Planning grants for collaborations with small, smart countries; Singapore or Israel

A call for proposals within the Internationellt Samarbete

This is a summary. Read the entire text before applying.

Interest is increasing among Swedish actors in so-called small, smart countries. In order to remain competitive in Sweden, we must ally ourselves with other world-leading innovation nations. This effort aims to build bridges that lead to long-term strategic relationships with Singapore or Israel. We want to be able to support you who want to invest and collaborate with partners in one or both of these countries.

The call for proposals is aimed at Swedish companies and organisations. At least two Swedish actors must apply together. With this call for proposals we want to give Swedish actors the opportunity to, together with Singaporean or Israeli actors, plan the start-up and implementation of joint innovation projects as well as other in-depth innovation collaborations. The project may include travel to meet physically, market study, or investigation of other legal, business or practical conditions required to be able to initiate a collaboration.

Priority areas are:

• sustainable industry
• sustainable societies
• sustainable precision health
• sustainable food systems
• sustainable mobility
• digital transformation
• emerging innovations.

Detailed information about Vinnova's strategy in relation to these areas can be found on the website.

The support from Vinnova only applies to compensation for the Swedish the actors.

Vinnova wants to work for equal societal development by giving project partners with both women and men in key positions increased opportunities for development.

Vinnova can grant up to SEK 100,000 per project. The call for proposals runs during 2024 and 2025 with three readings per year.

The following dates apply to the call for proposals

Please note that the dates are preliminary. For current information, see further up the page in the calendar field.

Opening date: 1 December 2023

Reading of received applications:
February 1, 2024
June 1, 2024
1 October 2024
February 1, 2025
1 June 2025

Last application date: 1 October 2025
Project start at the earliest: 1 March 2024
Project start at the latest: 1 November 2025

With this effort, we want to contribute to more innovation collaborations and innovation exchanges between Swedish actors and actors in small, smart countries, in this case Singapore or Israel. Sweden is regularly ranked as one of the world's most innovative countries. To maintain this position, we must open up collaborations with other leading innovation nations. We believe in the motto that 1 + 1 > 2.

With this call for proposals we want to get more people to work together to develop their innovative capacity and create new solutions that contribute to innovation that makes a difference.

Priority areas are:

• sustainable industry
• sustainable societies
• sustainable precision health
• sustainable food systems
• sustainable mobility
• digital transformation
• emerging innovations.

In Inom Agenda 2030, Vinnova has particularly singled out climate and gender equality as two central sustainability perspectives to which our funded investments should contribute positively. All project financed by Vinnova are therefore expected to take special account of the climate and gender equality aspects.

One aspect that Vinnova follows up on and assesses is whether both women and men equally share in the contribution, participate in and have influence over the project.

Another aspect involves analyzing and deciding whether there are gender or gender aspects that are relevant in relation to the project's problem area, solutions and utilization. This question is mandatory for all applicant and can be found under the heading " Project tasks".

Read more about what our work for equal innovation means for those of you who seek funding from us

The call for proposals is aimed at Swedish companies and organisations. At least two Swedish actors must apply together. We would like to see the organization have a clear strategic effort towards Singapore or Israel and a clear added value from the collaboration.

Funding is only granted to Swedish organisations. Swedish organizations also mean foreign organizations that have a branch or place of business in Sweden. In addition, the costs in the project must be attributable to the branch's or establishment's activities.

All participating companies must:

• be able to demonstrate their capacity to implement the project and be able to finance their part of the project cost. The levels of public support applicable to companies are based on their size and turnover.
• be able to clearly describe a concrete added value of their participation in the project, their position in the value chain within the project and the future potential of the project result.

The project at large shall:

• also be able to demonstrate an obvious added value of the international cooperation between the selected parties from the two countries.
• present proposals for future project.
• contribute to the global sustainability goals.

Activities for which funding can be applied for

Vinnova finances planning grants for cooperation with Singapore or Israel.

Funding is provided in accordance with § 9 of Vinnova's regulation (2015:208) on state support for research and development and innovation and article 25 of the EU Commission's regulation no. 651/2014 (GBER). The project's activities must constitute a feasibility study.

