Bridging Grants Call, In Line with the New Swiss Research Cooperation with Iran and South Asian Countries

The Leading House of South Asia and Iran is designated by the Swiss Ministry of Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) for establishing bilateral research collaborations with research institutions in Iran, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Nepal, and India. The collaborating offices in each of these countries serve as bridges to Swiss researchers.

“The bridging grant is provided every four years by the SERI to establish and enhance international research interactions with universities and science centers in different countries, and it covers both medical and non-medical sciences fields”; stated Dr. N. Meraji, the Director of the Leading House for Iran Switzerland Academic Partnerships in a meeting with Dr. R. Kordi, TUMS Vice-Chancellor for Global Strategies and International Affairs as well as TUMS Vice-Deans for International Affairs on 19th Nov 2019.

In Iran, the Leading House for Iran Switzerland Academic Partnerships at TUMS and Swiss Desk at Isfahan University of Technology manage this funding for the medical sciences and non-medical sciences fields respectively.

Dr. N. Meraji maintained that the total budget allocated for each project is 25,000 Swiss Francs of which 12,500 Francs are granted by the Leading House of South Asia and Iran, and the remainder is provided by the National Institute for Medical Research Development (NIMAD) for Iranian researchers. Furthermore, the TUMS may grant an extra 500 million Rials to the projects that are approved by TUMS.

Registration for research projects is from November 1st, 2019 to January 15th, 2020. The Iranian researchers intending to apply for this grant have to submit their applications through the NIMAD system, and the Swiss researchers have to submit their applications through the website of the South Asia-Iran Scientific Cooperation Office.

The applications will be evaluated by the end of March 2020 and the applicants will be notified of the results by the end of April 2020, after which researchers can begin their research collaboration. Projects providing the opportunity for long-term collaboration between professors on both sides and creating the possibility of expanding ties and cooperation between them will be of greater value in evaluations.

Researchers and university professors can refer to the NIMAD website for more information on how to apply and for registration: http://nimad.ac.ir/content/193/Call-for-Bridging-Grants for further information.