Funding of the European Union (EU)’s Framework Programmes for Research and Innovation, such as Horizon Europe, has traditionally been based on the reimbursement of actual costs. Due to the need for detailed cost accounting, this system comes with a heavy administrative load for beneficiaries and has suffered from a high error rate in the past. This has motivated the search for simplified forms of funding, such as the use of lump sums. With payments based on results obtained, the latter aims to simplify administration and put the focus on the scientific and technical content of projects.
A few years ago, the European Commission (EC) launched a lump-sum pilot, within Horizon 2020, where certain topics used a funding scheme based on lump sums rather than the traditional method. Its aim was to evaluate the use of lump-sum funding, and the EC recently published its assessment of this pilot. In parallel, STOA commissioned a study to collect feedback and reflect on the use of lump-sum funding.
This STOA event aims to present both these studies and the views of different stakeholders, in order to answer the question: Is lump sum the right tool for EU research programs?
Source: European Parliament
