1. Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area

2. in water scarcity, agriculture, food security
Mission
To achieve, support and promote integration, alignment and joint implementation
of R&I initiatives under a common research and innovation strategy to address the diverse challenges
in water scarcity, agriculture, food security

3. PRIMA Main Features
An Article 185 initiative as the most suitable instrument to tackle global challenges of the Med region
Long-term commitment and orientation;
Avoiding fragmentation and duplications in R&I;
Focused on Research, Innovation and Adoption of solutions;
Definition of a common and MED-wide Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda;
Institutional relationships with MED stakeholders (end users, communities, enterprises, governments)

4. PRIMA expected impacts
Economic Impacts
Social Impacts
Environmental Impacts
Increase in production and efficiency;
Access to new markets;
Greater funding options (InnovFin programme);
Large-scale aggregate economic impacts.
Political stabiliy and reduced migration.
Biodiversiy consevation;
Sustainable farming practices.

5. PRIMA currently count on the participation of 19 Euro-Mediterranean countries, including:
11 EU-countries: Cyprus, Croatia, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain
3 associated counties: Israel, Tunisia, Turkey
5 non-EU countries: Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco

6. 19 PSs members of Foundation
PRIMA - IS (Implementation Structure)
Foundation
Responsible for implementing PRIMA efficiently for receiving, allocating and monitoring the EU and PS financial contributions and for ensuring that all necessary actions are undertaken to achieve the objectives of PRIMA
PRIMA Foundation in Barcelona, independent private entity
based on Spanish law
established on 19th June 2017
PRIMA operates as an independent legal private entity
19 PSs members of Foundation
Financial contribution
€ 274,000 PSs
€ EU

7. Three thematic areas

8. Work Plan 2018 Section 1: Section 2: Section 3:
Open and competitive calls organised, managed and funded by PRIMA-IS (EU funds)
Section 2:
Open and competitive calls for proposals organised by PRIMA-IS and funded by the national funding bodies of PS
Section 3:
Activities and calls organised, managed and funded by the PS.
Activities under the national programmes of the Participating States (PSIAs)
Activities organised and funded by PS supporting PRIMA programme implementation

10. Thematic Area 1

11. Thematic Area 2

12. Thematic Area 3
Section 1
Section 2

13. Section 1 (RIA and IA calls)
Total budget:
6 M€/ per topic

14. Section 1 – Tentative schedule

15. Section 2 (only RIA calls)
Total budget:
≈ 30M€

16. Section 2 – Tentative schedule

17. Rules of participation section 1 and 2
The minimum number of participants is three. Consortia must be composed by at least three independent legal entities established in three different countries considered to be PRIMA Participating States, of which:
At least one established in a Member State or Associated Country to Horizon 2020:
Croatia, Cyprus, France, Italy, Germany, Greece, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain
At least one established in a country bordering the Mediterrean sea :
Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia, Turkey , Israel.
*international agreement

18. Type of Projects expected
Section 1
Section 2
Specific projects to answer to the 3 specific calls (3 specific panels)
Project around 2 M€
Projects can be cross cutting between topics (a unique panel)
Budget according to the countries / funding bodies involved in the Project (national regulations)
Projects are :
Expected to propose solutions to existing problems .
Encouraged to involved as much as possible a diversity of actors (SMEs, NGOs, Farmers, extension services….) especially for Innovation Actions
Encourage to promote mobility and training
Encourage to integrate new technologies

19. Evaluation Criteria CRITERIA H2020 for both section 1 and 2:
EXCELLENCE / 5 points
IMPACT / 5 points
QUALITY AND EFFICIENTY OF THE IMPLEMENTATION (Only for step 2) / 5 points
For IA the criteria “impact” has a weight of 1.5
Thresholds:
Section 1 -
Step 1: 4 points for each criteria
Step 2: 3 points for each criteria and at least 10/15 in total
Section 2 -
Step 1: 3.5 points for each criteria

20. 2018 call

21. SECTION 1
Topic 1
Water reuse and water desalination for agricultural and food production
Challenge: Fresh water for agriculture and food processing industries is not enough to cover the current demand  provide end-users with new more economically feasible water treatment technologies.
Expected impact:
Increasing the quantity, quality and safety of non-conventional water use for agriculture and food processing
Increasing the efficiency of water management systems with particular regard to energy and water smart infrastructures
Decreasing the cost of treating wastewater and, particularly, desalination by using more energy-efficient processes
Obtaining socio-economic, environmental (soil conservation in particular) and technical information to influence Mediterranean countries policies in terms of wastewater use
Deriving new solutions for brine disposal considering a holistic approach for desalination water.
RIA

