Built on LEAP-RE programme implemented between 2020 and 2025, the LEAP-SE action will organize 2 co-funded calls steered by European and African funding organisations. The Calls Steering Committee (CSC), gathering all funding organisations involved in the action, will select the projects to be funded considering the specific national eligibility and funding rules of each funding agency (nationality of beneficiaries, TRL, nature of beneficiaries, thematic scope, etc.). It should be noted that, even if the overall scope of LEAP-SE enlarges to all sustainable energy fields matching the CCSE scope on energy (including the multiannual roadmaps of LEAP-RE and the enlarged to green hydrogen issues) it will still be possible for funding agencies to focus their specific action on their own priority lines, in term of thematic focus or on TRL level. LEAP-SE draws on the experience and partnership developed in LEAP-RE. This partnership is further strengthened by a much larger number of African organisations/countries participating to the co-funded calls and by previous collaboration between partners in other projects supporting the EU-Africa HLPD on STI, such as LEAP-Agri, ERAfrica, LEAP4FNSSA, RINEA, CAAST-Net Plus and FOSC. It will work with other European partnerships such as CETP and DUT. LEAP-SE will also ensure the follow-up and monitoring of the funded projects, the valorisation of the results and clustering activities will ensure a broad dissemination of projects outputs reaching a global coherence among funded projects and avoiding fragmentation. The high-level dialogue foreseen with policymakers and institutional stakeholders will ensure that LEAP-SE has access to the relevant instances to raise any policy or regulatory issue hindering the deployment of some innovative solutions.

The 4PRIMA Coordination and Support Action will create the bases and will develop a set of activities aimed at supporting the establishment of a long-term, well-structured and integrated partnership for research and innovation (R&I) on food systems and water resources, among countries from both sides of the Mediterranean Sea (“PRIMA Initiative”). In order to enable a sustainable development in this area, 4PRIMA will facilitate the establishment of favourable and stable conditions for a reinforced international cooperation on food systems and water research, based on a better coordination, collective ownership of R&I programmes and, consequently, clear and tangible mutual benefits. 4PRIMA will develop a Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA) and an associated implementation plan, as a result of an extensive participatory process that will target a critical mass of key players at international level and all relevant stakeholders of the food and water sectors. To achieve this main objective, 4PRIMA will take advantage of a wide portfolio of results and relationship generated in previous and on-going EU projects, as well as it will seek cooperation between EU and Mediterranean Partner Countries (MPCs), in coherence with the activities of the Strategic Forum for International Cooperation. Given the strategic relevance of an appropriate development and uptake of the SRIA to establish a long lasting partnership in the region, 4PRIMA science diplomacy actions will be essential to ensure the support to R&I policy dialogue addressing sensitive challenges between EU and MPCs. Moreover, in order to maximise its expected impact, 4PRIMA project will explore avenues for awareness raising and development of strategic alliances with key stakeholders, including EU, AC and MPCs countries that did not take part to the PRIMA joint programming process, with the goal to enlarge the participation to the “PRIMA Initiative”.

The general objective of LEAP4FNSSA is to establish a sustainable structure, or ‘Platform’, for the efficient and coherent implementation of the AU-EU Research and Innovation Partnership as described in the FNSSA Roadmap. Under the aegis of the HLPD and its Bureau, and by building upon related projects such as RINEA, CAAST-Net. Plus, ProIntensAfrica and LEAP-Agri, LEAP4FNSSA aims to achieve this overall objective through three specific objectives: - Increase the synergies and coherence between actors, research and innovation projects, initiatives and programmes, through the development of institutional alliances and clusters of projects; - Develop a learning environment and a large knowledge base, including monitoring and evaluation activities, creating communication and links between different initiatives to improve STI cooperation; - Establish a long term and sustainable governance and funding mechanism for the Platform. To reach these objectives, LEAP4FNSSA will build on a large consortium of experienc

Building on earlier experiences such as LEAP-Agri, Belmont Forum and JPI FACCE, the project will implement a range of joint activities, contributing to the creation of a strong and effective trans-national, European-African-Latin America and the Caribbean research and innovation network and the better coordination and synergising of national, international and EU research programmes relevant to food security under climate change evolution. The joint call will focus on regional food systems within a global perspective and addressing: - Assessing climate change-related risks for food value chains, including impacts on prices, international trade and food security, and resulting changes in consumer behaviours. The three dimensions of sustainability will be adressed: social-cultural, economic, and environmental (including climate change mitigation); - Improving resilience and reducing volatility in agri-food production and food markets to sustainably improve food security in the context of climatic variation; - Reducing food losses under climate change including through novel approaches to valorise side streams and reduce food waste. The first pillar of the proposal relates to the preparation and implementation of a joint call for proposals for collaborative research and innovation projects, funded by European, African and South American national research funding agencies, with additional support from the European Commission. In addition, the call will be co-funded by some Belmont Forum members. These countries does not want to participate to the EU project but will be surely, as Belmont forum, member participating to the call, funding their national teams without any top up from the European Commission. The projects selected through the call will focus on achieving goals of mutual benefit for Member States, Associated Countries and Africa and South America countries, based on a balanced and cooperative approach.