Evaluations highlight strong benefits of Norway's participation in both Horizon Europe and Erasmus+

On 19 October, NorCore hosted a Norwegian knowledge network meeting in Brussels, focusing on two recent evaluations of Norway's participation in Horizon Europe and Erasmus+. During the meeting, representatives behind the evaluations presented their main findings, highlighted the importance of European cooperation for Norwegian research, innovation and education, and assessed the potential benefits of continued participation in the next programme period.

Impact evaluation of Norway's participation in EU Framework Programmes for research and innovation The report includes both an impact evaluation of Norway’s participation in Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe, as well as a socio-economic analysis of the potential benefits of Norwegian participation in the next Horizon Europe programme (FP10).

The main conclusion from the impact evaluation is that Norway has benefited greatly from participating in the EU Framework Programmes for Research and Innovation. The report shows that Norwegian participation has improved the quality of Norwegian research and strengthened innovation capacity over time. It has also improved access to data, knowledge and networks needed to address global challenges, while creating opportunities to develop national policies and influence European policymaking.

The report highlights that many of the most important benefits are not reflected in financial return alone, including access to international networks, expertise, infrastructure and data. The report also emphasises the increased value of European collaboration in today's geopolitical situation, and notes that the experiences of the UK and Switzerland demonstrate that non-participation can quickly weaken a country's international networks.

The report recommends that Norway associate with the new programme. This aligns with recommendations from the boards of both the Research Council of Norway and Innovation Norway, which support participation across the full scope of both Horizon Europe and the new European Competitiveness Fund. Read the full impact evaluation here

Impact evaluation of Norway's participation in Erasmus+

The report looks at the effects of Norwegian participation in Erasmus+ from 2014 until 2025, and also includes a socio-economic analysis of the potential benefits of Norwegian participation in the next programme period.

The evaluation of Norway’s participation in Erasmus+ reaches similar conclusions as the report on Horizon Europe. The report shows that Erasmus+ has strengthened the internationalisation of Norwegian education and training, enhanced skills development and created value for individuals, institutions and society. The report also points out that most of the goals related to mobility, partnerships and societal challenges set out in the strategy for Norwegian participation in Erasmus+ from 2021, have been accomplished or are likely to be accomplished in the current programme period.

The accompanying socio-economic analysis highlights that Erasmus+ generates greater mobility and more European collaboration compared to a situation where Norway would use the same amount of money on international mobility and collaboration through national schemes. Drawing on experiences from the UK and Switzerland, the report concludes that even though national schemes can replace parts of Erasmus+, it would lead to reduced mobility and loss of access to European collaborative platforms.

The analysis also concludes that the benefits of Norway's participation exceed its financial contribution to the programme. In particular, it highlights a range of benefits that are difficult to estimate in monetary terms, including competence development, international networks, inclusion and greater opportunities for participants with fewer opportunities. According to the report, these non-monetary benefits represent the largest share of the overall benefits generated by participation.

Read the full report here (in Norwegian)