South Korea has become the first Asian country to be able to directly secure European Union (EU) research and innovation (R&I) funding by 2027.
The Ministry of Science and ICT and the EU Commission announced on the 6th that South Korea will participate as an associated country in Horizon Europe, the world's largest multilateral research and innovation (R&I) program, starting from the 1st.
Horizon Europe is a multilateral research and innovation program that the EU supports with €95.5 billion (approximately 140 trillion won) from 2021 to 2027. The EU noted that it made the decision to allow South Korea's participation as a transitional measure following the successful completion of negotiations for its associated country membership. The official signing ceremony for the membership agreement is expected to be held later this year.
The membership of South Korea in Horizon Europe as an associated country is the first in Asia and the third case among non-European countries, following New Zealand (2023) and Canada (2024).
South Korea will join as an associated country limited to 'Pillar 2,' which focuses on collaborative research to strengthen 'global problem solving' and 'industrial competitiveness,' and it will be eligible to participate as an associated country researcher starting from 2025 projects.
The first announcement is expected to come out in March. Following South Korea's associated membership in Horizon Europe, South Korean researchers will be able to participate on equal footing with EU researchers in Horizon Europe research projects as consortium coordinators and participants.
Additionally, it will be possible to receive Horizon Europe research funding solely through the project selection evaluation of Horizon Europe without any separate domestic selection process. The government will pay the financial contributions to the EU, but the scale of the contributions has not been disclosed.
It is also possible to participate in the Programme Committee of Horizon Europe as an observer. The Programme Committee discusses the Horizon Europe work program, and associated countries can participate as observers to receive advance information on future projects and present their opinions regarding project planning.