Gilberto Kassab, Minister of Science, Technology, Innovation and Communication, emphasized the effort of federal government in the recovery of funds and investment for the science, technology and innovation industry over the last months.

He and the president of the Republic, Michel Temer, attended the meeting that installed the thematic commissions of the Brazilian Council for Science and Technology (CCT), on Tuesday, January 24. The event took place at the head office of the Brazilian Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), in Brasília (DF).

“It is an informal forum marking all the actions and decisions of the ministry. The attendance of the president shows the proximity between the federal government and the projects of our ministry. There is a climate of great optimism and hope with your government that the country, from the economic and political point of view, has turned the page of the difficulty and that we can make our contribution to continue in the direction we are”, said the head of MCTIC, emphasizing the attendance importance of the president in the meeting.

According to Kassab, who is also the coordinator of the CCT Advisory Council, the work of the support groups will contribute to propose topics to be discussed at the collegiate plenary meetings and evaluate the implementation of the Science, Technology and Innovation National Policy. The Council will be used together and promote integration among several industries involved in science, technology and innovation in the country.

“As soon as we took over the ministry, we realized the distance between government decisions and the community, as well as the budgetary disregard for all the institutions, a very difficult situation. Thus, we decided to create this Advisory Board”, he said.

More funds

The President of the Republic, during his speech, emphasized the minister's management in charge of the portfolio, as well as the importance of the industry for social and economic development of the country. Temer stated that science, technology and innovation are strategic for Brazil and for the world.

“The technological innovation has a universal language and no divergences. It is an important industry for our country and I am sure that it is an incentive for the generation of jobs”, he said.

The president mentioned the speed and commitment of the minister to release the funds of Source 900 to Source 188, linked to the National Treasury, which enabled to execute the payments of competence of the portfolio. The sum, in the amount of R$ 1.7 billion, was used to anticipate the payments of researchers' scholarships in January and February, in addition to administrative expenses of the ministry.

“The outstanding debts, from 2007, and that were no being paid, causing a loss in management in general. In this very brief time of government, we not only pay all parliamentary amendments, but also settled all the outstanding debts from 2007 to here”, emphasized Temer.

Incentive for the Industry

According to the president of the Brazilian Society for the Progress of Science (SBPC), Helena Nader, the reactivation of the CCT commissions is an achievement for the industry and represents an incentive for social welfare. She chairs the Research and Infrastructure Committee.

“The return of the CST is a great victory for the ministry and civil society because it is the forum presided over by the President of the Republic to define what would be the guidelines for science, technology and innovation to boost knowledge and economy and, consequently, the social well-being of all the people", he said. Nelson Simões, the general director of RNP, confirmed and stressed that “RNP sees with interest the attention that the CCT will give to essential fields for the education and research cyberinfrastructure of the country”.

Helena Nader, during the celebration, delivered a document with more than 30 thousand signatures of national and international researchers in a thankful note to President Michel Temer for the release of the funds of Source 900 and the return of the thematic commissions of the CCT.

On the other hand, the Financier of Studies and Projects (Finep), Marcos Cintra, emphasized that the industry shall not suffer budget reversals under penalty of “causing irreparable damage”. He pointed out the importance of Finep's financing for the growth and evolution of the industry in the country.

“Science, technology and innovation is an industry that only brings good news, discover new methods, techniques and methods to develop problems. What we need is simplification, reduction of bureaucracy and, above all, a response to the specificities of the industry”, he stressed.

In sum, there are six thematic committees to support the CCT: Cyber Affairs; Human Capital; Financing, International Cooperation and Evaluation; Legal Framework; Research and Infrastructure; and Technology and Innovation. The groups are made up of representatives of the federal government, the scientific community, universities and representatives of users and producers of science and technology.

Photo: Gilberto Kassab and Michel Temer were sitting together during the celebration held yesterday at the head office of CNPq, in Brasília (DF). Credit: Ascom/MCTIC

Source: MCTIC, with information from RNP.