EMBRAPII receives funding of 80 million to expand research and innovation

A resource from the Ministry of Education (MEC) will allow the entity to accredit new research centers to support Brazilian industry

EMBRAPII (Brazilian Company for Industrial Research and Innovation) received funding from R? 80 million from the Ministry of Education (MEC). The resource will be used to accredit universities and federal institutes as new EMBRAPII Units, in addition to financing and developing more innovation projects with registered research centers.

In the EMBRAPII model, companies that have a project evaluated as innovative can seek one of the 42 Units accredited by the institution (renowned research centers distributed throughout the country) to develop their projects. Industry demand is assessed, including an analysis of issues such as technical feasibility and market interest. If approved, development expenditures are divided into three parts. EMBRAPII is responsible for up to one third of the investment (non-refundable resources). The remaining 2/3 of the resources necessary for the execution are negotiated between the accredited unit and the companies contracting the project.

The CEO of EMBRAPII, Jorge Almeida Guimarães, recalls that, since 2013, the institution has contributed to the development of research and innovation in Brazilian industry. There are already more than 850 projects supported in different areas, benefiting companies in all regions of Brazil. The funds provided will contribute to this work continuing to grow, together with the collaboration of research institutes.

"Brazilian universities have recognized competence to work on innovation projects and EMBRAPII offers such possibilities through funding with non-refundable resources, centered on a simple, agile, flexible and non-bureaucratic process. With support, it is possible to build a greater space for innovation on each university campus", he highlights.

For the year 2020, are R? 47.8 million from a parliamentary amendment, which will strengthen the institution's actions. Added to this amount, the expectation is that other contributions will come from the MCTIC (Ministry of Science, Technology, Innovations and Communications) and Sebrae (Brazilian Service to Support Micro and Small Enterprises), as well as a contribution from the 2020 budget of the MEC.

Model that brings research and industry together

EMBRAPII is a social organization that has a management contract with three ministries: Science, Technology, Innovation and Communications (MCTIC), Education (MEC) and Health (MS).

It has its own model to encourage industrial innovation inspired by international organizations and suited to the Brazilian ecosystem. In six years of operation, it has already benefited more than 600 companies from the most varied segments, both in the development of projects and in their financing.