Publications

The framework for the 2021-2027 budget was developed by the European Commission and the Union, taking into account the economic and health realities of the 2020s. The budget addresses challenges such as staying at the forefront of emerging technologies, dealing with climate and health crises, and more. This paper will highlight the areas that the EU is prioritizing through its competitive funding programmes, Cohesion Policy, and its funding for third countries.

Register to view and download the entire White Paper, "EU Funding Instruments in the Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027," and additional resources.

The European Union (EU) offers a range of funding programmes with competitive funding mechanisms, primarily aimed at promoting innovation and addressing key societal challenges.

The EU has research and development-oriented programmes geared towards nuclear research, defence technology, and projects related to climate change and sustainable development. The EU offers funding for programmes that align with the objectives of the European Green Deal, and focus on promoting eco-innovative techniques and approaches, implementing EU legislation, and creating policies to support the development, monitoring, and enforcement of solutions in EU member states. Additionally, the EU supports programmes that aim to promote and defend European values, justice, equality, non-discrimination, citizens’ participation, and combat violence against women, girls, LGBTIQ, and disabled people.

In addition to competitive funding mechanisms, the EU also provides funding through the Cohesion Policy. In 2020, the European Commission proposed new regulations aimed at simplifying procedures and increasing the effectiveness of EU investments. Local and regional initiatives receive funding for investment in jobs and growth, European territorial cooperation, and support for territories most affected by the transition towards climate neutrality. This new policy aims to provide support to all regions and cities within the European Union and prioritizes investment in key areas that will drive growth and improve quality of life for citizens.

While Norway, Switzerland, and the UK are not members of the European Union, they are able to participate in specific EU funding programmes. Pre-accession countries, however, have access to a more specific and comprehensive range of EU funding compared to other countries. These funds and technical assistance are provided to support compliance with the EU’s laws, institutions, and policies across various areas, including rule of law, economic governance, human rights, infrastructure, and development. The allocation of funds is determined based on a country’s requirements and priorities, as well as its progress towards EU membership.

The European Union has developed a comprehensive framework for its 2021-2027 budget, which aims to address various economic, societal and health challenges. Overall, the EU’s funding initiatives reflect its commitment to promoting innovation, addressing societal challenges, and supporting economic growth and development.

Register to view and download the entire White Paper, "EU Funding Instruments in the Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027," and additional resources.

Understanding how a nation or region organises and prioritises its grant funding provides insight not just into where the money is going, but also how that nation sees itself moving forward – domestically as well as in relation to its neighbours and beyond. It is at the same time revealing of the needs and gaps the country is looking to address and a declaration of its aspirations for the future. Those are the elements we’ve worked to capture in this first-of-its-kind journey through the landscape of grant funding around the world.

Register to view and download the entire White Paper, "The Global Funding Landscape 2023-2025," and additional resources. 

This project began with what seemed like the simplest of questions - How much grant funding is available around the world?

Since 2020, dozens of countries have cobbled together large pools of reactionary funds to the COVID-19 health crisis, while shoring up additional stimulus packages to keep their economies afloat until life ‘returned to normal.’ Many entities have tracked the value and efficacy of these 
short-term funding streams over the last two years, but few have broadened their scope to include the entire landscape of the world’s grant ecosystem. This lack of information at a granular-level is the result of two primary hurdles: 

1. A large variance in grant funding approaches within and across countries makes quick data analysis difficult. A single national government takes multiple approaches in how they distribute funding - whether it be via grants, loans, incentives, rebates, tax credits or other alternative 
mechanisms. The complexity grows dramatically when you look downstream at state, province, or prefecture funding activities – and then again when you start to compare information across countries and continents with wideranging systems of government and economic practices. These factors can make even the basic ingredients of a global grants analysis difficult, such as defining a grant (more on that in the methodology section). A true global analysis of grant funding requires the development of common terminology that recognises the diversity of the 
funding landscape in each country, while allowing for side-by-side comparisons of the results. 

2. While there are many firms that provide grants intelligence services, they tend to be localised resources. An analysis like the one provided in this document requires a firm with extensive competency in grants and a global presence. And because Grants Office is uniquely positioned to undertake this endeavor - providing grants intelligence across six continents supported by staff and offices in New York, London, Amsterdam, Singapore, and Australia – we have taken up the challenge. 

Grants Office began this analysis with purpose and passion. More than just answering a simple question about how much grant money is available, our mission became to project the global grants landscape through 2025.

Register to view and download the entire White Paper, "The Global Funding Landscape 2023-2025," and additional resources. 

The global pandemic created a unique opportunity for cybercriminals to expand their activities - particularly by exploiting vulnerable individuals who transitioned from work at the office to work at their home overnight. Two years later, these phishing attempts and attacks on video services continue, as many organisations still struggle to provide a ‘cyber-safe’ remote-work environment for their employees. As the world emerges from the COVID-19 crisis and sets its eyes on the future of work, it is clear that our new reliance on digital infrastructure requires us to change the way we think and interact with the ever-growing list cybersecurity threats across the globe

Register to view and download the entire White Paper, "Global Cybersecurity Funding Trends," and additional resources.

The consequences of cybercrime are predicted to cost public and private sector organizations more than $10.5 trillion USD per year by 2025. This is up from $3 trillion USD in 2012, and $6 trillion USD in 2021. In order to avoid such threats to their operations, organisations are expected to increase their annual budget allocations to prevention solutions – estimating by some to create a 15% increase in profits for the cybersecurity sector (McKinsey and Company). According to the Cybersecurity Market Report, spending on cybersecurity products and services is estimated to reach $1.75 trillion USD by 2025. By comparison, the 2004 global cybersecurity 
market was worth only $3.5 billion USD.

When these investments are examined at the level of a singular organisation, additional trends begin to emerge. Large private sector businesses allocate 3-6% of their total budget towards cybersecurity solutions, according to (McKinsey and Company). Smaller private organisations and public institutions are not capable of spending tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars on cybersecurity measures, skewing more heavily towards the use of on-premise tools, older software, and existing IT staff. What’s more, many small organisations include cybersecurity as part of their overall security budget – which encompasses everything from guards checking IDs at the front gates and installing barricades to implementing network intrusion detection systems. This lack of budget year-over-year forces these organisations to pick and choose which measures they are able to implement and which they allow to lapse. 

When cybersecurity measures fall victim to budget cuts, public and private sector organisations turn to alternate sources of funding, such as grants, to implement their much-needed practices.

Register to view and download the entire White Paper, "Global Cybersecurity Funding Trends," and additional resources.