CIGUS centres receive 9 million euros in funding from the Galician autonomous government

Through its Regional Ministry for Culture, Education, Vocational Training and Universities, the Galician autonomous government (Xunta de Galicia) has signed agreements with the Vice-Chancellors of Galicia’s three public universities for the funding of the Galician University System Network of Research Centres (CIGUS) for a total of just under 9 million euros.

The beneficiaries of this agreement are the 8 centres that hold the CIGUS seal, which recognises the quality and impact of their research: the Information and Communication Technologies Research Centre (CITIC) at the University of A Coruña; the Singular Centre for Research in Biological Chemistry and Molecular Materials (CiQUS), the Singular Centre for Molecular Medicine and Chronic Diseases (CiMUS), the Singular Centre for Research into Intelligent Technologies (CiTIUS) and the Galician Institute of High Energy Physics (IGFAE) at the University of Santiago de Compostela; and the Centre for Research in Telecommunication Technologies (atlanTTic), the Centre for Biomedical Research (CINBIO) and the Centre for Marine Research (CIM) at the University of Vigo.

Román Rodríguez, Regional Minister for Culture, Education, Vocational Training and Universities, explained that the aim of this funding is to secure the continuation of research activity at these centres, enabling them to continue attracting new talent and consolidating their position as benchmark research institutions.

The funding comes in the wake of the positive results of the performance appraisals conducted in the centres in 2022. This process was carried out by a commission of experts expertos externos from outside the Galician University System (SUG). Their analysis was based on the documentation provided by the centres and their evolution in three key areas, namely organisation and governance, the quality of the research conducted and its relevance for society.

In addition to analysing the documentation provided, the commission visited the facilities of each centre and met with their scientific management teams in order to obtain a first-hand insight into their current situation and future outlook.

The amount is in line with previous annual grants, but based on a ten-month period, until the new appraisal and grant call for 2023 is published.