Projects in Poland

(Status 09.04.2024)

As part of the second Swiss Contribution to selected EU member states, the Swiss-Polish Cooperation Program (SPCP) contributes to reduction of the social and economic disparities in Poland, promotes bilateral cooperation and strengthens knowledge exchange. Switzerland provides until 2029 funding of over CHF 320 Mio. for two strategic programmes on urban development and research & innovation.

Development of Towns (DoT) Programme

The programme aims at contributing to the reduction of economic and social disparities within Poland by increasing the quality of life of citizens living in medium-sized towns. The total budget of the DoT Programme amounts to CHF 327.8 Mio CHF, including CHF 278.7 Mio. Swiss funding and CHF 49.1 Mio Polish co-financing.

139 pre-defined medium sized towns at risk of losing their socio-economic functions are eligible to apply for funding of their strategic development projects and access to advisory services and bilateral cooperation opportunities. Project proposals need inter alia to be based on city diagnostics, contribute to the cities’ strategic development objectives and be developed through a participatory approach. Projects need to be aligned with two or more of the five objectives of the Second Swiss Contribution:

• Promoting economic growth and social dialogue, reducing (youth) unemployment
• Managing migration and supporting integration. Increasing public safety and security
• Protecting the environment and the climate
• Strengthening social systems
• Civic engagement and transparency

The call for proposals was launched on March 7^th by the Ministry for Development Funds and Regional Policy acting as Programme Operator. By spring/summer 2025, approx. 15-20 of the best ranked towns will be invited to further refine their proposals. Implementation of approved projects will start in the beginning of 2026. Beneficiary towns will be supported throughout the entire programme duration by the Association of Polish Cities (APC) in partnership with Swiss experts to improve their institutional capacities and management practices. Furthermore, they will get access to best urban management practices from Switzerland and benefit from exchanges with Swiss peers.

Research and Innovation Programme

The Research and Innovation Programme aims at strengthening the research excellence and innovation capacities of Polish researchers and enterprises through collaborative projects with Swiss and other international partners. The total budget of the Research and Innovation Programme amounts to CHF 41.2 Mio CHF, including CHF 35 Mio. Swiss funding and CHF 6.2 Mio Polish co-financing.

The Research and Innovation Programme supports:

1. Bilateral applied research projects of Polish and Swiss researchers and enterprises
2. Multilateral basic research projects of researchers from Poland, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Romania and Switzerland

The first call for proposals for applied research projects is planned was launched on April 22^nd by the National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR) acting as Programme Operator. The call is supported by Innosuisse, the Swiss Innovation Agency as institutional partner of NCBR.

The call for multilateral academic projects (MAPS) was launched on April 2^nd by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) acting as Programme Operator. The call is supported by the National Science Centre (NCN) as institutional partner of SNSF.