Brussels, Feb. 26, 2021 (Lusa) – The Portuguese presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU) stressed Friday that the goal of allocating 3% of GDP to research by 2030 can be met with the help of the Resilience and Recovery Mechanism.

"Today we have again stated the goal of 3% of GDP for research and development by 2030 and that will be more easily achieved with the use, through national plans, of the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism (RRM) for the EU, said the Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education, Manuel Heitor.

The minister, who was speaking at a press conference after an informal Council of his EU counterparts, stressed that the RRM could be combined with existing national and European funding for science.

The Council, he said, was unanimous in agreeing that "knowledge and innovation are decisive for the EU's recovery and resilience", namely in meeting the objectives of the digital and ecological transitions.

On the other hand, said Manuel Heitor, there was also a consensus that "science creates markets and jobs", contributing to the economic recovery of the EU, exemplified by the strengthening of alliances between small and medium enterprises and universities.

The RRM is the main pillar of the European recovery plan, the "Next Generation EU", set up to financially help Member States combat the economic and social effects of the pandemic and make the European economy more resilient to future shocks.

The RRM will have a financial envelope of 672.5 billion euros, of which 312.5 billion will be grants and the remaining 360 billion loans.

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