The Seventh Framework Programme, FP7, launched 51 new calls across the various thematic areas of the FP7 programme. 12 of the calls are under the NMP thematic area of the cooperation programme with a budget of €436 millions (including the PPP Topics).
The total budget for the Seventh Framework Programme calls for proposals in 2011 is €6.4 billion, up 12% in comparison to 2010 (€5.7 billion) and 30% in comparison to 2009 (€4.9 billion).
The Seventh Framework Programme is the largest single research programme in the world, with a budget of more than € 50.5 billion, excluding Euratom - for 2007-2013.
By adopting the Europe 2020 strategy, Europe’s political leaders have put research and innovation at the top of the European political agenda, making it the cornerstone of investment in sustainable growth and jobs.
The calls for proposals announced on July 20th will feed in to Europe’s Innovation Union Flagship, which Commissioner Geoghegan-Quinn will launch in autumn 2010. This initiative is central to the Europe 2020 Strategy, and aims to boost the whole innovation chain "from research to retail", by marrying world-class science with an innovation economy or "i-conomy". It will remove bottlenecks which hamper a single market in innovation and which prevent Europe competing as well as it should with the US and others.