Science without Borders not to be affected by cuts

Recent budget cuts in 2015 will not affect Brazilian students and researchers who benefit from the Science Without Borders Program, declared Monday (Nov. 30) Dyogo Oliveira, executive secretary at the Ministry of Planning. According to him, the benefit payment for December have been arranged.

Oliveira explained that the students' scholarships who receive them at the Ministry of Education had been granted before the federal government's decree on contingency plan and, therefore, will be regularly paid.

Researchers who receive the benefit at the Ministry of Science and Technology (MCT in the original acronym) have also arranged the payment for December. Because firms contracted by the Brazilian government abroad received in September, the resources to pay scholarships for October, November and December.

The government's deadline to transfer scholarships' funds is December 15 for the period of January to March 2016 for the researchers who receive scholarships at the MCT. According to Oliveira, even though the country sticks to the contingency plan, the benefits for next year would not be affected, because the government would postpone the date to transfer the payment to the firms responsible for it to January, using resources of 2016 budget.

"The contingency plan applies only to 2015 budget, not to next year resources. If the situation is not handled, we may only delay 15 days to transfer [the resources] to the companies contracted abroad," the executive secretary explained.

Translated by Amarílis Anchieta