The European Cybersecurity Competence Centre (ECCC) provides a unique opportunity to define a vision for the EU investment in cybersecurity. The ECCC is in charge of developing and monitoring the implementation of the Strategic Agenda which is “a comprehensive and sustainable cybersecurity industrial, technology and research strategy which sets out strategic recommendations for the development and growth of the European cybersecurity industrial, technological and research sector and strategic priorities for the Competence Centre’s activities and is not binding with respect to decisions to be taken on the annual work programmes”.
The Strategic Agenda (‘Agenda‘) should set up goals to be achieved by investing in ambitious and specific projects that will “strengthen the EU leadership and strategic autonomy, support Union technological capacities and increase the global competitiveness of the Union’s cybersecurity industry” through the promotion of research, innovation and industrial development in the area of cybersecurity.
The Agenda’s goal is to create a unified and common vision to the EU investment in cybersecurity required to fulfil the objectives set in the EU Cybersecurity Strategy and in the ECCC Regulation 2021/887 (‘the Regulation’). By aligning the investment priorities of the EU and of the Member States, the Agenda contributes to achieving greater impact and provides an incentive for national investment in cybersecurity. The Agenda reflects a holistic view of cybersecurity investment priorities, incorporating the views from important groups of stakeholders and users, such as research and academia, the cybersecurity industry with a strong focus on SMEs and startups, public authorities or operators of essential and important infrastructures per the Network Information Security (NIS) 2 Directive.
The tasks will be carried out on the basis of relevant Union financial resources, namely identified as the Digital Europe Programme (DEP) and for joint actions Horizon Europe (HE) - the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation and contributions from Member States. The Agenda refers both to strategic and implementation tasks of the ECCC.