Interim evaluation
The interim evaluation, published in May 2017, covers the first two years of Horizon 2020’s implementation (2014-2016) and
- assesses the progress of Horizon 2020 towards its objectives
- aims to improve the implementation of Horizon 2020 in its final work programme running from 2018 to 2020.
- reports on the wider long-term impact of previous EU framework programmes
- advises on the design of future EU research programmes, in particular the next programme Horizon Europe which will run from 2021 to 2027
- provided the evidence-base for the Lab-Fab-App report (informally the Lamy report), a report of the high level group on maximizing the impact of EU research and innovation programmes which draws up a vision and strategic recommendations to maximise the impact of future EU research and innovation programmes.
Why and how
Following the better regulation guidelines, the interim evaluation looked at Horizon 2020 from 5 different angles
- relevance - whether the original objectives of Horizon 2020 are still relevant and how well they still match the current needs and problems
- efficiency - the relationship between the resources used by Horizon 2020 and the changes it is generating
- effectiveness - how successful Horizon 2020 has been in achieving or progressing towards its objectives
- coherence - how well or not the different activities work together, internally and with other EU programmes and policies
- EU added value - assessing the value resulting from Horizon 2020 that is additional to what could be generated by activities at regional or national levels
The evaluation was based on a wide range of sources including:
- internal assessments by Commission services
- external expert group reports
- horizontal and thematic evaluation studies
- the results of the ex-post evaluation of the 7th Framework Programme
- the review of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology
Consultation with stakeholders
A public stakeholder consultation on the interim evaluation of Horizon 2020 ran from October 2016 until January 2017.
The Commission received nearly 3 500 responses to an online survey, with 78% of respondents stating that they are satisfied or very satisfied with Horizon 2020.
Over 300 position papers were submitted by respondents from nearly 70 countries.
Key documents
The final evaluation of Horizon 2020, the EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation 2014-2020.
This collection includes an executive summary, an extended summary and an in-depth report of the evaluation
Communication, Staff Working Documents and expert report on the interim evaluation of Euratom
Interim evaluation of the EIT
Interim evaluation of the Joint Undertakings (public-private partnerships) operating under Horizon 2020
Interim evaluation of the public-public partnerships operating under Horizon 2020
Analysis of responses submitted to online questionnaire and position papers.
This study analyses the patterns of cooperation and publications, especially of an interdisciplinary nature, amongst participants in Horizon 2020 and FP7
This study assesses and quantifies the EU added value of Horizon 2020 and FP7, and analyses how Horizon 2020 can generate increased economic returns
For other documents, studies and/or expert group reports on specific programme parts that contributed to the interim evaluation of Horizon 2020, please consult the EU Publications or send a request to RTD-A2-SUPPORT
ec [dot] europa [dot] eu (RTD-A2-SUPPORT[at]ec[dot]europa[dot]eu).
Impact assessment
In 2011 Europe faced crucial challenges such as low growth, an insufficient level of innovation and a diverse set of environmental and social challenges. This was the starting point for the impact assessment for Horizon 2020.
It found that the solutions to all of these problems, are linked and it is by addressing its environmental and social challenges that Europe will be able to boost productivity, generate long-term growth and secure its place in the world.
Monitoring
You can access data and reports about the EU framework programmes in various ways:
- The interactive Horizon 2020 Dashboard
- The brochure “Horizon 2020 in full swing”, a snapshot of Horizon 2020 main achievements after 3 year of implementation
- Monitoring flash series Keeping our eyes on the Horizon presents detailed analysis of key aspects of the EU research and innovation framework programme developments in recent years.