Czech Republic and Israel to give at least CZK 600 million for joint research over seven years

8 Dec. 2009 | CzechInvest, Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Israeli Embassy in the Czech Republic | Joint projects involving industrial research conducted by Czech and Israeli firms and research institutes will receive at least CZK 600 million over the next seven years.

The establishment of the Czech-Israeli programme was announced today by the representatives of the Czech Republic and the state of Israel during the Czech-Israeli Science and Technology Days event in Prague. Financing will be distributed among the initial projects during next year.

“Both parties are undertaking to support cooperation in research and development with the aim of applying the results in practice,” explains Prime Minister Jan Fischer, who played a key role in the programme’s establishment “Israel ranks among our most respected trading and economic partners in the Middle East. The country is focusing intently on supporting high-tech sectors and this agreement is a result of that policy. The most promising areas of cooperation are software development, biotechnology and sectors involving advanced technologies.”

“Israel has an expansive network of trade agreements around the world and for Czech firms this agreement can open doors to our partners in other parts of the world. I hope that Czech companies can also help us to enter additional markets as well,” says Yaakov Levy, Israeli Ambassador to the Czech Republic.

“The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport will provide financing for the programme from its own budget. CzechInvest will be responsible for the actual implementation of the programme,” explains Miroslava Kopicová of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport. “Both Israel and the Czech Republic will provide grants. This will not only promote innovation on both sides, but it will also reduce the risks and costs that firms face when investing in projects.”

Projects eligible for aid are those involving industrial research in which firms and research institutes from Israel and the Czech Republic will jointly participate. The aim of the research must be a specific product with a possibility of commercial application

“The programme will run for seven years. It will be divided into five overlapping three-year calls. The Czech side, represented by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, is planning to invest around sixty million crowns in each call,” explains Alexandra Rudyšarová, CEO of CzechInvest. “A condition for inclusion in the programme is that projects must involve cooperation between Czechs and Israelis. Every project proposal will be assessed by an independent expert committee on both the Czech and Israeli sides. If both concur, the project can receive aid.”

“Israeli science is exceptional in that it very quickly and very successfully transfers research findings into commercial practice. The new agreement will help to further this process in the Czech Republic as well,” emphasizes Dana Huňátová, Special Ambassador of the Czech Republic for Science, Research and Innovation.

“The agreement supports exclusively specific applied-research projects. Thus, from the very beginning it is necessary for researchers to have at least a rough idea of how they will transfer their results into production, how they will be commercially applied. In this regard, the agreement is extremely valuable,” says Tomáš Pojar, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic. .

The agreement on aid for joint projects was signed on 30 March of this year at Prague Castle by representatives of both countries with PresidentVáclav Klaus and President Shimon Peres in attendance. The initial impetus to sign the agreement arose in March 2008 during talks in Israeli between then Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek and then Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

Upon ratification by the Israeli and Czech sides, the agreement was announced today during the Czech-Israeli Science and Technology Days event in Prague, which was organised by CzechInvest in cooperation with Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Office of the Government, the Czech Embassy in Tel Aviv and the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labour of Israel.

The first international Science and Technology Days event took place four years ago in Tokyo, Japan. Today CzechInvest and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs regularly organise such events with 15 countries.