Belangrijkste conclusies vergadering Raad Concurrentievermogen over pilot Europese samenwerking op het gebied van innovatie (en)

Brussels, 9 March 2011

Conclusions on preparatory work for the pilot European Innovation Partnership "Active and Healthy Ageing"

3074th COMPETITIVENESS (Internal Market, Industry, Research and Space) Council meeting

The Council adopted the following conclusions:

• 1. 

  The Council recalls the conclusions of the European Council of 17 June 2010 and of 4 February 2011¹ and its conclusions of 26 November 2010 entitled "Europe 2020 Flagship Initiative: "Innovation Union": Accelerating the transformation of Europe through innovation in a fast changing world"² as well as the flagship initiative "Digital Agenda"³, in the context of the Europe 2020 strategy.
• 2. 

  The Council welcomes the on-going work by the Commission in bringing forward the pilot European Innovation Partnership (EIP) on Active and Healthy Ageing (AHA), the overarching goal of which is to increase on average, by 2020, the healthy lives of Europeans by two years⁴.
• 3. 

  The Council takes note of the Commission's progress in setting up a high level Steering Group (SG) with a broad and balanced membership including relevant stake-holders across the sectors concerned, with a view to undertaking preparatory work for the pilot including, notably, drawing up recommendations for a Strategic Implementation Plan (SIP), in summer 2011, on the basis of which initiatives would be put forward through appropriate institutional channels for the implementation of the pilot EIP.
• 4. 

  The Council reiterates its support for the pilot EIP and the setting up of the SG, without prejudice to the examination of the subsequent Commission initiatives and the way in which Member States would be involved in the concrete implementation of the activities of the pilot EIP. The Council also reiterates its call for an evaluation of the pilot EIP in due time.
• 5. 

  In the development of the pilot EIP, the Council attaches great importance, notably, to duly taking into consideration the relevant existing initiatives on both supply and demand side in the areas of research, development and innovation (including relevant research infrastructures) as well as the sectors of health and information society⁵, and identifying and reinforcing synergies amongst them in such a way that a more simplified and transparent research and innovation landscape would be created. In this respect the Council stresses the independent and voluntary nature and the essential role of Joint Programming, the implementation of which should be actively pursued, and looks forward to the Commission's timely contribution to the preparation of the six "second wave" JPIs.⁶
• 6. 

  The Council agrees that Member States should be involved in the SG by an active group of representatives of Member States at Ministerial level, constituted to cover the main focus areas in the pilot. As far as the present pilot EIP is concerned, the Council welcomes the envisaged participation of representatives of BE, ES, HU and PL in the work of the SG with a view to contributing to this work from the Member States' perspective, but without prejudice to the governance arrangements of future EIPs and without prejudice to the Council's position as to the recommendations arising from the work of the SG. The Council should be kept well informed of the work of the SG.
• 7. 

  The Council encourages the Commission to continue developing, in close cooperation with the Council and Member States, the concept of the EIPs on the basis of the Council conclusions of 26 November 2010 taking also into account the experience from the pilot EIP, the views of the stake-holders, and the evaluation of the pilot EIP as soon as available. The Council highlights in this respect the necessity of simple, transparent and light procedures respecting the voluntary nature of coordination of Member States' activities concerned. The Council also recalls the conclusions of the European Council of 4 February 2011 that the Council will take the necessary political decisions on future Innovation Partnerships before they are launched."

Such initiatives include, amongst others, the Ambient Assisted Living Joint Programme (AAL), the pilot Joint Programming initiative on combating neurodegenerative diseases, in particular Alzheimer's, the envisaged joint programming initiative on the theme "More Years, Better Lives - The Potential and Challenges of Demographic Change" and eHealth Governance Initiative.