, (2) sustainability of energy and material resources, (3) an environment for quality life. The main goal of the Competence Centres programme was to increase the competitiveness of the Czech Republic by stimulating the creation and operation of innovative, competitive, and long-term sustainable RDI centres with market potential and concentrating significant research and application capacities from the public and private sectors. Among the programmes of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the TRIO programme (CZK 3.3 billion) was of a similar size, aimed at supporting cooperation between companies and research organizations and applied research and experimental development for the needs of industry to strengthen the competitiveness of the Czech Republic, especially in the areas of photonics, microelectronics and nanoelectronics, nanotechnology, industrial biotechnology, advanced materials, and advanced manufacturing technologies.

From the Horizon Europe programme so far (i.e., as of September 15, 2022), domestic enterprises have drawn an EU contribution of €26.4 million, i.e. CZK 662 million. Enterprises participating in the ending TRIO programme received similarly large support from the Czech Republic's budget (CZK 480 million). Support for businesses from the TREND programme of the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic and the Ministry of Industry and Trade has so far (as of November 1, 2022) reached CZK 1.1 billion. The TREND programme is aimed at increasing the international competitiveness of domestic enterprises through the support of industrial research and experimental development and the introduction of their results into industrial production and product offerings. The programme is aimed not only at supporting the creation of research and development results and their use in business activities of companies with existing research and development activities, but also at starting research and development activities at companies, that do not yet carry out regular research and development.

In the regional perspective, in domestic programmes to support business research, development and innovation, the representation of subjects based in Prague in the amount of support from the Czech Republic's budget corresponds to Prague's share of the Czech Republic's gross domestic product, i.e. about one quarter. On the contrary, enterprises based in Prague participate in Framework Programmes to a much greater extent than enterprises from other regions. In the 7th Framework Programme, the representation of enterprises based in Prague reached 38% of the EU contribution to the Czech enterprises, 58% in the Horizon 2020 programme and 47% in the Horizon Europe programme. If we add together the amounts of public support of Framework Programmes and domestic programmes to support business research, development, and innovation (i.e., EU contribution and support from the Czech Republic's budget), then the 7th Framework Programme was represented in Prague in the period 2007–2013 by 16%, Horizont 2020 in the period 2014–2020 by 34% and Horizon Europe (as of September 15, 2022) by 29%.

Even in the case of the South Moravian Region, the representation of local enterprises in the amount of support for business research, development, and innovation from the Czech Republic's budget as well as the EU contribution is above average in all three monitored periods. The share of the South Moravian Region in the GDP of the Czech Republic has been around one-tenth for a long time. In the 7th Framework Programme, the South Moravian Region's share of the EU contribution to business entities from the Czech Republic was 23%, in the Horizon 2020 programme 17% and in the Horizon Europe programme 12%. Representation of the South Moravian Region in domestic programmes has been 15–17%. In the South Moravian Region, the ratio between Framework Programmes and domestic programmes to support business research, development and innovation was 15:85 in the 7th Framework Programme, 19:81 in the Horizon 2020 programme and 15:85 in Horizon Europe programme.

In addition to Prague and the South Moravian Region, the regions of Hradec Králové (16:84; especially the company INOTEX spol. s r.o.), Plzeň (12:88; more participants) and Vysočina (11:89; especially the company První brněnská strojírna Velká Bíteš, a. s.) showed an above-average participation of enterprises in the 7th Framework Programme. Conversely, in the Horizon 2020 programme, in addition to Prague and the South Moravian Region, only the Zlín Region was above-average represented (19:81; especially the company EVEKTOR, spol. s r.o.). The Hradec Králové region also showed a higher representation (15:85), owing to the participation of the company Argotech a.s.

In addition to Prague and South Moravia, companies from the regions of Hradec Králové (43:57; especially Argotech a. s. again) and Central Bohemia (21:79; the highest EU contribution went to VALEO AUTOKLIMATIZACE k.s., ŠKODA AUTO a.s., and Euromobilita s.r.o.) participated above average in the Horizon Europe programme.

Note: Support drawn from public budgets by enterprises participating in selected programmes to support business RDI according to the programme and the registered office of the enterprise in the period 2021–2022
The Horizon Europe programme is in brown colour. Programmes administered by the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic in blue tones, by Ministry of Industry and Trade in green tones, by Ministry of Youth and Sports in mauve.
Horizon Europe – data on 15.09.2022. Sources: European Commission – eCORDA – 15.09.2022; IS VaVaI – 01.11.2022. Prepared by Vladimír Vojtěch, TC CAS, 03.11.2022

Note: Support drawn from public budgets by enterprises participating in selected programmes to support business RDI according to the programme and the registered office of the enterprise in the period 2014–2020
The Horizon 2020 programme is in brown colour. Programmes administered by the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic in blue tones, by Ministry of Industry and Trade in green tones, by Ministry of Youth and Sports in mauve.
Sources: European Commission – eCORDA – 17.05.2022; IS VaVaI – 01.11.2022. Prepared by Vladimír Vojtěch, TC CAS, 03.11.2022

Note: Support drawn from public budgets by enterprises participating in selected programmes to support business RDI according to the programme and the registered office of the enterprise in the period 2007–2013
The 7th Framework Programme is in brown colour. Programmes administered by the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic in blue tones, by Ministry of Industry and Trade in green tones, by Ministry of Youth and Sports in mauve.
Sources: European Commission – eCORDA – 30.04.2021; IS VaVaI – 01.11.2022. Prepared by Vladimír Vojtěch, TC CAS, 03.11.2022

Author: Vladimír Vojtěch, CAS TC, vojtech@tc.cz, 07.11.2022