Colombia’s President Juan Manuel Santos has announced that Colciencias has managed to acquire $50 million for their 2014 budget following fears of budget cuts in the agency, according to a press release by the president.
Colciencias is the agency in charge of promoting science, research, and innovation in Colombia.
According to the president, the $50 million dollars was a result of an agreement reached between Colciencias and Colfuturo, a Colombian financial assistance agency that offers financing to graduate students.
“We widen the offer to more than 300 people with this form of education financing, of which more than nine thousand Colombians have used since its creation in 1991,” said President Santos.
Paula Arias, Colciencias’s former director, had made public fears of a $67.2 million dollar budget cut equivalent to a third of the agency’s budget and was forced to resign on Tuesday.
MORE: Colombia’s chief science official forced to resign over budget dispute
President Santos put all doubt to rest assuring that, “Today I want to say to the scientific community of the country that the budget of Colciencias […] will not be less than last year’s.”
Sources
- ‘El apoyo a la ciencia y la innovación seguirá siendo una prioridad en nuestro camino hacia el futuro’: Presidente Santos (Presidencia)