22. SECTION 1
Topic 2
Improving the sustainability of Mediterranean agro-ecosystems
Challenge: Develop Mediterranean innovative cropping and livestock or farming systems systems  food production stability  ensuring a production of high quality agricultural outputs.
End-Users, MMA
Expected impact:
Develop and propose new sustainable production systems by reducing negative impacts on the environment while increasing yields.
A more appropriate use of lands
Integration of ecological, agronomical and socio-economic knowledge to design and assess efficient productive systems based on agroecological concepts
RIA

23. SECTION 1
Topic 3
Implementing innovation in Mediterranean Agri-food chains by small holders and SMEs.
Challenge: Adoption of technological and organizational innovations by smallholders and SMEs is one of the major challenge for Mediterranean economies and societies.
Scope:
Address food production and distribution in a changing social, economic and environmental scenarios.
Expected impact:
Deployment of wider, faster and profitable innovative solutions by smallholders and SMEs, overcoming the barriers to market uptake.
Strengthen the food processing sector in line with Mediterranean values
Create opportunities for growth, diversification and job creation particularly for smallholders and agro-food SMEs.
Reduce the negative impacts of food value chains on the environment with particular reference to water. IA

24. SECTION 2 TOPIC 2.1.1 WATER RESOURCES AVAILABILITY AND QUALITY
WITHIN CATCHMENTS AND AQUIFERS
Challenge: Water management models that addresses the broad impacts of global changes on hydrological and hydraulic balance at catchment and aquifer level.
Scope:
Quantitative analyses on ecosystem services require an in-depth understanding of their underlying processes.
There is a need to understand the hydrological processes for the assessment, management and use of floodwaters.
Expected impact:
Development of new modelling routines for determining the basic components of the water cycle, including economic, social and technical and for forecasting droughts
Improvement of knowledge about pollution sources and processes naturally attenuating in order to better assess water management policies and the impact of anthropogenic activities.
New techniques and governance models for artificial recharge of aquifers Ground-water surface-water monitoring and modelling
A reduction in the risk of saline intrusion and improved management of salt accumulation in underground water bodies.

25. SECTION 2 TOPIC 2.1.2 Sustainable, integrated water management
Challenge: Recognizing the water-energy-food synergies and balancing the potential trade-offs between water and energy use efficiency is required.
Scope:
Improve water governance taking into consideration both the socio-economic context and the meteo-climatic trends of the Mediterranean basin,
Expected impact:
Development of innovative tools and decision support systems for planning and adaptation to global change
Development of new modelling routines for determining the basic components of the water cycle
Implementation of monitoring and forecasting systems to support the water management under scarce conditions
Development of innovative approaches for the proper management of water infrastructures
Protection of the quality of water resources for agriculture, livestock and aquaculture and the ecosystem functioning

26. SECTION 2 TOPIC 2.1.3 Irrigation technologies and practices
Challenge: improve irrigation water productivity while minimizing the potential environmental risks associated with irrigation.
Scope:
More research and technology transfer is needed to improve water use efficiency at the farm and irrigation district level.
Expected impact:
Improving on-farm water use efficiency while maintaining crop productivity, quality and safety, and soil fertility
Upscaling the on-farm water use efficiency gain to the irrigation district level
To demonstrate irrigation scheduling models and tools to be developed in collaboration with private companies, manly SMEs.
To determine irrigation protocols tailored to low-quality water availability and, particularly, high salinity water, and to new climate-proof crops with reduced water requirements
To reduce contamination of aquifers, mainly by nitrates, thanks to the improved fertigation scheduling protocols

27. SECTION 2 TOPIC 2.2.1: ADAPTATION OF AGRICULTURE TO CLIMATE CHANGE
Specific Challenge: Adapting to climate change is therefore a common necessity for Mediterranean agriculture.
Scope :
Focus should be on biological adaptation mechanisms and genotype-environment-management interactions, as well as on valorising local genotypes taking advantage of spontaneous and domesticated biodiversity in the Mediterranean agricultural and animal husbandry systems.
Expected Impact
Development and profiling of new varieties / hybrids /breeds that are tolerant/resistant/resilient to biotic and abiotic stresses, productive in Mediterranean climate conditions

