Brazil’s research financing agency leading US$12bn innovation program

Brazil has 60bn reais (US$12.2bn) earmarked for investments in innovation as part of the government program Mais Inovação, of which 40bn reais will be made available by research financing entity Finep.

Launched in August, the program is being carried out jointly by the science, technology and innovation ministry (MCTI), Brazilian development bank BNDES and Finep.

Overall, Finep said it contracted more than 6.4bn reais in credit operations for innovation projects between January and early December last year. In comparison, disbursements in 2022 and 2021 were 4bn reais and 1.6bn reais, respectively, according to the agency.

In addition to the expansion of the Finep budget, the hike in the volume of credit issued in 2023 was attributed by the agency to the decline in interest rates.

In this regard, the outlook for the coming years is positive given the downward trajectory of interest rates.

Finep is also readying new financing calls.

"In addition to the reimbursable financing format, [science and technology] minister Luciana Santos announced calls totaling more than 850mn reais in economic subsidies during COP28. New calls will soon be announced for various sectors, targeting both private companies and scientific and technological institutions,” the manager of Finep's south region, Bruno Rodrigues Camargo, said in a statement.

“Our goal is to generate a real impact on the innovation capacity for the productive sector, creating better jobs and improving the quality of services offered to the Brazilian public," he added.