National Research Fund (FNI) Mozambique 2023 - 2028

The National Research Fund, Fundo Nacional de Investigação (FNI), is a public agency tasked with promoting and funding science, technology and innovation (STI) activities in Mozambique. It was formed by Decree in 2005 and reports sectorally to the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education as well as financially to the Ministry of Finance. FNI activities are aligned with the implementation of the Mozambique Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy (MOSTIS) and include advising the government on STI related issues, managing calls for proposals, and disbursing grants as well as scholarships and bursaries. The main purpose of FNI is to be a research granting council that mobilizes resources for research relevant to the challenges and priorities of Mozambique. It should advance research career development, support dissemination of research findings, increase public science engagement and establish research platforms aimed at transforming the scientific and innovation landscapes in Mozambique. Since 2006, FNI has made over 15 calls and supported 431 research, innovation and technology transfer projects. FNI has an online Grant Management and Administration System (GMAS), which was developed four years ago with support from Sida. Sida, represented by the Swedish Embassy to Mozambique, has supported FNI since its inauguration. The current agreement amounts to SEK 51 500 000, from 1 December 2016 to 30 October 2023. Apart from the GMAS, the support has targeted internal capacity strengthening, not least with regards to monitoring and evaluation, as well as funding of calls. The Embassy has received a proposal for a new program phase, with a total budget of SEK 30 500 000 for activities 1 October 2023 – 31 December 2028. Program objective and activity areas: The vision is to align FNI research support and management to global environmental goals to accelerate the achievement of the global Sustainable Development Goals in the country, through Science, Technology and Innovation for poverty alleviation. The objective of the program is to consolidate progress made during the previous phases in relation to strengthening the capacity of FNI as a funding agency, by systematically aligning FNI's research support and management with environmental goals to accelerate attainment of SDGs in Mozambique through STI. To reach this objective, FNI has identified five specified activity areas: 1) To expand and enhance the capacity of the GMAS and to enable specific changes necessitated by the alignment to environmental integration to accelerate the attainment of SDGs in Mozambique. 2) To undertake policy and strategic planning towards environmental sustainability in the short, medium, and long run. 3) To undertake targeted research support and management of projects that are aligned with environmental sustainability goals to accelerate the attainment of SDGs in Mozambique 4) To undertake targeted innovation support and management of projects that are aligned with environmental sustainability goals to accelerate the attainment of SDGs in Mozambique 5) To enhance Monitoring, Evaluation, Learning & Reporting through application of the Theory of Change approach Overall, the Embassy assesses the vision, objective, and activity areas to be reasonably clear and mutually supportive. The first part of the objective - to consolidate progress made from previous program phases - is realistic and doable. The activity areas (and proposed specific activities for each) build on those of previous phases, with additions that relate to the declared focus of a new program phase. The final part of the objective - to align its research goals to accelerate the attainment of SDGs in Mozambique through ST&I - is more far reaching and indirect. In the initial months of the new program phase, FNI will further unpack what they mean and how they will follow-up progress towards it.