Widening in the Czech Republic: Strong Centres, Limited Convergence

Widening represents a significant share of the Czech Republic’s participation in the Horizon Europe programme, amounting to €95.4 million, or approximately 15.6% of the total financial contribution received from the programme. However, Czech participation in Widening is highly concentrated in a limited number of leading research centres and institutions. The largest share of funding is directed to the South Moravian Region and Prague, with the dominance of Brno and Prague even more pronounced at the city level.

In simplified terms, Widening can to a large extent be described as a “Brno-based programme” in the Czech context, as nearly two-fifths of all financial support is concentrated in a single city and region. This reflects the strong position of Brno’s universities and research organisations, as well as the region’s long-term development of its innovation ecosystem and support for institutional synergies.

The analysis further suggests that, in the Czech Republic, Widening functions more as a tool for strengthening already established centres of research excellence than as a mechanism for broader territorial convergence in research capacities. Financial support is primarily concentrated in the main national centres of excellence, while the participation of regional universities and other research organisations remains limited.

At the same time, it should be noted that in some regions Widening plays an important role largely because institutions based there receive only limited funding from other parts of the Horizon Europe programme. A high share of Widening funding does not therefore necessarily indicate strong and diversified participation in European research, but may instead reflect a narrower structure of participation in the Framework Programme. Moreover, many institutions outside the main centres still make less use of Widening instruments than their potential and the objectives of this priority would suggest.

From the perspective of institutional strategies, two main models of participation can be identified. For universities, Widening tends to serve as a tool for broader institutional transformation and strategic development, whereas for institutes of the Czech Academy of Sciences it functions more as a targeted instrument for strengthening specific research capacities.

KEY FINDINGS

• Widening accounts for a significant share of the Czech Republic’s participation in Horizon Europe – 15.6% of total funding,

• Financial support from Widening is highly concentrated in a limited number of institutions and locations, particularly Brno and Prague,

• The South Moravian Region, and especially the city of Brno, receives approximately 41% of all funding, making Widening to a large extent a “Brno-based programme”,

• Universities are the main beneficiaries of Widening funding, while institutes of the Czech Academy of Sciences also play an important role; other actors are involved to a lesser extent,

• In the Czech Republic, Widening functions more as a tool for strengthening existing national centres of excellence than as a mechanism for regional convergence,

• Regional universities and institutions outside the main centres participate less than would correspond to the objectives of Widening,

• In some regions, Widening accounts for a large share of their total Horizon Europe funding, which may also reflect lower participation in other parts of the programme,

• A strong presence of Widening funding does not necessarily indicate strong overall participation in European research.

Author: Daniel Frank, TC Prague,frank@tc.cz, 18 March 2026

The full analysis (in Czech only) is available here.