“The National Coordination Centre is a new area of competence of the Ministry of National Defence meant to foster the cooperation between Lithuanian and European Union cybersecurity industries and scientific and public sectors, the emergence of innovative products and services, and to provide financing for priority areas. This new activity is a guarantee of the growth of cybersecurity ecosystem in Lithuania,” says Vice Minister of National Defence Margiris Abukevičius.
The National Coordination Centre is an information and coordination hub for the cybersecurity community which will provide cybersecurity expertise, contribute to cybersecurity education programme dissemination in Lithuania implementation of the EU strategic documents in the area of cybersecurity, and building a EU cybersecurity community.
The National Coordination Centre is established in Lithuania on the basis of the regulation by the European Parliament and the European Council which has come into force this year and stipulates establishment of such centers across all 27 member states. Along with the newly established agency in Bucharest (the European Cybersecurity Industrial, Technology and Research Competence Centre), the new network will aim to build competitiveness of the EU cybersecurity industry by financing cybersecurity research and innovation, cybersecurity capability enhancement, and dissemination of the most recent cybersecurity products.
The Ministry of National Defence will initiate calls for proposals for financing cybersecurity projects as of 2023, small and medium-sized companies and start-up will be prioritized. It will be a collaborative activity with the Central Project Management Agency.
The calls for proposals subject matter is planned to align with EU strategic documents and the developed cybersecurity development programme advancement measures. The funds will be allotted from appropriations of the Ministry of National Defence and the Digital Europe ¬– Cybersecurity Work Programme 2021–2022.
In total, up to EUR 2 million is expected to be allotted to the cybersecurity community of Lithuania over the next two years.
