A total of 19 countries in Europe and the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean and the European Commission participate in PRIMA, a measure under Art. 185 TFEU. Participating countries include 11 EU Member States (Germany, France, Greece, Italy, Croatia, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Cyprus) and 8 Mediterranean partner countries (Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia, Turkey).

On the basis of a strategic research and innovation agenda, annual calls for proposals are presented in the priority areas of "Water Management", "Agricultural Systems" and "Value Chains in the Agri-Food Industry". For etailed information on the topics and the organisational structure visit the PRIMA website.

In order to provide German applicants with a legal basis for funding, a national PRIMA funding announcement was published on 9 February 2018, providing information on the legal framework and the eligible expenditure / costs. It covers the entire duration of the programme.

The total budget for PRIMA is just under € 500 million over a 10 year period, with the European Commission contributing € 220 million (from Horizon 2020) and the 19 participating countries € 274 million in total. The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) will contribute € 20 million over the entire ten year life span of the initiative. For scientists from Germany, the programme offers funding opportunities in all three of the aforementioned subject areas.

The BMBF has commissioned the International Office of the DLR Project Management Agency with the implementation of the funding programme.

If you have any questions regarding PRIMA, please get in touch with one of the contact persons (see contact box on the right).