Translated using ChatGPT service.
At its meeting on June 18, 2024, the Cabinet of Ministers approved a long-term national research program, outlining its framework, overarching goals, objectives, implementation timeline, funding, and expected outcomes.
Despite a slight increase in Latvia's overall research and development (R&D) expenditure, additional incentives are needed not only to boost company investments in R&D but also to encourage decisive actions for state investments, with a long-term approach. One way to increase state investments in R&D is through sector-specific national research programs (NRPs), which are state-commissioned research efforts aimed at generating new knowledge, skills, and innovations, developing new products, processes, and services, and addressing sector-specific challenges through human resource development.
The Ministry of Economics recognized the need to change the NRP model to ensure that commercially oriented NRPs are implemented with a long-term approach, focusing on a platform model—partnerships of research organizations and platform partners that implement state commissions and oversee the progress of projects submitted and supported within these platforms. Furthermore, the plan is to involve the Latvian industry, allowing it to define scientific problems that require early-stage research, ensuring that platform work can contribute to the Latvian industry if it shows interest in research results and is ready to purchase and commercialize them after project implementation,” emphasized the Minister of Economics, Viktors Valainis.
Given that the Cabinet of Ministers has previously approved the Ministry of Economics' proposal to introduce a long-term national research program model based on platform and project approaches, the implementation of the long-term national research program "Innovation Fund - Long-Term Research Program" is planned.
This approach involves establishing collaboration platforms created by research organizations, selecting projects within these platforms, and applying flexibility in the oversight of platform projects. This will allow for long-term planning of platform activities and the setting of specific goals important for achieving national objectives and the development of RIS3 areas "Biomedicine, Medical Technologies, Pharmaceuticals" and "Photonics and Smart Materials, Technologies, and Engineering Systems". These RIS3 areas have high scientific and commercialization potential and broad technological development foundations, which require long-term funding for further development.
The long-term program's goal is to develop academic research and applied science competencies to create innovative and commercializable products and technologies in close collaboration with Latvia's biomedicine, medical technology, pharmaceuticals, photonics, smart materials, electronics, electrical engineering, technology, and engineering systems sectors.
During the implementation of the long-term program until 2032, at least 45 technologies, including prototypes, are expected to be developed, and at least 5 new commercialized technologies, including prototypes, are expected to be delivered, such as concluding intellectual property licensing or transfer agreements, creating one spin-off company, concluding a cooperation agreement with a company for technology development, production, or distribution, and selling patents.
The main tasks of the long-term program in the fields of biomedicine, medical technology, and pharmaceuticals include improving therapy accessibility for increased lifespan and work capacity by developing drug, delivery system, and vaccine production technologies, repurposing drugs, discovering new drugs, conducting development research, identifying new biomarkers, and developing precision medicine solutions. In the fields of photonics and smart materials, technologies, and engineering systems, the main tasks include developing optics, photonics, microelectronics, microfluidics devices, smart materials, data transmission and communication technologies, sensors and engineering systems, robotics, and future Internet of Things solutions.
The total funding for the program from 2024 to 2026 is 22 million euros. The program is financed from the state budget funds allocated to the Ministry of Economics for the state support program 35.00.00 "State Support Programs".
The program will be implemented in stages, with an extension planned in 2026 for further implementation until 2029, and another extension in 2029 for further implementation until 2032, according to the Ministry of Economics' state budget allocation and based on the achievement of interim performance results in the previous implementation period.
As known, at the end of 2022, the Ministry of Economics started implementing the national research program "Innovation Fund - Sectoral Research Program" in RIS3 areas "Biomedicine, Medical Technologies, Pharmaceuticals" and "Photonics and Smart Materials, Technologies, and Engineering Systems". Two projects, each worth 5.7 million euros, are currently supported and being implemented based on the competition results.
Simultaneously with the long-term program, the Cabinet of Ministers approved amendments to the Cabinet Order No. 285 of April 26, 2022, "On the National Research Program 'Innovation Fund - Sectoral Research Program'", which reallocates funding for the establishment of the long-term national research program in 2024 amounting to 4 million euros and 6 million euros in 2025.
More details on the approved long-term research program can be found on the unified legislation portal.