Feasibility study is defined as:
Evaluation and analysis of the potential of a project aimed at supporting the decision-making process by objectively and rationally revealing the project's strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and risks as well as identifying the resources required to carry it out, and finally the prospects for the project to be a success. This refers to studies for project related to basic research, industrial research or experimental development.

Vinnova does not finance routine business development, customer processing, marketing or other ordinary business-related activities.

Eligible costs

Our funding takes place through funding. Funding for organizations that carry out economic activities is covered by rules on state support. The rules govern, among other things, which types of costs and what proportion of them may be covered by funding.

Parties that conduct non-economic activities are not granted state aid in accordance with regulation 2009:1101 with instruction for the Agency for innovation system.

The following costs are eligible:

• Personnel costs.
• Costs of equipment, land and buildings to the extent and during the time they are used for the project.
• Costs for, for example, consultants and licenses.
• Other direct costs.
• Indirect costs.

Read more about government support on our website
See our general terms and conditions for funding and eligible costs

Vinnova can grant up to SEK 100,000 per project.

Project begins immediately upon possible grant and lasts a maximum of one year.

Each individual participant is responsible for ensuring that funding received does not exceed the aid intensity permitted according to the rules for government support.

Below is a compilation of maximum permitted support levels depending on company size. The support levels refer to the maximum permitted support for eligible costs, per beneficiary, in percentage.

• Large companies 50 percent.
• Medium-sized companies 60 percent.
• Small businesses 70 percent.

Non-financial activities are not covered by the state aid rules, and funding can be provided with up to 100 percent of eligible costs ("non-state aid").

Conditions for us to assess proposal

We will only assess applications that meet the following formal eligibility requirements:

• Proposal was received at the latest at the specified reading time according to the website.
• Proposal must be written in Swedish or English.
• The project is carried out in collaboration between at least two Swedish parties such as companies, the public sector, academia or research organisations.
• All project parties must be legal entities. Companies must be active and have an organization number when proposal are submitted.
• No material beyond the mandatory appendices may be included.

What do we assess?

The assessment of proposal takes place in competition based on how well the proposal fulfills the call's aim and objective through the criteria potential, actors and implementation.

Potential

• The project's connection to the call's aim and objective.
• The project's potential to lead to an actual innovation collaboration between Sweden and Singapore or Israel.
• The level of innovation in the potential collaboration and its long-term objective.
• The project's potential to contribute positively to the global goals in Agenda 2030, as well as minimize the negative effects.

Actors

• The project constellation's composition and capacity to implement the project in dialogue with a relevant foreign party.
• How well the team's key personnel are composed with regard to gender distribution, as well as the distribution of power and influence between women and men.

Feasibility

• The credibility of the implementation plan.
• Possibilities and plans for future funding opportunities, for example via EU programmes, other government funding or private options.
• How well relevant sustainability perspectives have been integrated into the project plan.
  Relevant sustainability perspectives refer to Agenda 2030 with a particular focus on climate and gender equality.

How do we judge?

• All applications that meet the formal requirements are assessed by a composite group of Vinnova specially appointed evaluator.
• The applications are assessed in competition based on how well proposal meets the call's aim through the criteria potential, actors and implementation.
• Vinnova makes a decision and communicates this to applicant approximately 2-4 weeks after closing.

To apply for funding you fill in a web-based form in Vinnova's e-service for applications.

There you also upload the following attachments:

• Project description
  It must be written in the template that Vinnova provides on the call's website. It must not exceed 5 vertical A4 pages with font Times New Roman, 12 point size.
• CV for key personnel
  It must be written in the template that Vinnova provides on the call's website and may be a maximum of 1 vertical A4 page per key person. There is no limit to the number of CVs that may be attached per project.
• No material beyond the mandatory appendices may be included.

Keep in mind that it takes time to make a proposal.You can start filling in information, save and continue at a later time. When proposal is ready, you mark it as done. You can fully unlock proposal and make changes at any time, right up until 14:00 current reading date.

Mark proposal ready in good time before the call for proposals closes.

After 14:00 on the day of the reading, proposal is registered with Vinnova and a confirmation is sent by e-mail to you who are responsible for the user account, project manager and company signatory or head of department. It may take a few hours before you receive the email.

If you have not received a confirmation by e-mail within 24 hours of the reading time, please contact us.

When the application period has expired, proposal can only be completed upon request from us.