The executive approved the creation of the National Committee for Joining the Seventh Framework Program for research and technological development (FP7), which is the European Union s chief instrument for funding research over the period 2007 to 2013. FP7 brings together all research-related EU initiatives under a common roof and groups 27 states, the president of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova Gheorghe Duca said, quoted by Info-Prim Neo. The initiative to join this scientific-technological program belongs to the Academy of Sciences. The association memorandum was signed last year. The National Committee consists of representatives of the Academy of Sciences, ministries and other organizations that have research and innovation subdivisions in their composition. Its creation will enable to coordinate the formulation of documents and other activities in the association process, Gheorghe Duca said. “If Moldova joints this program, it will become part of the European research space. This will allow it to participate in all the FP7 competitions as partner with equal rights, to benefit from financing, to initiate scientific projects and to create European consortiums for implementing them. We will be also able to delegate observers to all the administration committees and working groups of the FP7 and will know the latest information,” Gheorghe Duca said. Moldova could also take part in such well-known European programs as Eurostar and the Joint Technology Initiatives, which promotes public-private partnerships in implementing research and innovation projects, Duca said.