Ministry Finds Extra Millions to Fund Research
The Ministry of Education and Research has allocated an extra 4.1 million euros to research. The money should offer relief to the funding crisis that exploded into the public eye last week, when it was announced that some national research institutions were left with gaping holes in their budget after funding proposals fell through.
The Estonian Research Council received 235 applications for individual research grants this year. To fund them all, 15.7 million euros would be required. The initial budget was 1.39 million euros, enough to fund between 25 and 30 projects. The additional 4.1 million euros will fund another 50 researchers, including post-doctoral fellows.
"We re-examined our budget and found a way to make an additional investment in research," said Minister of Education Jevgeni Ossinovski.
In 2015, the government will increase institutional base funding by 10 percent, taking it up to 9.26 million euros.