This year promises to be even better for research in the State of Sao Paulo. FAPESP closed last year’s accounts with a R$ 703.6 million in cash, 7.95% higher than the initially forecast goal. Discounting the investments already ongoing, of short and long term – grants, scholarships, payments to suppliers and provisions -, the Foundation started off the year with a liquid financial patrimony of R$ 178.2 million, 52% higher than that registered in 2004. The good news is that these numbers have resulted in a surplus higher than R$ 98 million for the past year and show that the financial rebalancing has been consolidated. “We’re prepared to invest in special projects and in innovation, to go out of the routine and even to confront eventual adversities”, says Joaquim J. de Camargo Engler, FAPESP’s administrative director.
The assets recovery had already had a positive impact on the budget of the previous year: an income initially forecast at R$ 447 million during 2004, which grew by 16%, reaching the value of R$ 520 million. Of this total, the Foundation’s own resources represented R$ 121. 9 million, something around 24%. The Foundation’s own income is principally made up of financial investments and real estate income. Throughout 2004, the real estate income achieved a surprising performance, 17.49% above that forecast, and the various incomes – such as reimbursement from the domain registration, income from patents and reciprocal scholarships – also considerably surpassed expectations.
Financial stability
Last year the transfers from the State Treasury – relating to 1% of the tax income of the State of Sao Paulo – were also some 11.27% higher than the initial estimates. As well, the contributions from the federal government reached R$ 20.8 million, almost half of them relating to resources for the Support for Research in Companies Program (Pappe), of the Ministry of Science and Technology and for the financing of phase III of the Small Business Innovation Research (PIPE) program. These positive results, as a group, allowed the Foundation to support, along the lines of research scholarships, all of the merit projects that had been presented and to guarantee a fine ongoing surplus.
During 2004 FAPESP’s investments reached R$ 421 million. Of this total, 96% were destined to the financing of grants, scholarships, special support programs and technological innovation. The participation of the expenditure with grants tied in with the Foundation’s investments in similar activities – grants, scholarships special programs and technological innovation – represented 34.7%, a percentage that has remained stable over the last few years.
The financial resources invested in the regular line of research and thematic projects summed to a total of R$ 167.8 million, 42.6% of the investments in similar activities. The special programs took up some R$ 35.4 million, which represented 9% of the investments. For the programs on technological innovation – among them the Genome, Biota, Partnership for Technological Innovation (PITE) and the PIPE – the Foundation destined R$ 53.8 million, or that is to say, 13.7% of the investments. The initial budget forecast for 2005 is some R$ 487.3 million. The good performance of the São Paulo economy, allied to the fine administration of the Foundation’s assets, will permit making even more advances in research within the State.
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