News item | 24-02-2023 | 15:24
In 2021 and 2022, the government will announce which projects will receive money from the first and second rounds of the National Growth Fund. The National Growth Fund finances projects that contribute to sustainable economic growth in the Netherlands. Several projects had to further substantiate their proposal. This substantiation is now sufficient for five projects and the government has allocated a final sum of 397 million euros. Two of these projects will also receive a conditional contribution of a total of 80 million euros.
The cabinet is following the advice of the advisory committee and is allocating 135 million euros for the Water Technology Growth Plan. This investment from the Growth Fund is intended for the development and application of new technology for the availability of (clean) water.
The government is earmarking 47 million euros for the realization of a health data infrastructure for research and innovation. This contribution is in addition to the 22 million euros for Health-RI allocated to the project in the first round. This is about bundling and reusing Dutch knowledge in the field of health, not about a data infrastructure for patient care.
The DMI (formerly DEMS) project focuses on the construction of a digital infrastructure for sharing and using data for mobility innovation and smart, sustainable urbanisation. The government has allocated 85 million euros for this.
The advisory committee recommends to allocate 60 million euros for the Future-proof Living Environment project and to allocate 40 million euros conditionally. The government is adopting this advice. The project aims to promote innovations in the design, construction and engineering sector by removing barriers to innovation development. These are projects in the field of digitization, sustainable quay walls and facades, new renovation techniques, sustainable housing and biobased construction.
Finally, the NL2120 project will receive the green earning capacity of 70 million euros. In addition, the government has conditionally awarded 40 million euros to this project aimed at natural solutions in the field of land use and soil and water management.
What is the National Growth Fund?
With the National Growth Fund, the government is investing 20 billion euros between 2021 and 2025 in projects that ensure sustainable economic growth for the long term. All projects that receive money from the National Growth Fund are assessed by an independent advisory committee. The government then takes a decision on the basis of that advice. In some cases, the advisory committee asks for better substantiation of the proposal, after which the committee again issues advice to the cabinet.
Third round
In February 2023, entrepreneurs, knowledge institutions and ministries submitted a total of 47 project proposals for the third round of the National Growth Fund. The advisory committee is now considering the proposals. Money is made available after a positive recommendation from the committee and a decision from the cabinet. The government expects to take this decision in the summer of 2023.