The institution will be responsible for the initial execution of the program’s activities and for articulating the health innovation ecosystem
The Ministry of Health published, on July 3, the Ordinance that establishes the Brazilian Program for Radical Innovation in Health (PNIRS) and recognizes the Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM) as the inaugural anchor center of the initiative.
According to the Ordinance, the program will be coordinated by the Secretariat of Science, Technology and Innovation in Health (SCTIE), and aims to broaden the national capacity to develop strategic health technologies. In this context, CNPEM will act as the inaugural anchor center for the initiative, responsible for the initial execution of the activities outlined in the regulation.
The document establishes that the Program will be operationalized through anchor centers for innovation in health, responsible for executing research, development and innovation (RD&I) projects, and for providing specialized technological services to the productive sector. Among its responsibilities are the operation of scientific and technological infrastructures and the coordination between companies, startups, scientific and technological institutions, and other actors in the innovation ecosystem.
As the inaugural anchor center, CNPEM will be responsible for the initial implementation of the Program through legal instruments signed with the Ministry of Health. As established by the Ordinance, the institution will operate scientific and technological infrastructure, provide specialized technological services to the productive sector, and execute research, development, and innovation (RD&I) projects in health.
The Ordinance also establishes that other institutions may be accredited as anchor centers in the future, provided they meet the technical and operational criteria defined by the Ministry of Health.
About CNPEM
The Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM) is home to a state-of-the-art, multi-user and multidisciplinary scientific environment and works on different fronts within the Brazilian National System for Science, Technology and Innovation. A social organization overseen by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MCTI), with the involvement of the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health, CNPEM is driven by research that impacts the areas of health, energy, renewable materials, and sustainability. It is responsible for Sirius, the largest assembly of scientific equipment constructed in the country, and is currently constructing Project Orion, a laboratory complex for advanced pathogen research. Highly specialized science and engineering teams, sophisticated infrastructure open to the scientific community, strategic lines of investigation, innovative projects involving the productive sector, and training for researchers and students are the pillars of this institution that is unique in Brazil and able to serve as a bridge between knowledge and innovation. CNPEM's research and development activities are carried out through its four National Laboratories: Synchrotron Light (LNLS), Biosciences (LNBio), Nanotechnology (LNNano), Biorenewables (LNBR), as well as its Technology Unit (DAT) and the Ilum School of Science — an undergraduate program in Science and Technology.
