Supporting the Newton Fund to advance developing countries

One way we are developing our international strategy is by partnering with the British Council to support the Newton Fund. This opportunity will not only benefit the UK chemistry community, it will also expand our communities overseas and  help us to better equip scientists in the developing world to tackle the challenges faced by their countries.

The Newton Fund, launched in 2013 by the UK government department for Business, Innovation and Skills, aims to build science capacity and partnerships to promote the economic development and social welfare of developing countries, and to support the UK’s research community. The Newton Fund is a £375million fund, providing £75million per year for 5 years.

Through the Newton Fund, the UK will use its strength in research and innovation to support and advance developing countries. This will build strong, sustainable partnerships between the UK and 15 partner countries, funding programmes that will be implemented by delivery partners including the British Council, the Royal Society and Research Councils UK.

Any contributions from the Newton Fund towards the work of the delivery partner must be match-funded by the government of the developing country. We will partner with the British Council and, through their Researcher Links programme, we will match-fund at 50% a selection of chemistry applications that would not otherwise receive funding. We expect to fund around 10 Researcher Exchanges and 10 Workshops in 2015.

The aims of the British Council Researcher Links programme strongly align with our international strategy. Bringing together chemical scientists from all over the world to develop their skills, knowledge and practice of science is central in our mission to advance excellence in the chemical sciences.