The National Centre for Research and Development

The ex-post evaluation study of the ‘Applied Research’ Programme under the EEA and Norway Grants 2014-2021 was conducted in order to assess the course of the Programme implementation and the impact of selected external and internal factors on the degree of achievement of the assumed effects of the Programme. The evaluation was also intended to provide information on the Programme implementation and management system and mechanism itself, as well as opportunities or areas for potential improvements.

As a result of the survey, high effectiveness of the Programme was indicated in the scope of:

• development of international cooperation
• increasing the quality of research and international visibility
• supporting research careers, especially of young scientists and women
• development of innovation and knowledge transfer.

Factors adversely affecting the extent to which the results of the Programme were achieved were also identified, including:

• insufficient administrative support to research institutions (beneficiaries), which overburdened project managers
• communication and organisational problems in project teams
• COVID-19 pandemic (restrictions on access to laboratories and experimental work, disruption of supply chains, limited access to raw materials, materials and equipment)
• increase in prices of goods and services, increase in labour costs (increase in project costs)
• regulatory and legal political changes
• war in Ukraine (delays in procurement of materials and components necessary for research).

The Programme beneficiaries rated the Programme implementation model highly. They considered its strongest features to be:            

• transparent, effective institutional system
• transparent process and rules for applying for funding
• high rating of the IdeaLab project selection mechanism
• positive impact of the reporting system on project monitoring and management
• adequate conditions for project settlement and scope of eligible expenditure
• high relevance of the additional co-funding mechanism to the challenges of increasing project costs
• support for beneficiaries by the Programme Operator
• effective actions of the Programme Operator in encouraging beneficiaries to apply to Horizon Europe.

At the same time, the attention was drawn to the problems that should be addressed, including:

• problems regarding the role, tasks and responsibilities of the Programme Committee
• difficulties in converting allocations from EUR to PLN and vice versa, and in combining allocations from two Funds
• temporary lack of a comprehensive IT system for handling projects and the Programme
• incompatibility of deadlines for submission of annual Programme reports and annual reports on the implementation of projects
• insufficient number of staff of the Programme Operator and staff fluctuation.

The aim of the study was to evaluate the course of the implementation of the 'Applied Research' Programme – the Norwegian Financial Mechanism and the EEA Financial Mechanism 2014-2021 from the point of view of ensuring the effective implementation of the Programme's objectives.

The implementation of the "Applied Research" Programme to date indicates that its assumed results in the form of increased effectiveness of Polish applied research and closer cooperation between entities involved in the Programme from beneficiary and donor countries will be achieved. Thanks to the Programme, several dozen partnerships have been established with Norwegian entities, which foster mutual exchange of knowledge and experience. The supported projects are also pro-business oriented and there is a high probability that the results will be implemented. Although companies are present in a large number in such projects, their financial participation is moderate. Although the participation of companies in the Programme did not translate into a strong orientation of projects towards higher levels of technological readiness, this should not be judged negatively. Industrial research has much more potential to generate completely new knowledge than experimental development.

Interest in the individual thematic areas of the Programme was very high, with project managers from 36 out of 49 scientific disciplines submitting applications. This interest, however, corresponded to varying degrees to the potential of Polish scientific institutions. The most interesting thematic area of the Programme was the one covering energy, transport and climate, with the emphasis on energy. The area initiated synergies between several other strong growth areas, i.e. digital and industrial technologies, food and natural resources, welfare, health and care, and CO2 capture solutions.

The Programme mainly contributed to the formation of new consortia, but consortia included at least one partner with experience from the 2nd edition, indicating the sustainability of the institutional experience of project promoters and partners. In contrast, the continuity of project teams in the 3rd edition is poorly visible, as only 4% of the researchers working in these teams applied in both editions.