FCT has 1.8 million euros to finance 66 projects to combat COVID-19

In March, the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) launched a program to support research and development (R&D) projects that respond to the needs of the NHS. It is now known that RESEARCH 4 COVID-19 will finance 66 R&D projects, worth around 1.7 million euros.

In a statement, the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education explains that 302 applications were received, of which 284 were admitted for evaluation. The evaluation committee ended up proposing 66 projects for financing, most of them in the area of ​​diagnosis.

24 projects, 36% of the total, intend to contribute to improving the diagnosis of COVID-19, while 14 initiatives are aimed at prevention, which corresponds to 21%. Projects in the context of clinical and epidemiological studies close the top 3, corresponding to 17%, the same percentage of research in the category of other areas. Finally, the program supports two projects in the area of ​​therapy. All of them pledged to deliver results for the next three months.

The list of projects was released by the Ministry, which includes organizations such as the Polytechnic Institute of Porto, the Faculty of Medical Sciences of the Universidade Nova de Lisboa and the National Health Institute Dr. Ricardo Jorge. With a funding limit for each project of 30,000 euros, FCT will support a total of around 1.8 euros, from national funds through its budget. Taking into account the evolution of the situation and the context of uncertainty in which we live, it was foreseen that this special and exceptional support will have two periods for submitting proposals. The second phase will be announced in the next few days, guarantees the Ministry.