Staff Reporter
QATAR Foundation’s Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF), has announced the inaugural awards of its flagship funding programme, the National Research Priorities Programme (NPRP) yesterday. The $25mn, divided amongst 47 proposals from 10 institutions, is spread over three years, with $10mn being awarded in the first year.
The number of collaborative partners brings the total of participating institutions to 33.
The awards are a first for Qatar and back up Qatar’s commitment to research, first demonstrated by the announcement that 2.8% of GDP would be allocated to research.
The awards were given in a range of disciplines ranging from engineering to health to the humanities.
Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar, College of the North Atlantic - Qatar, Georgetown University, Hamad Medical Corporation, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, Qatar University, Texas A&M University at Qatar, and Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar are among the institutions which have received the awards.
The QNRF director Abdul Sattar al-Taie said he and his team were overwhelmed by the interest in NPRP and very impressed with the calibre of the proposals submitted.
“As well as demonstrating an understanding of Qatar’s research needs many recipients have chosen to partner with others - which we actively encouraged,” he said.
The NPRP is intended to support QNRF’s overarching goal of fostering a research culture in Qatar.
Specifically, the grants offered through the NPRP will build human capital in Qatar; fund research to benefit all, but particularly Qatar and the region; and raise Qatar’s profile in the international research community.
The total number of proposals submitted was 206. Following pre-screening, 175 proposals were independently peer reviewed by between six to three peer reviewers and a total of 47 proposals were then awarded.
The awards covered all disciplines from Engineering to healthcare, information technology, social sciences and humanities.
To further ensure complete independence the peer reviewers had no affiliation or connection to the institutions whose proposals they reviewed.
QNRF were particularly keen to ensure the utmost integrity and transparency throughout the submission and the review processes to ensure the highest standard was set.
QNRF is planning to launch the next cycle of the NPRP in the second half of 2008. QNRF was established in 2006 to administer funding for original, competitively selected research.
QNRF seek to advance knowledge and education at a national, regional and international level by providing financial support to researchers in the private, public and academic spheres.
Further, as part of their overall strategy QNRF aim to foster collaborations within academia and through public private partnership inside and outside of Qatar.
QNRF actively seeks internationally recognised researchers to study topics of regional and global importance; however it is primarily dedicated to funding research in the national interest and fostering improvements in the health, environment and security for the people of Qatar and the region.