Early public research funding response to COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: This study investigated the role of early public research funding regarding the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil. METHODS: We examined the budget for research projects relating to the number of cases and deaths and the relationship between each federal unit, gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, and the national GDP per capita. RESULTS: Using data from the websites of official funding agencies and the Brazilian government, we found that, in the first four months since the first case in Wuhan, China (December 31, 2019), around US$ 38.3 million were directed to public funding for scientific investigations against the COVID-19 pandemic. However, only 11 out of 27 federal units provided funding during the initial stages of the outbreak, and those that did provide financing were not necessarily the units having the most inhabitants, highest GDP, or the greatest number of cases. The areas of research interest were also identified in the funding documents; the most common topic was “diagnosis” and the least common was “equipment for treatment.” CONCLUSIONS: Brazilian researchers had access to funding opportunities for projects against COVID-19. However, strategies to minimize the economic impacts of COVID-19 are crucial in mitigating or avoiding substantial financial and social shortcomings, particularly in terms of an emerging market such as Brazil.

Quantifying holistic capacity response and healthcare resilience in tackling COVID-19: Assessment of country capacity by MCDM

“…Brazil has a low BMEs/1K, but provided the highest COVID-19 emergency medical funds. Brazilian COVID-19 researchers had early access to governmental emergency research funds [56]. The Brazilian government provided �$9.57 billion in emergency funds across Brazil [57].…”

Is the government’s direct subsidy to COVID-19 effective?

“…The repeated outbreaks and strict lockdowns in major cities pose serious challenges to the economic recovery process [ 1 ]. It is crucial to find ways to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on social stability and economic development [ 6 ]. The adverse effects of COVID-19 on the production factors of the entire society may also affect individual firms [ 15 ].…”

“…Previous studies have examined the role of government subsidies in achieving corporate social performance and firm performance from various perspectives, such as public transport, supply-demand balance, and social stability [ [3] , [4] , [5] ]. Most studies assume that government subsidies have a positive effect on social performance [ [6] , [7] , [8] ], while views on firm performance differ among researchers. Some argue that government subsidies are a crucial driver of enterprise innovation and development [ 9 , 10 ], while others suggest that political linkages and crowding-out effects could render them ineffective [ [11] , [12] , [13] , [14] ].…”

Saving millions of lives but some resources squandered: emerging lessons from health research system pandemic achievements and challenges

“…Despite the unprecedented levels of funding, some researchers still faced funding challenges. There was some public funding from both federal and state agencies in Brazil [ 135 ], but it was the researchers there, out of our seven HRSs, who faced the greatest difficulties securing finance for COVID-19 research [ 20 , 145 ]. Elsewhere, even some of the COVID-19 academic research that was eventually the most successful could face challenges.…”