National Research Programmes
Through National Research Programmes (NRPs), the Confederation supports research projects that address societal questions and challenges of national importance. The Federal Council periodically decides on the topics and budget allocation of NRPs. Since 1974, 84 NRPs have been launched covering a wide range of topics.
Goal and thematic focus of NRPs
NRPs are designed to mobilise part of the research community around a specific thematic focus. The topics must be socially, economically and politically relevant to Switzerland. The four most recent NRPs, launched in 2023, address the ‘built environment’ (NRP 81), ecosystem services (NRP 82), gender medicine and health (NRP 83) and innovation in plant breeding (NRP 84). Over the past fifty years in both ongoing and completed NRPs, researchers have tackled key technical and social issues on topics such as land use, nanomaterials, gender equality and the final stages of life.
Funding
NRPs are funded within the framework of the Federal Council Dispatch on the Promotion of Education, Research and Innovation. They generally run for three to five years and have a budget of between CHF 10 and 20 million.
Process of selecting NRP topics
Although the Federal Council ultimately decides which topics will be covered by NRPs, in most cases they are chosen in a bottom-up process. The list of selected topics for each round is the result of a consultation with interested parties. Each NRP launch goes through the following process:
- Preliminary clarification
The process begins with the issuance of a Federal Council decree. SERI then announces the opening of a new NRP selection round in which interested parties are asked to submit NRP topic proposals. - Programme preparation
SERI makes a preliminary selection from the submitted topics. This selection then gives rise to NRP proposals, which are then submitted to the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) for a feasibility study. If the outcome is positive, the SNSF prepares a concept for each NRP and submits these to SERI for consideration. - NRP launch
Following consultation with federal offices, SERI submits the selected NRP concepts to the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research (EAER). The EAER then asks the Federal Council to decide whether to implement the NRPs in question. Once the Federal Council has approved the topic and budget of a given NRP, it is then launched. - Project selection and research phase
The SNSF is responsible for implementing the NRPs launched by the Federal Council. It issues calls for proposals, reviews the applications submitted and decides on project funding. The research phase typically lasts between three and five years. - Completion
Once the research phase of a given NRP has been completed, the SNSF informs the Federal Council of the results. An NRP is officially concluded once the Federal Council has taken note of the research findings and the insights gained through the programme.
Current National Research Programmes (as of 15 May 2025)
- NRP 84 “Plant Breeding Innovation”
- NRP 83 “Gender Medicine and Health”
- NRP 82 “Promoting Biodiversity and Sustainable Ecosystem Services”
- NRP 81 “Baukultur”
- NRP 80 “Covid-19 in Society”
- NRP 79 “Advancing 3R”
- NRP 77 “Digital Transformation”
Concluded National Research Programmes
- NRP 78 “Covid-19”
- NRP 76 “Welfare and Coercion ‒ Past, Present, Future”
- NRP 75 “Big Data”
- NRP 74 “Smarter Health Care”
- NRP 73 “Sustainable Economy”
- NRP 72 “Antimicrobial Resistance”
- NRP 71 “Managing Energy Consumption”
- NRP 70 “Energy Turnaround”
- NRP 69 “Healthy Nutrition and Sustainable Food Production”
- NRP 68 “Sustainable use of soil as a resource”
- NRP 67 “End of Life”
- NRP 66 “Resource Wood”
- NRP 65 “New Urban Quality”
- NRP 64 “Opportunities and Risks of Nanomaterials”
- NRP 63 “Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine”
- NRP 62 “Smart Materials”
- NRP 61 “Sustainable Water Management”
- NRP 60 “Gender Equality”
- NRP 59 “Benefits and Risks of the Deliberate Release of Genetically Modified Plants”
- NRP 58 “Religions, the State and society”
- NRP 57 “Non-Ionising Radiation – Health and Environment”
- NRP 56 “Language Diversity and Linguistic Competence in Switzerland”
- NRP 54 “Sustainable Development of the Built Environment”
- NRP 53 “Musculoskeletal Health – Chronic Pain”
- NRP 52 “Childhood, Youth and Intergenerational Relationships in a Changing Society”
- NRP 51 “Social Integration und Social Exclusion”
- NRP 50 “Endocrine Disruptors: Relevance to Humans, Animals and Ecosystems”
- NRP 49 “Antibiotic resistance”
- NRP 48 “Landscapes and Habitats of the Alps”
- NRP 47 “Supramolecular Functional Materials”
- NRP 46 “Implants and Transplants”
- NRP 45 “Future Problems of the Welfare State”
- NRP 43 “Formation and Employment”
- NRP 42+ “Relations between Switzerland and South Africa”
- NRP 42 “Foreign Policy”
- NRP 41 “Transport and Environment: Interactions Switzerland / Europe”
- NRP 40+ “Right-wing Extremism – Causes and Counter-measures”
- NRP 40 “Violence in Daily Life and Organized Crime”
- NRP 39 “Migration and Intercultural Relations”
- NRP 38+ “Pathogenesis of novel forms of infectious diseases”
- NRP 38 “Diseases of the Nervous System”
- NRP 37 “Somatic Gene Therapy”
- NRP 36 “Nanosciences”
- NRP 35 “Social and Legal Status of Women – Ways to Equality”
- NRP 34 “Complementary Medicine”
- NRP 33 “Effectiveness of our Education Systems”
- NRP 32 “Ageing”
- NRP 31 “Climate Changes and Natural Hazards”
- NRP 30 “High Temperature Supraconductivity”
- NRP 29 “Changes of Life Style and Social Security”
- NRP 28 “Switzerland in a Changing World: Challenge for Foreign Trade and Development Politics”
- NRP 27 “Efficiency of Governmental Actions”
- NRP 26 “Man, Health and Environment”
- NRP 25 “City and Traffic”
- NRP 24 “Chemistry and Physics on Surfaces”
- NRP 23 “Artificial Intelligence and Robotics”
- NRP 22 “Use of Land in Switzerland”
- NRP 21 “Cultural Diversity and National Identity”
- NRP 20 “Geological Deep Structure of Switzerland”
- NRP 19 “Materials for Tomorrow’s Needs”
- NRP 18 “Biomedical Engineering”
- NRP 17 “Alternative Methods to Experiments on Animals”
- NRP 16 “Methods for Conversation of Objects of Cultural Value”
- NRP 15 “World of Work: Humanisation and Technological Development”
- NRP 14 “Circulation and Pollution of Air and Forest Damage in Switzerland”
- NRP 13 “Research in Micro- and Opto-electronics”
- NRP 12 “Wood as Renewable Raw Material and Energy Source”
- NRP 11 “Safety Policy”
- NRP 10 “Education and Acting in Society and Professional Life”
- NRP 09 “Mechanisms and Development of Swiss Economy and their Social Consequences”
- NRP 08 “Economy and Effectiveness of Swiss Health Care”
- NRP 07 “Problems of Raw and Other Materials”
- NRP 06 “Decision Processes in Swiss Democracy”
- NRP 05+ “Man and Biosphere (MAB)”
- NRP 05 “Regional Problems in Switzerland”
- NRP 04+ “Energy: Socio-economic Research in the Consumer Domain”
- NRP 04 “Research and Development in the Domain of Energy”
- NRP 03 “Problems of Social Integration in Switzerland”
- NRP 02 “Fundamental Problems of Swiss Hydrologic Cycle”
- NRP 01 “Cardio-vascular Diseases”