Harper affirms support for continuing Canada-China S&T collaboration

Prime minister Stephen Harper's re-announcement of funding for joint R&D projects between Canada and China is being viewed as a key gesture of support for bilateral S&T and an expectation that the level of funding for such international engagement could increase as early as the next federal Budget. Harper made the announcement of renewed funding for the International Science and Technology Partnership program (ISTPP) — $5 million over five years — following a one-on-one meeting with Chinese president Hu Jintao. Harper indicated that the granting councils would also be contributing financial resources.

Although the funding was originally unveiled in the 2010 Budget, the president of ISTP Canada — the operational arm of the ISTPP — says the latest announcement is an encouraging indicator that the government is serious about incorporating S&T into the larger economic and scientific spheres.

"This is good news for science in Canada. Science and technology are moving to the centre of issues," says Dr Henri Roths-child. "The granting councils are now associated with delivering the program for the first time which connects it with the scientific establishment. We're thrilled."

A joint committee established to oversee the framework agreement between Canada and China recently announced a targeted call for proposals for projects in vaccine research and clean transportation fuels. Rothschild says the participation of the granting councils could potentially double ISTPCanada's Canada-China project budget to $10 million.

The Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR) will support projects in the area of vaccine research while the Natural Sciences and Engineer Research Council (NSERC) will contribute towards clean transportation fuels. CIHR president Dr Alain Beaudet is co-chair of the joint committee for Canada-China while NSERC VP Margaret McQuaid-Johnston is a member.

"This will maximize Canadian industry-university partnerships. The granting councils will pay for the university partners and we support the industrial partners," says Rothschild, adding that ISTP Canada and the granting councils have been meeting recently to improve collaboration. "It helps to ensure program coordination and synchronization of funding."

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