Council of the EU approves Digital Europe Programme

The Council of the EU has approved the Digital Europe Programme proposed by the European Commission with the goal to boost digital transformation across the EU by providing funding for the development and deployment of cutting-edge technology. The programme – with a budget of €7588 million – will run for the period 2021–2027 and will fund projects in five main areas: high-performance computing, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and trust, advanced digital skills, and deployment, best use of digital capacities, and interoperability. Digital Europe is complementary to several other programmes which also support digital transformation, such as Horizon Europe and the Connecting Europe Facility. Following its approval by the Council, the programme also needs to be adopted by the European Parliament.