FCT and "la Caixa" Foundation renew Collaboration Framework Agreement

The Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) and "la Caixa" Foundation signed today a new Collaboration Framework Agreement, in the presence of the Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education (MCTES), Manuel Heitor, and Artur Santos Silva, Trustee of "la Caixa" Foundation.

This agreement reinforces the cooperation between the two institutions by renewing for another three years the partnership established in 2018 with a view to jointly funding research projects in Portugal, integrated in three programs of "la Caixa" Foundation: the CaixaResearch Programme Health Research, the Call of Social Research and the Promove Programme - The Future of the Interior, to which is now added the CaixaResearch Validate Programme.

The partnership, which began in 2018, is currently based on joint support for projects in three lines of funding and valorization of research and innovation projects:

1. Iberian Biomedical Research and Innovation Initiative - i4b, started in 2018, from the "la Caixa" Foundation Program "la Caixa "Research for Health Research, with four editions already completed and 30 projects already underway led by national R&D institutions, and the evaluation of applications submitted for the fifth edition of this initiative is underway;
2. Iberian Initiative for Research and Social Innovation - i4s, started in 2020, in the framework of the Call of Social Research of the "la Caixa" Foundation, with two editions in Portugal already concluded and 6 active projects coordinated by Portuguese researchers, being today published the third edition;
3. Promove Program, launched by "la Caixa" Foundation in 2018 and with the collaboration of FCT since 2020 in an edition that allowed the support of 19 projects oriented to the promotion of the inland regions of Portugal through research and innovation, being currently open new Call until January 19.

All the initiatives under this partnership between FCT and "la Caixa" Foundation have in common the principle of matching funds, through which FCT matches the contribution of "la Caixa" to research and innovation projects to be carried out in Portugal that are selected as the best in each annual Call promoted under each of the initiatives. Since 2018 and within the scope of these initiatives, more than 22 million euros have already been contracted through support for projects led by national R&D institutions, representing a significant shared investment that reflects the effort of institutional cooperation between public and private foundations.

These collaboration initiatives fall under the policies enshrined in the goPORTUGAL - Global Partnerships in Science and Technology program, also launched in 2018 to enhance the internationalization process of scientific and technological research in Portugal, developing the creation of scientific and qualified jobs and fostering the creation and growth of new science- and technology-based companies.

More information:
Page of the Scientific and Technological Cooperation Agreements between FCT and "la Caixa" Foundation