COMISION NACIONAL DE INVESTIGACION CIENTIFICA Y TECNOLOGICA

Their core work

CONICYT (now known as ANID) is Chile's national science and technology funding agency, responsible for coordinating and financing research programs across the country. In H2020, it served as the Latin American bridge for EU-CELAC cooperation, facilitating alignment between European and Chilean/Latin American research funding strategies. Its role centers on policy coordination, co-funding of joint research calls, and building institutional frameworks that connect EU research infrastructures with their Latin American counterparts.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

CONICYT's early H2020 involvement (2016) focused on raw materials, mining, and circular economy — areas where Chile has natural strategic interest as a major mining nation. By 2019, participation shifted toward health research programming (personalised medicine) and research infrastructure cooperation, reflecting a broader institutional mandate to connect Latin American science systems with European frameworks across multiple domains. The move from sector-specific co-funding (minerals) to cross-cutting infrastructure and health policy suggests a deliberate expansion of EU-CELAC research diplomacy.

CONICYT is broadening its EU engagement from Chile's traditional mining strengths into health and research infrastructure, positioning itself as a multi-sector gateway for EU-Latin American research cooperation.

How they like to work

CONICYT participates exclusively as a partner, never as coordinator — consistent with its role as a national funding agency joining EU-led coordination actions rather than leading them. It operates in large consortia (46 unique partners across 24 countries from just 3 projects), indicating it joins broad, multi-country policy networks. This makes it a reliable institutional partner for projects needing Latin American representation and co-funding commitment.

Despite only 3 projects, CONICYT has collaborated with 46 unique partners across 24 countries, reflecting the large-scale coordination networks typical of CSA and ERA-NET actions. Its geographic reach spans Europe and Latin America, making it a connector between these two research ecosystems.

What sets them apart

CONICYT is one of very few Latin American national funding agencies participating directly in H2020, giving it a distinctive role as a gateway between EU and Chilean/CELAC research systems. For consortium builders, CONICYT brings not just institutional credibility but the ability to co-fund joint calls and mobilize Chilean research communities. Its value lies in opening doors to Latin American partnerships that most European organizations cannot access on their own.

Highlights from their portfolio

• ERA-MIN 2
  The only project where CONICYT received direct EC funding (EUR 178,108), an ERA-NET Cofund action coordinating international raw materials research — strategically aligned with Chile's mining economy.
• EU-LAC ResInfra
  A flagship EU-CELAC initiative building a new partnership model for shared research infrastructures between Europe and Latin America, running until 2023.