European Commission Launches “BE READY” Partnership to Strengthen Pandemic Preparedness Research in Europe

The European Commission has officially launched “BE READY”, a new European Partnership for pandemic preparedness under Horizon Europe. The initiative aims to strengthen the European Union’s capacity to anticipate, prevent and rapidly respond to epidemics and pandemics. An initial €120 million from the Horizon Europe budget has been allocated to support the partnership’s activities.

Advancing Research on Emerging and Re-emerging Pathogens

The BE READY Partnership focuses on advancing research on emerging and re-emerging pathogens and accelerating the development of:

• Diagnostics
• Therapeutics
• Vaccines

By aligning research priorities and reinforcing cross-border collaboration, the initiative strengthens Europe’s scientific excellence and long-term health resilience.

Key Pillars of the BE READY Partnership

The partnership is built around three core pillars:

1. Alignment of National Research Priorities

Participating countries will coordinate their national pandemic preparedness research strategies through a jointly agreed Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA).

2. Joint Transnational Calls

BE READY will fund multinational research projects through coordinated joint transnational calls, pooling national and European funding to accelerate innovation in diagnostics, treatments and vaccine development.

3. Integration of the Research Ecosystem

The partnership integrates all key components of the pandemic preparedness research ecosystem — from basic research to clinical development and regulatory interfaces — ensuring operational readiness both between epidemics and during health crises.

Background: Long-Term EU Investment in Pandemic Preparedness

The BE READY Partnership is coordinated by ANRS-MIE (France) and brings together 81 organisations from 27 countries. It was prepared between 2022 and 2025 through two consecutive Coordination and Support Actions (CSA) with a total budget of €3 million.

Since 2020, the European Union has invested more than €1.8 billion in pandemic preparedness research through the European research and innovation framework programme, including Horizon Europe.

Further information can be found here.

Opportunities for Bavarian Research and Innovation Stakeholders

For universities, research organisations, hospitals and innovative SMEs in Bavaria, BE READY offers strong opportunities to participate in transnational health research calls under Horizon Europe.

Dr. Mikhail Antonkin
Scientific Officer Health Research & Biotechnology
Phone: +49 911 50715-950
Email: antonkin@no-spam-pleasebayfor.org