Argentina's Senate on Thursday unanimously approved the Law for Financing the National Science, Technology, and Innovation System.
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"The pandemic revealed to the whole society the importance of science and technology... investing in science must be a state policy," said Roberto Salvarezza, the minister of science, technology, and innovation.
The law establishes that 1 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) must be allocated to the science and technology sector. The budget increase, however, will not be immediate but gradual.
The Senate established that the science & tech sector, which currently has a budget equivalent to 0.28 percent of GDP, will receive that amount in 2032.
Drafted by current Interior Minister Wado De Pedro four years ago, the bill was never discussed in the Senate during Mauricio Macri's government (2015-2019).
"Science and technology have been forgotten by neoliberal governments," stated Salvarezza, who also recalled that Macri by half the number of researchers at the National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET).
The new law intends to develop skilled human resources to work in prioritized areas such as health, agriculture, industrialization, environmental conservation, and new technologies.