Support

National Contact Points provide professional support services and form an essential component of Horizon 2020 implementation. By spreading awareness, giving specialist advice, and providing on-the-ground guidance and training, NCPs ensure that the H2020 is known and readily accessible to all potential applicants.

National Contact Points for Horizon 2020 are acting nationally which means that they are established, operated and financed under the responsibility of the 28 EU Member States and Countries Associated to the programme. However NCPs are nominated as well in many Third Countries. Significantly, National Contact Points give personalised support on-site and in applicants' own languages.

The European Commision supports transnational networks of NCPs, as a means of stimulating European cooperation in research and innovation.

As the NCPs are national structures, the type and level of support offered may differ from country to country. In general, the structure of NCPs system in each country is based on the recommendation of the EC and reflects the structure of the Horizon 2020 programme.

The configurations of the NCP Networks include roles of NCP for Food security, sustainable agriculture and forestry, marine, maritime and inland water research and the bioeconomy (Societal Challenge 2 – SC2) and for Key Enabling Technologies – Biotechnology (KET-B).