Brazil Minister laments loss of resources for science and technology

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – A Congressional bill withdrew R$690 (US$125) million from the portfolio headed by Pontes and transferred it to other Ministries. The change was requested by the government’s economic area, in a letter sent to the Mixed Budget Committee (CMO).

With the cut, the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation lost approximately 90% of its budget. The Minister said he will seek to reverse the losses in discussions with the President.

“Yesterday was not a very good day in terms of budget, regarding the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovations, but that’s life, there are good days and bad days. Today is a very good day. And I am sure that with President Bolsonaro’s support, as he supports and likes science, we will be able to restore the Ministry’s budget and increase it,” said Marcos Pontes at the opening of the 1st Brazilian Niobium Trade Show, held at the National Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM), in Campinas (São Paulo).

The event was attended by President Jair Bolsonaro and several Ministers.

The world’s largest producer of niobium, Brazil holds over 90% of the global market. The metal is used mainly in steel alloys. It allows the bond strength of steel atoms to be increased and, consequently, its thermal and mechanical strength to be enhanced, as well as its ability to absorb loads without breaking or deforming. In addition, niobium increases the ability to weld to other materials, and eliminates the risk of metal corrosion.

These features allow the use of niobium in the construction of rockets, airplanes, turbines, automotive parts, metallic structures, ships, rails, batteries, sensors, lenses, superconductors, ships, pipelines, and much more.

“We have just seen it, at the Niobium Trade Show, a number of products using niobium technology in day-to-day life. And they even save lives. We also saw the Graphene Trade Show, in Caxias do Sul. Today, Brazil has the largest graphene production plant in Latin America, for instance. We have the best niobium technology on the planet,” the Minister emphasized.

In addition to the Niobium Trade Show, President Jair Bolsonaro and his party inaugurated new CNPEM facilities, including the 5 new beamlines at Sirius, the state-of-the-art Brazilian particle accelerator that generates synchrotron light.

The largest scientific project under development in Brazil, Sirius generates a special type of light, a synchrotron light, of broad spectrum and very high intensity, which helps to reveal the structures of various types of particles, organic and inorganic, and can be used in multiple scientific applications, such as medicine, biology, agriculture, among others.

PROTEST

Shortly before giving his speech at the event, President Jair Bolsonaro was the target of a protest by a women’s group, who criticized the cuts in science and technology, the veto on the free distribution of sanitary pads to low-income women, and the 600,000 deaths by Covid-19 in Brazil. The guests at the event booed the protesters.

In reaction, the President said, “We are not going to sink to their level,” and proceeded normally to his speech.

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