EU Official Visits University of Debrecen

The Director for Administrative Capacity Building in South-East Europe in the European Commission's Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy Vittoria Alliata di Villafranca paid a visit to the University of Debrecen in eastern Hungary on Wednesday discussing pharmaceutical research at the university.

Vittoria Alliata Di Villafranca emphasized in a briefing following discussions with university leaders that she was greatly influenced by the work of the Center for Higher Education and Industrial Cooperation (FIEK) in Debrecen. Speaking about the country's only FIEK program in health, she noted that an EU-funded project based on collaboration between the university and pharmaceutical companies was created to develop and produce vaccines. He added that Hungary has significant traditions in the field of drug development and has great potential in the future.

The Director has described the industry as an area where the European Union is "keen" to invest. She emphasized that Hungary has been one of the major beneficiaries of the European Union's regional aid in recent years. Speaking about the EU financial cycle after 2021, she said that “the European Commission is calling for a concentration of financial resources in the future. I would like Hungary to spend at least 35% of these grants on innovation and competitiveness.”

University of Debrecen Rector Zoltán Szilvássy, pointed out that “the basic aim of the FIEK program is to develop a multi-player development center within the university in the pharmaceutical sector. Through this cooperation, the University intends to remain a partner with other players until the mass production of medicines and the launch of products. Under a HUF 8.3 billion project to the end of 2020, they have committed to develop two antibacterial vaccines, which will be produced in small-scale production.”