A Message from CIHR’s President about Budget 2009

Following the January 26, 2009 Speech from the Throne, the Government of Canada tabled its 2009 Budget, Canada's Economic Action Plan in the House of Commons on January 27. The Budget outlined the Government's economic stimulus package designed to bolster the Canadian economy and provide support for Canadians as the world's economies work through the current economic crisis. The Budget 2009 speech and documents can be found on the Finance Canada website.

Research plays a key role in improving the health of Canadians. That's why, over the past three years, the Government has increased the annual base budget of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) by over $142 million. This year CIHR plans to spend approximately $917 million on peer-reviewed health research projects conducted at universities, hospitals and research centres across Canada.

I have summarized below the details of Budget 2009 as it relates to CIHR.

First, CIHR will receive $35M over the next three years for Canada Graduate Scholarships (CGS) to fund an additional 200 doctoral scholarships, valued at $35,000 each per year for three years beginning in 2009-10, and an additional 400 master's scholarships, valued at $17,500 each for one year, in both 2009-10 and 2010-11.

Second, Budget 2009 also provided the results of the Government's Strategic Review process. CIHR was one of the 21 Government Departments and Agencies that undertook a Strategic Review of its programs and services. The objective of the process was to assess whether programs:

  • are effective and efficient;
  • meet the priorities of Canadians; and
  • are aligned with federal responsibilities.

The results of the process are as follows:

  • CIHR funding of the Open Team Grant program will be discontinued. To respect current commitments, reductions will be phased in over the next three years with $1.5M in 2009-10, $5.5M in 2010-11, and $27.6M in 2011-12 and thereafter; and
  • Funding for the Intellectual Property Mobilization (IPM) program will be discontinued. To respect CIHR's current commitments, the annual reductions of $2M will commence in 2010-11 and end in 2011-12.

In addition, funding under the Indirect Costs Program will be reduced in proportion to reductions in the above direct cost programs. The relative ratio of funding for the direct and indirect costs will therefore remain essentially the same as prior to the Strategic Review.

In summary, taking into account the new investments for the Canada Graduate Scholarships and the strategic reallocations, CIHR's budget for 2009-10 will increase by $12.5M, bringing our total budget to $978.8M.

Sincerely,

Alain Beaudet, MD, PhD
President
Canadian Institutes of Health Research