MINISTER FOR Education Batt O’Keeffe has announced the latest phase of the third-level research programme which will deliver about €300 million to colleges.
The programme was due to be launched amid much fanfare by Taoiseach Brian Cowen last year but it was delayed because of the economic crisis. In a low-key launch yesterday, details of the programme were issued via a press release from the Minister.
The announcement was greeted with relief rather than jubilation among college heads yesterday. In 2003, the Government briefly “paused” the Programme for Research in Third-Level Institutions (PRTLI) programme, a move which provoked outrage across the academic and business communities. Yesterday’s announcement is seen as underpinning the Government’s and Mr O’Keeffe’s commitment to research, despite the economic downturn. The new funding comes under cycle five of the PRTLI which will run until 2013. However, the actual allocation of funds for each year has still to be worked out, raising concerns that some funding could be delayed.
In the past decade, over €800 million has been invested in the PRTLI, much of it funded by the Irish American philanthropist, Chuck Feeney. The current cycle is largely funded by the exchequer.
Announcing the €300 million investment, Mr O’Keeffe said: “The move signals the Government’s determination to continue to prioritise investment in Ireland’s development as a knowledge-intensive economy.”
The Higher Education Authority (HEA) will now issue a call for proposals to institutions, inviting them to develop competitive proposals for this latest round of funding. The HEA’s Tom Boland described yesterday’s announcement as “precisely the right initiative at precisely the right time”.
