The Research Council's Annual Report for 2010 clearly shows that the Research Council has contributed significantly to advancing the research policy goals set out in the government white paper Climate for Research.
The largest increase in funding has been in target areas that coincide with the initiative to increase investment in research infrastructure and the follow-up to the broad-based political agreement on climate policy achieved in the Storting in 2008.
Nearly NOK 7 billion allocated
The Research Council administers approximately one-third of the public funding for Norwegian research and allocated a total of NOK 6.96 billion in 2010.
Funds received by the Research Council totalled NOK 6.8 billion, and comprised allocations from 16 government ministries, the yield from the Fund for Research and Innovation, and contributions from various public and private organisations. The Ministry of Education and Research allocated an additional NOK 250 million for administrative activities.
Growth in important areas
The Annual Report formally documents the Research Council's use of allocations in relation to the national fiscal budget and the allocation letters for 2010. The report details how research funding was distributed and which results were achieved.
The Research Council allocated NOK 2.5 billion to universities and university colleges, while independent research institutes received over NOK 2.7 billion in 2010. Just under NOK 1 billion was allocated to trade and industry. Funding to higher education institutions and research institutes continued the pattern of growth of the past four years, with most significant growth in funding to independent research institutes.
Three main priorities
Most of the growth in the Research Council's income for 2010 applied to three priority areas that were pre-targeted in 2009, either in the form of capital investments in funds (an earmarked portion of the yield from the Fund for Research and Innovation for research infrastructure and establishment of regional research funds) or through binding agreements (in keeping with the broad-based political agreement on climate policy).
These priority areas were energy and climate, with an increase of NOK 350 million in funding, research infrastructure with an increase of NOK 140 million, and the regional research funds with an increase of NOK 39 million.
Project statistics
In 2010, 4 952 projects were registered as receiving funding from the Research Council. Twenty-six per cent of these (1 294 projects) had women project managers. In 2010, the Council launched a new initiative to improve the gender balance in senior scientific positions and research management.
The Research Council has had a long-standing aim to expand the size of the projects funded under its programmes and activities. The proportion of projects with a budget framework of over NOK 1 million has risen from 37 per cent in 2006 to 57 per cent in 2010.
Basic research and funding for independent projects
Thirty-nine per cent of the Research Council's project portfolio is defined as basic research. The total project portfolio of the funding scheme for independent basic research projects (FRIPRO) grew from NOK 424 million in 2009 to NOK 522 million in 2010, primarily due to special measures to reduce internal transfers. Overall real growth for the period 2006-2010 was negligible.
