Latvia to Join the European Open Science Cloud and Develop a Modern Digital Research Infrastructure

The objective of the EOCS is to provide researchers and innovators in Europe with an open and trusted multi-disciplinary environment where they can publish, find and reuse data, tools and services for research and innovation. 

With the support of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the initiative will be implemented by the Ministry of Education and Science in cooperation with the The Higher Education and Science Information Technology Shared Services Center (VPC) and four science universities of Latvia - Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, the University of Latvia, Riga Stradiņš University, and Riga Technical University.

By November 2029, a modern, competitive, secure, and internationally collaborative-oriented digital research infrastructure in Latvia is planned to be established, fully integrated with EOSC. 

Minister of Education and Science Dace Melbārde emphasizes:"Digital tools and data processing form the foundation of modern science. With this investment, we are strengthening the competitiveness of Latvian science by providing our researchers with the same digital infrastructure, tools, and opportunities as elsewhere in Europe. Latvia becomes a full-fledged partner in the European Research Area, promoting scientific excellence, international cooperation, and tangible benefits for Latvian enterprises."

As part of the project, a secure, high-speed data transmission network will be established to connect all research institutions across Latvia, enabling reliable information exchange and collaboration. The infrastructure will provide the necessary data storage and computing power to support advanced research. Researchers will gain access to a broad range of digital tools for data analysis, visualization, modeling, and other research activities, including international collaboration. 

The initiative also includes the establishment of EOSC National Node in Latvia. The EOSC National Node will provide Latvian researchers with access to data, resources, and tools from other EOSC partner institutions, as well as enable collaboration with researchers from other EU countries on joint projects.

"As an EU member state, establishing the EOSC National Node in Latvia is an important and long-awaited step that will significantly enhance our research infrastructure capabilities and the implementation of open science principles. It will provide researchers with access to unique datasets and digital services across Europe. The creation of the EOSC National Node will also promote international and interdisciplinary collaboration by enabling the standardization of data and tools—particularly important for LBTU’s key research areas, including forestry, agriculture, food science, and veterinary medicine. Especially valuable is the ability to leverage shared computing and data storage resources for large-scale international research projects," notes Gatis Vītols, Vice-Rector for Science at LBTU, VPC Council Member.

EOSC ultimately aims to contribute to a web of FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable) data and services for science in Europe, upon which a wide range of value-added services can be built. EOSC already unites over two million researchers across more than 800 European universities.