During a campaign stop in Covilhã, Castelo Branco district, Pedro Nuno Santos criticized the government’s economic policies, remarking, “We have a government that not only leaves us with an economy in decline but also cuts in one of the most decisive factors for transforming the Portuguese economy, which is investment in science.” He expressed these views to the press.
The Socialist Party leader further commented, “This policy of exclusively funding centers of excellence will freeze these research centers at their current level and prevent those with ‘very good’ ratings, which is already commendable, from becoming excellent.”
“Without investment in science and research, we will not be able to advance our economy. We learned that the government reduced funding by 69% for research centers rated as ‘very good’,” Santos criticized.
An open letter from a group of researchers was sent to Minister Fernando Alexandre, warning of “cuts in basic funding” to the centers rated as “Very Good,” which could lead to layoffs and increased job insecurity.
The letter’s signatories highlighted the near future of “117 Research and Development Units (R&D) rated as Very Good, employing 6,434 researchers,” representing 30.5% of the positively evaluated national scientific community.
Based on calculations presented in the letter, these research centers now face a 69% reduction compared to the baseline funding allocated from 2020 to 2024. Previously, researchers received the equivalent of 3,750 euros annually, now reduced to 1,156.58 euros per year.
The Ministry of Education explained on Wednesday that the evaluation model for Research and Development Units (R&D) that determined funding allocations until 2029 was based on criteria from the previous government. The ministry noted a 22% increase in overall funding.
