News archive - [Link Announcement] COVID-19 Data Portal
The aim of the COVID-19 Data Portal is to facilitate data sharing and analysis, and to accelerate coronavirus research. An unprecedented number of scientific efforts are taking place worldwide in order to help combat the new coronavirus epidemic. One of the biggest challenges in this context is to share data and findings in a coordinated way, in order to understand the disease and to develop treatments and vaccines. To address this challenge, EMBL-EBI has set up the COVID-19 Data Portal, which will bring together relevant datasets submitted to EMBL-EBI and other major centres for biomedical data.
RAvsCorona Action Plan
On 7 April 2020, research and innovation Ministers from all 27 EU Member States supported 10 priority actions of the ERAvsCorona Action Plan. Building on the overall objectives and the tools of the European Research Area (ERA), the Action Plan covers short-term actions based on close coordination, cooperation, data sharing and joint funding efforts between the Commission and the Member States. It is centred around the key principles of the European Research Area, which will now be used to achieve towards their maximum effect to help researchers and EU Member States succeed in their fight against the coronavirus pandemic.
In addition to the European COVID-19 Data Platform launched today, the other actions focus on coordinating of funding, extending large EU-wide clinical trials, increasing support to innovative companies and supporting a pan-European Hackathon in the end of April to mobilise European innovators and the civil society. The joint plan listing priority actions will be regularly updated in a co-creative manner between the Commission services and national governments in the coming months.
Background
The EU is taking strong action to fight the pandemic. The Commission is also committing hundreds of millions of euros in research and innovation measures to develop vaccines, new treatments, diagnostic tests and medical systems to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Building on long-term investments made before the coronavirus outbreak (through FP7 & Horizon 2020), including on surveillance and preparedness, the EU has rapidly mobilised €48.2 million for 18 shortlisted research projects that are now working on rapid point-of-care diagnostic tests, new treatments, new vaccines as well as on epidemiology and modelling to improve preparedness and response to outbreaks. The projects involve 151 research teams from around the world.
In addition, the EU has mobilised public and private funding of up to €90 million through the Innovative Medicines Initiative, and offered up to €80 million of financial support to the innovative company CureVac to scale up development and production of a vaccine against the coronavirus.
Moreover, a recent European Innovation Council Accelerator call of €164 million has attracted a significant number of start-ups and SMEs with innovations that could also help tackle the pandemic. At the same time over 50 ongoing or completed European Research Council projects are contributing to the response to the coronavirus pandemic by providing insights from several different scientific fields (virology, epidemiology, immunology, public health, medical devices, social behaviour, crisis management).
Source: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_680
- European Union (EU 27)
- Cross-thematic/Interdisciplinary
Entry created by Admin WBC-RTI.info on April 27, 2020
Modified on April 27, 2020
