The Pact for Research and Innovation strengthens the major non-university research organisations and the German Research Foundation.
The Pact for Research and Innovation (“Pakt für Forschung und Innovation” – PFI) has contributed to considerable dynamics and enhanced performance in the science system, and it creates a sustainable perspective for the German science system. Thanks to agreed regular increases in basic funding provided jointly by the Federal and Länder Governments, the Pact for Research and Innovation creates financial planning certainty for the organisations of the research institutions funded jointly by the Federal and Länder Governments (the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, the Helmholtz Association, the Max Planck Society and the Leibniz Association) as well as the German Research Foundation as a funding organisation. In return, these organisations commit themselves to achieve research policy goals. Planning security offers them scope to press ahead with developments towards these goals.
An additional 3 percent a year
The Pact for Research and Innovation was initially adopted by the heads of the Federal and Länder Governments for 2005 to 2010 and was further developed for the period from 2011 to 2015 – in recent years with an increase of five percent per year. On the 11.12.2014, the continuation of the Pact was approved for 2016 to 2020. The Federal and Länder Governments raise institutional basic funding by three percent a year in this third phase. Thus, an additional total of 3.9 billion euro is available to research in this period. In this phase of the Pact, only the Federal Government contributes to the increase.
Dynamically developing the science system
In agreement with the science organisations, in the on-going phase, with the continuation of the Pact, the Federal and State Governments are pursuing the following research policy goals: They seek to dynamically develop the science system, design networks within the science system dynamically and with a view to enhancing performance, develop and implement new strategies in international cooperation, establish sustainable partnerships between science and industry and attract top-level academics who will stay on with German science.
Financial planning certainty
The science and research institutions have outlined the measures they seek to apply to achieve these goals and contribute to further enhancing the international competitiveness of the German science system. The financial planning certainty that the Pact offers is a crucial element for the strategic planning of the science and research institutions. The Pact enables them to take and develop strategic measures and to elaborate existing tools and develop new ones.
Annual monitoring reports
The science organisations give accounts of the success achieved with the measures they have introduced in annual monitoring reports. In addition, in the framework of Pact monitoring, they report on the implementation of the Law on Academic Freedom.
Further Information
More details about the Joint Initiative for Research and Innovation can be found on the website of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).
www.bmbf.de > Pakt für Forschung und Innovation (in German only)
Joint Initiative for Research and Innovation
More information on the Joint Initiative for Research and Innovation. (in German only)
www.pakt-fuer-forschung.de (in German only)