Strengthening the Australian-

Indian research alliance

Paul J. Verma

Professor of Reproductive Biology

South Australian Research Institute (SARDI)

Adjunct Professor

Monash University

Advisory Panel- Stem Cells

Australia-India Strategic Research Fund

3rd Annual Towards Research Excellence Conference

10th December - Rydges, Melbourne

Talk Outline

Strengthening the Australian-Indian research alliance

• Building strong partnerships around research collaboration

• Exploring the possibilities for shared innovation, shared intellectual

capital and mutual wealth generation powered through research

• Australia – India Strategic Research Fund (AISRF)

• Examining alternate funding mechanisms for the progression of

science and technology collaboration

Building Strong Partnerships around research collaboration

• The Australian Government aims to lift Australia’s gross domestic product (GDP) per

person into the world’s top 10 by 2025 (Australia in the Asian Century White Paper)

• Australia produces around 3% of the world’s knowledge (97% produced elsewhere)

• To maximise a return on research investment- International research linkages are

essential to access knowledge and expertise not readily available in the country.

• Accordingly, the White Paper identified supporting Australian researchers to broaden

and strengthen their partnerships with the region as a key policy pathway to achieve

national objectives.

• To achieve this goal, Australia will need to engage more deeply with Asia and

increase its productivity through an enhanced research and innovation capability.

• More comprehensive relationships with Asian countries, especially with key regional

nations – China, India, Indonesia, Japan and South Korea

Why India?

• International research collaboration is an essential activity that sustains the wellbeing

of Australians through solving national challenges and increasing productivity

• We share many climatic and environmental regions with India

• Improved health services, food and energy security, environmental sustainability, and

innovation all depend on the discovery and the creation of new knowledge

• India has already displaced Australia within the global top ten countries by number of

scientific publications and is set to continue the rapid growth seen over the past

decade. It will be an increasingly important player in global research efforts.

• Australia’s links with India in this field remain comparatively underdeveloped:

Australia still produces more co-authored scientific papers with the Netherlands,

Sweden or Singapore than with India.

Australia’s initial commitment of $20 million over five years to the AISRF was

announced during the Australian Prime Minister, Mr John Howard’s visit to

India in 2006, and reciprocated by India.

In 2009, the Prime Ministers of Australia and India announced their agreement

to upgrade relations between our two countries to the level of a Strategic

Partnership, and to extend and expand the AISRF. Australia’s commitment

rose to $64 million over the ten years to 2015-16

Reiterated in 2012 by Prime Minister Ms Julia Gillard during meeting with Prime

Minister Manmohan Singh

Australia – India Strategic Research Fund (AISRF)

AISRF Objectives

The objectives of the AISRF are to:

• Increase the uptake of leading edge science and technology (S&T) by

supporting:

o collaboration between Australian and Indian researchers in strategically

focused, leading edge scientific research and technology projects; and

o strengthening strategic alliances between Australian and Indian

researchers

• Facilitate Australia’s and India’s access to the global S&T system.

Australia – India Strategic Research Fund (AISRF)

AISRF Program Components

The research engagement supported by the program can be described

as comprising two broad categories of activity:

• ideas exchange & relationship building – achieved via

o international staff exchanges to discuss research topics

o access improved research techniques, fellowships,

conferences and workshops

o participation in multilateral science and research policy forums

• collaborative research projects – involving collaboration on specific

research projects by individual researchers, research groups and

institutions.

S&T fund priority areas R7

Collaborative Workshops

• Agricultural Research

• Astronomy and Astrophysics

• Environment Sciences (including climate change research)

• Material science (including nanotechnology)

• Renewable Energy

• Marine Sciences

• Earth Sciences

• Information and Communication Technology

Collaborative Research Projects

• Information and Communication Technology

• Marine Sciences

• Earth Sciences

BioTech priority areas R7

Collaborative Workshops

• Biomedical Devices and Implants

• Stem Cells

• Transgenic Crops and Marker-assisted Breeding

• Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods

• Bioremediation

• Bioenergy and Biofuels

• Vaccines / Medical Diagnostics

Collaborative Research Projects

• Vaccines, immunomodulators and immunotherapeutics

• Biotechnological interventions for improved agricultural productivity

Collaboration

The fund has been highly successful in linking scientists from both

countries.

• Over 28 Australian institutions, close to 100 Indian institutions, and

hundreds of scientists have worked on projects support by the fund.

• Projects have been supported in a number of areas including

agricultural research, astronomy and astrophysics, earth science,

ICT, marine science, materials science, nanotechnology, renewable

energy, stem cells, biofuels, bioremediation, bioenergy and biofuel,

nutraceuticals, vaccines, and transgenic crops and marker assisted

breeding.

• The primary fields of research collaboration between Australian and

Indian researchers are medicine, engineering and agricultural and

biological sciences.

Percentage of AISRF expenditure by activity type, 2006 to

2012

Percentage of AISRF expenditure by mode of delivery, 2006-

07 to 2015-16

Popularity & competitiveness

The very high demand for AISRF grants indicates the program has

been successful in encouraging Australian researchers to work with

non-traditional partners.

