Horizon Europe WIDERA Widening 2026 Calls

WIDERA Widening (Widening Participation and Spreading Excellence) is a key component of the Horizon Europe research funding programme designed to bridge the research and innovation (R&I) gap between EU member states. On this page, you will find an overview of this destination and open calls in 2026.

What is WIDERA Widening?

WIDERA is a Horizon Europe programme that aims to reduce disparities in research and innovation performance across Europe. Its main goal is to strengthen the capacity and participation of underrepresented countries and institutions in European research and innovation projects through collaboration, networking, and excellence-building activities.

This part of the Horizon Europe Work Programme 2026-2027 addresses the area “Widening participation and strengthening the European Research Area” (WIDERA). The work programme includes two components: I: Widening participation and spreading excellence; II: Strengthening the European Research Area (ERA) by reforming and enhancing the European research and innovation system.

Under “Widening participation and spreading excellence” the 2026 call titles are: Teaming Synergies, Twinning Hop-On Facility, Research Management Facility, and ERA Fellowship. The Twinning call has now closed (deadline 9 April 2026), while the other calls have a deadline in September.

HORIZON-WIDERA-2026-01-WIDENING 01: Teaming Synergies

Deadline:  24 September 2026

Funding: €7M

Funding rate: 100% (CSA)

Total budget: €7M

Project duration: 5 years

Consortium: Coordinator must be based in a Widening country and must be or have been coordinator of a Horizon 2020 or Horizon Europe Teaming action. Coordinator needs to be based in the following countries:Albania / Armenia / Bosnia and Herzegovina / Bulgaria / Croatia / Cyprus / Czech Republic / Estonia / Faroe Islands / Georgia / Greece / Hungary / Kosovo / Latvia / Lithuania / Malta / Moldova / Montenegro / Morocco / North Macedonia / Poland / Portugal / Romania / Serbia / Slovakia / Slovenia / Tunisia / Türkiye / Ukraine.

Scope: Supports collaboration between existing and future Teaming Centres of Excellence to strengthen their long-term sustainability and impact at regional, national and European level. Activities can include strategic clustering, joint thematic collaboration, capacity building in knowledge valorisation, matchmaking with industry and investors, shared digital networking tools, conferences, and support for entrepreneurship, spin-offs and tech transfer.

Horizon Europe – HORIZON-WIDERA-2026-03-WIDENING 01: Hop-On Facility

Deadline:  24 September 2026

Funding: €200K –  €600K

Funding rate: 100% (RIA)

Total budget: €30M

Project duration: Not specified

Consortium: Proposal must be submitted by the coordinator of an eligible ongoing Horizon Europe Pillar II or EIC Pathfinder project and include one new beneficiary from a Widening country. At least 90% of the budget must go to the new Widening beneficiary.

Scope: Supports the integration of one new beneficiary from a Widening country into an ongoing Horizon Europe Pillar II or EIC Pathfinder project. The new partner must contribute a clearly defined task, work package or other visible activity, with a demonstrated research and innovation added value and a complementary role within the existing consortium.

Horizon Europe – HORIZON-WIDERA-2026-04-WIDENING 01: Research Management Facility

Deadline:  24 September 2026

Funding: €7M

Funding rate: 100% (CSA)

Total budget: €7M

Project duration: Not specified

Consortium: At least 3 independent legal entities from 3 different Member States or Associated Countries, of which 2 must be in Member States. Coordinator must be established in a Widening country: Albania / Armenia / Bosnia and Herzegovina / Bulgaria / Croatia / Cyprus / Czech Republic / Estonia / Faroe Islands / Georgia / Greece / Hungary / Kosovo / Latvia / Lithuania / Malta / Moldova / Montenegro / Morocco / North Macedonia / Poland / Portugal / Romania / Serbia / Slovakia / Slovenia / Tunisia / Türkiye / Ukraine.

Scope: Supports the creation of a facility that helps research-performing organisations in Widening countries assess their research management needs and develop tailored implementation plans to strengthen institutional and human capacities. Activities should include training, peer exchange, best-practice sharing, networking, and support aligned with the European Competence Framework for Research Managers and broader ERA priorities such as research integrity, open access, gender equality and knowledge valorisation.

Horizon Europe – HORIZON-WIDERA-2026 05-WIDENING-01: ERA Fellowships

Deadline:  9 September 2026

Funding: Depends on the number of person-months requested under MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships rules.

Projects funded: 50 projects are funded

Funding rate:

Total budget: €8M

Project duration: 12-24 months

Consortium: Joint application by the researcher and a host organisation in the academic or non-academic sector located in a Widening country: Albania / Armenia / Bosnia and Herzegovina / Bulgaria / Croatia / Cyprus / Czech Republic / Estonia / Faroe Islands / Georgia / Greece / Hungary / Kosovo / Latvia / Lithuania / Malta / Moldova / Montenegro / Morocco / North Macedonia / Poland / Portugal / Romania / Serbia / Slovakia / Slovenia / Tunisia / Türkiye / Ukraine.

Scope: Supports cross-border postdoctoral fellowships hosted by academic or non-academic organisations in Widening countries for researchers of any nationality. The action aims to strengthen researcher skills, mobility, networking and employability while also increasing the attractiveness, visibility and research capacity of host institutions in Widening countries. Fellowships may also include a secondment phase worldwide.

Read more about Horizon Europe WIDERA