Our cooperation with the donor states within the EEA and Norway Grants has clearly proven its worth, and I consider it highly beneficial for all parties involved that we have agreed to continue it,” said Deputy Minister of Finance Tomáš Holub on the occasion of signing the memoranda. The ceremonial signing in Prague’s Kunsthalle was attended on behalf of the donor states by Astrid Bergmål, State Secretary of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ágúst Már Ágústsson, Deputy Ambassador of Iceland, and Simon Biedermann, Ambassador of Liechtenstein. State Secretary Bergmål subsequently held bilateral talks with Czech Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Eduard Hulicius on further developing Czech-Norwegian relations in the coming year.

The signing of the documents officially launched the new programming period of the European Economic Area and Norway Grants in the Czech Republic (formally for the years 2021–2028), within which it will be possible to finance projects worth approximately CZK 5.5 billion. The memoranda set out the basic conditions for the implementation of the Grants and define the mutually agreed programme areas, their focus, and levels of support. They will expand practical cooperation in culture, research and innovation, support for the green transition, public health, education, and the inclusion and empowerment of Roma communities. Part of the funding will also be directed towards projects addressing challenges arising from the invasion of Ukraine, as well as to bilateral projects within the Bilateral Fund and to the Civil Society Fund.

The first calls for proposals are expected to be launched at the turn of 2026 and 2027. Over the next six months, details will be specified in cooperation with partners. “We now need to negotiate and define the specific focus of the programmes and specify the parameters of individual calls, through which successful applicants from both the public and private sectors will subsequently draw financial support for their projects,” Deputy Minister Holub explained, describing the work ahead. More information is available here.

The Czech Republic became a beneficiary of the EEA and Norway Grants upon its accession to the EU in 2004. Since then, it has received more than CZK 11 billion and has supported over 1,900 projects. During the previous, third programming period of the EEA and Norway Grants (2014–2021), a total of 848 beneficial projects were supported across various fields. Through the EEA and Norway Grants, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein contribute to reducing economic and social disparities within the EEA and to strengthening cooperation with 15 EU member states in Central, Eastern, and Southern Europe. This mechanism is enshrined in the Agreement on the European Economic Area, which grants the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) states – Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein – access to the EU’s single market.