More than 1,000 applications for AISRF funding have been received for

the competitive components of the program, with the average

success rates being only:

• 9 per cent for the Indo-Australia Science and Technology Fund;

• 14 per cent for the Indo-Australia Biotechnology Fund; and

• 4 per cent for the Grand Challenge Fund.

Well below traditional ARC and NHMRC grants

Rated Category 1 Research Infrastructure Block Grants (RIBG)

Outcomes to date

• Supported over 200 projects and activities.

o 60 grants (49 research projects and 5 workshops) via the Indo-Australia

Science and Technology Fund;

o 45 grants (40 research projects and 5 workshops) via the Indo-Australia

Biotechnology Fund;

o 7 grants for research projects via the Grand Challenges Fund;

o 9 grants via the Targeted Allocations component of the program;

o 49 fellowships to assist 16 young Australian researchers and 33 senior

Australian researchers to work in Indian research organisations; and

o 32 fellowships to assist 21 young Indian researchers and 11 senior

Indian researchers to work in Australian research organisations.

Growth in scientific papers co-authored by Australian and Indian

researchers

Strategic Policy Alignment

The AISRF is well aligned with Australian Government policy.

• supports the overall intent and several of the individual

objectives identified in the White Paper

• contributes directly to Australia’s goal of developing

our knowledge partnership with India

• establishes the people-to-people links in research

seen as essential to Australia’s strategic agenda for

education and training engagement with India

• strengthens Australia’s national research fabric by

linking with Indian research skills, expertise and

networks.

Looking ahead

The AISRF has become an important plank in the broader diplomatic

relationship with India. It is considered by the Department of Foreign

Affairs and Trade to be a flagship program in the bilateral

relationship.

Increased emphasis on proposals of a greater scope than individual

research projects

Investments should aim to establish lasting institutional and researcher

relationships that enhance research expertise and provide additional

facilities so as to increase the quality, scale and duration of effort

applied to solving Australian and Indian research priorities.

Exploring the possibilities for shared innovation, shared

intellectual capital and mutual wealth generation through research

Australia has a strong track record of Ground breaking innovations

• the bionic ear;

• the cervical cancer vaccine;

• Wi-Fi wireless local area network;

• the first artificial pacemaker;

• the first ‘black box’ flight data recorder.

Australian Government strategy for engagement with India.

• Under the country strategy, emphasis on promoting the reputation, ranking,

teaching and research strengths of Australian universities to ensure them as

the first choice when Indian universities and businesses are looking for

partners.

• Linkages between research, business, and industry will focus on

commercial outcomes.

• This will be achieved by leveraging off the success of Austrade, and the

AISRF to help develop closer bilateral scientific collaboration.

Exploring the possibilities with India

Indian companies had an opportunity to learn of Australia’s research and

development capabilities at the Australian Innovation Showcase, held in

New Delhi in early November.

Highlighted Australian expertise in areas such as information technology,

biotechnology, materials science for advanced manufacturing and energy

efficiency; and offered Indian companies an opportunity to partner with

Australian universities, research institutions and technology companies to:

• Gain access to leading research for new product development and

process improvement to increase competitiveness and develop new

export markets; and

• Invest in technology start-ups to commercialise and launch products for

the global market.

The showcase was part of Austrade’s work in promoting linkages between

industry and academia, trade, investment, and education.

Examining alternate funding mechanism for the progression of

science and technology collaboration

A few of our universities have established a presence in India to foster

institutional linkages and support closer links between both research

communities.

Government supported projects are funded through a number of institutions

including:

• The Australian Research Council (ARC) notes the increasing globalisation

of research, and has developed an international strategy as a result. ARC’s

aim in supporting international collaboration is to maximise Australia’s

contribution to and benefits from international research collaborations,

partnerships, developments and policy. (Discovery Projects, the Discovery

Early Career Researcher Award, Linkage Projects, Linkage Infrastructure,

Equipment and Facilities, Future Fellowships, Australian Laureate

Fellowships, and ARC Centres of Excellence)

• NHMRC supports Australian researchers to participate in multinational

research, and collaborative projects with international researchers (CIRM

etc)

Alternate collaborations

• CSIRO’s international strategy with India- priority areas

o sustainable agriculture

o radioastronomy,

o renewable technologies

o livestock industries

o water saving measures

o mineral resources

o biotechnology

o health

• CSIRO already has a number of established links with Indian institutions

o Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) India

o Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IITB)

o The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI)

Australian govt. programs

• The Cooperative Research Centres program addresses challenges facing Australia. It

actively encourages applicants to engage globally and has supported a number of

collaborative projects with Indian partners

o hearing & vision

o wound management

o future farm industries

o environmental remediation

o automotive industry

• Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) supports joint

research focused on improving sustainable agricultural production.

o wheat improvement

o water management

o agricultural policy

Acknowledgments

Professor Robin Batterham

Chair, Australia-India Strategic Research Fund Advisory

Panel

Lead, Australia India Taskforce on Science Technology

Innovation

Mr. Ashdin Tarapore

Assistant Manager, South Asia SectionInternational

Education & Science Division

Department of Industry, Innovation, Climate Change,

Science, Research and Tertiary Education (DIICCSRTE)