From Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science
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Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science Patrick O’Donovan has welcomed the establishment of Taighde Éireann – Research Ireland, Ireland’s new competitive research and innovation funding agency.
The new agency amalgamates the activities and functions of the Irish Research Council (IRC) and Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) and will capitalise on the recognised strengths of these two agencies in driving world class research and innovation in Ireland.
The establishment of Taighde Éireann – Research Ireland is the keystone of Impact 2030: Ireland’s Research and Innovation Strategy, and the new agency will be central to realising the ambitions set out in the strategy.
Speaking today, Minister O’Donovan said:
“I’m very proud today to announce the establishment of our new research and innovation agency, Taighde Éireann - Research Ireland.
“This agency will enhance our capacity to address the issues Irish society is facing, in particular climate change and the digital transition. It will also enable us to engage and compete with greater impact at an international level, making the most of future opportunities in research and innovation.
“The agency has a founding principle of parity of esteem for all disciplines, all research types, and all career stages, which will be key to developing our capacity to respond to challenges, and our already strong international reputation for research excellence.
“I want to reassure our researchers that we are working to ensure there will be no disruption to existing services and programmes, they can continue on with confidence in their work and in this agency.
“Taighde Éireann – Research Ireland is now established, and myself and my Department look forward to working with this new agency to support the exciting future of Ireland’s research and innovation ecosystem.”
The Research and Innovation Act 2024 was enacted in June 2024, and outlines the objectives and functions of Taighde Éireann – Research Ireland. The new agency will work under the aegis of the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, in close collaboration with the Higher Education Authority, as well as Enterprise Ireland and the Industrial Development Agency and other research funding agencies.
The legislation places research in all disciplines on a statutory footing for the first time. The establishment of the agency will develop national capacity to respond to grand challenges, such as the green and digital transitions, using integrated approaches from scientific, behavioural, economic, and cultural perspectives.
Taighde Éireann – Research Ireland will promote and support the contribution of research and innovation to Ireland’s economic, social, cultural, and environmental development and sustainability, as well as strengthen the engagement between the research and innovation system and enterprise, Government and public bodies, the voluntary sector and society.
The establishment of Taighde Éireann – Research Ireland as the new research and innovation funding agency is set against an ambitious programme of reform in the tertiary sector.
This comprises the establishment of the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science itself, including the development of a unified tertiary system, its remit for the national research and innovation system and other key policy developments.
An ongoing programme of stakeholder consultation has been taking place since the development of Impact 2030: Ireland’s Research and Innovation Strategy, and has been integral to the development of the Act and planning for the new agency.
The objectives of Taighde Éireann – Research Ireland are:
(a) to promote the attainment and maintenance of excellence in the standard and quality of research and innovation undertaken;
(b) to support the undertaking of research and innovation in all fields of activity and disciplines by researchers with different levels of knowledge, experience and specialist skills in such fields or disciplines;
(c) to promote and support the contribution made by research and innovation to economic, social, cultural and environmental development and sustainability in the State;
(d) to strengthen the engagement of the research and innovation system with:
(i) the Government, Ministers of the Government and bodies (whether statutory or otherwise) which are funded wholly or partly by public moneys, and
(ii) enterprise, non-governmental organisations, cultural institutions and society generally;
(e) to promote and develop the reputation of the State internationally as a location that is favourable for undertaking research and innovation;
(f) to advance the principles of equality, diversity and inclusion with regard to opportunities to undertake research and innovation and in the undertaking of that research and innovation.
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