28. SECTION 2
TOPIC 2.2.2: PREVENTING and CONTROLLING EMERGENCE OF ANIMAL AND PLANT DISEASES
Specific Challenge: Plant and animal diseases and pests cause significant decreases in yield, quality and safety of Mediterranean crops, in particular fruit, cereal and vegetables and of animal productions, with strong economic and social consequences.
Scope :
Need for a better understanding of the ecology and physiology of pests and pathogens, and the interactions between hosts, pests and pathogens, and other organisms at multiple trophic levels.
*Social sciences, stakeholders of the human and animal health sectors, Euro-Mediterranean network for animal health (REMESA)
Expected Impact
Improvement of understanding of diseases/infestations invasions and outbreaks
Improvement of understanding and control of the effects of climate change and the associated risks for plant and animal health
Provision of integrated pest and diseases control/management solutions, for plants and animal systems;
Implementation of novel tools including the development of biocontrol agents, exploitation of natural defences, secondary metabolites and trophic interactions, etc.

29. SECTION 2
TOPIC 2.2.3: DEVELOPING FARMING SYSTEMS ABLE TO GENERATE INCOME, TO CREATE EMPLOYMENT AND TO CONTRIBUTE TO A BALANCED TERRITORIAL DEVELOPMENT
Specific Challenge: enhance the potential benefits of agriculture in terms of employment and poverty alleviation.
Scope: developing:
Multidisciplinary approaches for developing an integrated assessment and design of profitable and sustainable farming systems
Tools that can assist farmers to improve the management of their farms in a risky and uncertain environment
Integrating farmers’ knowledge in the innovation process
Territorial approaches that analyse the diversity and spatial organization of farming systems and their environmental and social conditions in the Mediterranean
Expected Impacts:
Design of public policies aimed at enhancing adoption of innovation suited to improve farmers’ livelihoods
Implementation of tools that can assist farmers to improve farm management
Delivery of participatory approaches for integrating farmers’ knowledge in the innovation process.
Understanding of the technical, spatial and organizational dynamics of Mediterranean production systems

30. SECTION 2
TOPIC 2.3.1: VALORISING FOOD PRODUCTS FROM TRADITIONAL MEDITERRANEAN DIET
Challenge: Better nutritional quality of food products, stable nutrient-dense ingredients, and new products
Scope:
Research actions should encompass the implementation of databases, covering different Mediterranean areas, focused on the content of health-promoting bioactive compounds in fresh and traditional food products, also in relation with the culinary traditions.
Expected Impacts:
Increased knowledge about the raw materials and the Mediterranean biodiversity to promote consumption of local food products with the highest nutritional quality
Increased knowledge on traceability, geo-referencing and certification of food
Inspire the development of new products, bioactive extracts and molecules, and functional ingredients
The development of new objective measurement tools to demonstrate quality and authenticity of raw materials and products;

31. SECTION 2 TOPIC 2.3.2: FOOD SAFETY IN LOCAL FOOD CHAINS
Challenge: Food safety is today closely linked to innovation and sustainability in production systems, and investing in safety means reducing the risks of a sudden loss of trust for accidental events.
Scope:
guarantee food safety in the Mediterranean environment while preserving the cultural heritage, along the entire food chain.
hazards prediction and risk assessment related to new technologies, chemical and microbial food contamination.
Expected Impacts:
development of models for hazards prediction and risk assessment extended to food chemical and microbiology contamination, storage and transportation conditions
new systems and devices for food-safety monitoring along the entire food chain and best practices for all the food value chain phases, including post-sales
development of innovative packaging for better controlling product deterioration, reducing the use of preservatives, the microbiological risk and/or extending the shelf-life, and reducing food waste and losses

32. SECTION 2
TOPIC 2.3.3: IMPLICATIONS OF DIETARY SHIFTS AND SUSTAINABLE DIETS FOR THE MED POPULATIONS AND FOOD INDUSTRY
Challenge: The emergence of diet- and lifestyle-related chronic diseases is massive in the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean.
Scope :
Strengthening of the link between the Mediterranean diet and health benefits through the identification of evident positive effects exerted by different active substances contained in local products
Expected Impacts :
provision of affordable and adequate dietary patterns for Mediterranean population groups with specific nutritional requirements
translation of knowledge advancements on the Mediterranean diet into public food and health policies, strategies and guidelines for consumers, industry and for policy makers
better understanding of economic, social , and health impacts of nutritional transitions, determinants of consumers behaviors, diets of populations and households