In total, more than 39.31 million euros will be available for research, of which the European Regional Development Fund funding is 33,414,484 euros, while the State budget and private co-financing provide 4,332,320 and 1,570,354 euros, respectively.
Thus, at least 165 doctors of science are planned to be supported by 2029.
The final beneficiary of post-doctoral research funding will be the Latvian Council of Science (LZP), which will organize project tenders, attract international experts for project evaluation and enter into agreements with scientific institutions regarding the granting of funding.
Research applications will be submitted by scientific institutions and enterprises registered in Latvia, which establish employment legal relations with a postdoctoral researcher and provide access to their infrastructure, materials, and human resources to the researcher.
Latvia had a total of 7,765 doctors of science in 2019, including 5,481 or 70.6% under 69. Doctoral degree holders in Latvia make up 0.4% of the total population, while the OECD average is 1.1%.
“The number of doctors of science in Latvia is currently 2-2.5 times less than is necessary for a full generation, which is one of the main tasks of science policy,” the Ministry said.
