The EU's scientific and technical research committee (CREST) and the European Research Advisory Board (EURAB) have published two reports on recommendations for enhancing research and innovation. The EU's scientific and technical research committee (CREST) has published a set of 14 recommendations to help Member States and Europe's regions to better exploit the synergies between the EU's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) and Structural Funds to boost research and development (R&D) performance. In addition, the EURAB has called for measures to increase the use of Structural Funds for enhancing research and innovation.

The EU's scientific and technical research committee (CREST) and the European Research Advisory Board (EURAB) have published two reports on recommendations for enhancing research and innovation. The CREST has published a report, which includes guidelines that provide 14 recommendations in six priority domains, namely the development of R&D strategies, the R&D base, research excellence, international cooperation, the exploitation of R&D results and the improvement of communication. On the other hand, the European Research Advisory Board (EURAB) has published another report which called for measures to increase the use of Structural Funds for enhancing research and innovation.

The report of EU's scientific and technical research committee (CREST) points out that the two instruments, the Structural Funds (SF) for cohesion policy and Seventh Framework Programme of the EU (FP7) for research policy, share the common goal of creating more jobs and growth. Additionally, as the new programming period for the two funding schemes will run for the same period, linking the two will also be made easier. Furthermore, the voluntary guidelines emphasise the role Member States and Europe's regions should play in defining and implementing their R&D strategies according to the strengths and needs of their territory.

On the other hand, the report of European Research Advisory Board (EURAB) makes nine recommendations on how to use the Structural Funds to boost research and innovation. Among the recommendations, there is a call for incentives to encourage a greater take-up of research and innovation activity through the Structural Funds, such as differential grant rates, or the establishment of awards for regions that demonstrate investment in research and innovation through the Structural Funds.

According to this report, Structural Funds could stimulate research and innovation activity by increasing a region's capacity for undertaking research through investment in infrastructure or the workforce. It stresses that the additional funding could also be used to support the commercialisation of research results, to strengthen governance arrangements for research and innovation, and to introduce an international dimension to a region's activities by supporting access to trans-national programmes such as FP7.