The financial crisis in Greece has made an already dire situation even more difficult for researchers. Greece receives €3 billion ($4 billion) annually in structural funds from the EU. But only about 5% of this amount, which constitutes the majority of the country’s national research funding, goes toward research. Last year, the European Commission reduced the amount of these funds that the Greek government must match from 25% to 5%. EU competitive grants also support research. However, the EU funds are not fixed amounts, which makes it difficult to budget far into the future. The EU funds also generally do not apply to set expenses. These expenses are instead funded by the Greek government, which continues to lower research investment, affecting salaries and hiring. Research funding accounts for just 0.5% of Greece’s GDP. The government announced in February that in an effort to pool resources, Greece’s 56 public research facilities will be condensed to 31. Scientists also note that Greece’s system does not financially reward performance or support young scientists.

Source: Physics Today