According to the amount of funding for science, Latvia is in one of the last places among the countries of the European Union. Kalviņš said that it is very difficult for Latvian science to develop at such a low level of funding.
“But the Latvians have always stood out with their toughness, and Latvian scientists have a great deal of enthusiasm and patriotism, and many of them, despite being offered a well-paid job abroad, remain with us and conduct high-quality scientific studies,” Kalviņš said.
He added that talks about funding for science have always been promising and patriotic, but the action has not really followed.
This year, the increase in funding for the Education and Science Ministry program for science and research is around €3.5 million, but there have been talks of an increase of around €20 million in the past. “Nothing has, unfortunately, come true,” said Kalviņš.
On February 17, the Sciences Academy will award the best Latvian research achievements of 2021.
