Ashgabat, Turkmenistan – On 18 November 2025, a roundtable titled “Opportunities for Strengthening Turkmenistan’s Participation in Horizon Europe” was held at the International University of Humanities and Development. The event was organised by the European Union-funded SECCA project with the support of the Ministry of Education of Turkmenistan. The event brought together representatives of the Ministry of Education, national contact points (NCPs) for the programme, international experts of the SECCA project, and leading universities of the country.

Since May 2024, SECCA has been actively supporting Central Asian countries in strengthening their participation in the EU’s Horizon Europe programme, including the development of NCP networks, the creation of a “Cooperation Profile” to facilitate the search for partners in the EU, and the organisation of information events dedicated to the programme’s Cluster 5 on climate, energy, and mobility.

In Turkmenistan, in particular, the project organised two international conferences on opportunities for the country’s participation in the programme. As a result of the second conference, held in May 2025, a database of Central Asian research institutes with the potential to participate in Cluster 5 calls was created. This database was transferred to GREENET, the international network of NCPs for Cluster 5, and disseminated among its members. Given that the new Cluster 5 Work Programme, published in September 2025, explicitly encourages cooperation with Central Asian countries, this resource will contribute to a more effective search for partners and the development of new partnerships.

Thus, at the roundtable, participants discussed the results achieved and further actions to ensure the sustainability of these results and to expand Turkmenistan’s participation in Horizon Europe. The event became an important step toward strengthening international scientific cooperation and increasing Turkmenistan’s engagement in international research initiatives.