The Galician Regional Minister of Education and Science meets with representatives of the CIGUS Network member centres

Román Rodríguez, Galicia’s Regional Minister of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Universities, met with representatives of the entities that make up the CIGUS Network, an initiative launched by the regional government (Xunta de Galicia) that groups together centres of accredited scientific excellence within the Galician university system. At the meeting, which took place in the City of Culture, the Regional Minister of Education reaffirmed the Galician government’s commitment to the research conducted at Galicia’s three public universities.

“It is no coincidence that we have recently increased funding for this network by 31%, with an injection of just under €23.8 m that guarantees economic stability for these centres and the continuation of their activity until 2027. Science is a priority for the Galician government. We have recently organically reinforced its structure and are currently at work on a new R&D&I aimed at combining efforts, creating synergies and advancing with an ecosystem of research and innovation, both inside and outside the university system, which will maximise the transfer of knowledge to society”, the Regional Minister explained.

A welcome to five new centres

The new centres to receive maximum recognition are the University of A Coruña’s Interdisciplinary Centre for Chemistry and Biology (CICA) and the University of Santiago de Compostela’s Centre for Cross Disciplinary Research in Environmental Technologies. The founding members of the second category, made up of collaborating centres and which was created this year, are the University of A Coruña’s Centre for Technological Innovation in Construction and Civil Engineering (CITEEC), the Research Centre in Technologies, Energy and Industrial Processes (CINTECX) and Economics and Business Administration for Society (ECOBAS), both belonging to the University of Vigo.

Galicia’s other eight centres of university research have also recently renewed their certification of excellence. They are as follows: for the University of Santiago de Compostela, the Singular Centre for Research in Biological Chemistry and Molecular Materials (CIQUS), the Centre for Research in Molecular Medicine and Chronic Diseases (CIMUS), the Singular Research Centre for Intelligent Technologies (CITIUS), and the Galician Institute of High Energy Physics (IGFAE); for the University of Vigo, the Research Centre for Telecommunication Technologies (atlanTTic), the Centre for Research in Nanomaterials and Biomedicine (CINBIO), and the Marine Research Centre (CIM); and finally, for the University of A Coruña, the Information and Communication Technologies Research Centre (CITIC).