The Irish Presidency of the Council of the European Union, has invited Maria da Graça Carvalho to participate in the Joint Programming Conference 2013. This will take place in Dublin - between 28 February and 1 March 2013 - with support from the European Commission.
In her quality as member of the ITRE committee of the European Parliament and rapporteur for the Specific Programme Implementing Horizon 2020, Maria da Graça Carvalho will give a keynote speech at the opening Session. Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn and Seán Sherlock T.D. - Irish Minister for Research and Innovation - will also participate in this session.
For Maria da Graça Carvalho, "national efforts to further research and Horizon 2020 should mutually reinforce each other. Joint programming initiatives represqent, for their part, a unique opportunity to strengthen the coordination of research programmes at EU and Member States level".
At a time when public budgets are under pressure, the importance of effective public investment in research, development and innovation is critical. Addressing fragmentation and reducing unwanted duplication of efforts by Member States and Associated Countries will be key to attaining this objective. Participation in Joint Programming activities by Member States and Associated Countries should ensure highly-coordinated public investment across Europe in the areas of focus of the specific Joint Programming Initiatives.
The Conference will bring together 500 delegates from more than 40 countries.