The EEA and Norway Grants represent Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway’s commitment to stimulate more sustainable and inclusive growth in Europe, promote bilateral cooperation and tackle shared challenges together.
To channel the funding where it is needed the most, the Donor States and the European Union have agreed upon a set of priorities that align the Grants with the Europe 2020 strategy:
- 1. Innovation, Research, Education and Competitiveness
- 2. Social Inclusion, Youth Employment and Poverty Reduction
- 3. Environment, Energy, Climate Change and Low Carbon Economy
- 4. Culture, Civil Society, Good Governance, and Fundamental Rights and Freedoms
- 5. Justice and Home Affairs
In 2021, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway continued to deliver on their commitment through the EEA and Norway Grants. Following the agreements on the EEA and Norway Grants 2014-2021 with the EU in 2016, the three Donor States have signed cooperation agreements or Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) with 15 Beneficiary States.
On 21 December 2020, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway signed MoUs with Hungary. However, the Donor States did not reach an agreement with Hungary on the appointment of a Fund Operator to manage the funding for civil society. As a consequence, and as foreseen in the cooperation agreements, no programmes will be implemented in Hungary under the EEA and Norway Grants during the 2014-2021 funding period.
Thematic programmes are developed for each of the five priority sectors. By the end of 2021, all programmes are being implemented. Since 2017, a total of 484 calls for project proposals have been launched, 147 of these in 2021 alone.
