CNR is the largest public research organisation in Italy. Founded 90 years ago, CNR employs nowadays more than 10.000 people, mostly  researchers and technicians, in more than 100 institutes, 12 research parks and 7 multidisciplinary national departments, with an annual budget of approximately 1 billion euro, from both public and private funding.

Its mission is:

• to perform research in its own Institutes
• to promote innovation and competitiveness of the industrial system and provide technologies and solutions to emerging public and private needs
• to promote the internationalization of the national research system
• to advise the Government and other bodies on strategic themes for the Country and the collectivity
• to contribute to the qualification of human resources.

The activities of the organization are divided into macro areas of interdisciplinary scientific and technological research, concerning several sectors: biotechnology, medicine, materials, environment and land, information and communications, advanced systems of production, judicial and socio-economic sciences, classical studies and arts.

CNR is distributed all over Italy through a network of institutes aiming at promoting a wide diffusion of its competences throughout the national territory and at facilitating contacts and cooperation with local firms and organizations.

CNR is the full member for Italy of 53 of the most important international scientific non-governmental organisations gathering together the worldwide scientific community. It is also a top level R&D performer in Europe, being the fourth  FP7 beneficiary.

APRE, the Agency for the Promotion of European Research, is a non-profit research organization.
For over twenty-five years, APRE, in close collaboration with the Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR), has provided its members as well as businesses, government agencies, and private individuals, information, support and assistance for participation in national and European programmes and collaborative initiatives (today, with particular reference to Horizon 2020) in the field of Research, Technological Development and Innovation (RTDI) and in the transfer of research results.

APRE was created in 1989 as a joint initiative of the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR) and some public and private bodies in order to meet the growing demand for information on European research programmes. First reality of its kind, APRE has been supporting the scientific and the industrial community for over 20 years in the path to Europe, and today, to the World, through offering information, training and assistance activities on the participation rules of the Framework Programme of the European Commission.

APRE  hosts the Italian National Contact Points for Horizon 2010

The National Contact Point (NCP) network is acknowledged by the European Commission and provides advice and assistance in all aspects of the EU RTDI programme. It is set up across all the Member States,  Associated States of the European Union and third countries.

The role of the NCP is extremely important in the dissemination of information and in the inter-sectoral and transnational assistance to the European projects proposer.