PRIME MINISTER HARPER ANNOUNCES NEW CANADA-INDIA RESEARCH CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE

NEW DELHI, INDIA – Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced that the Government of Canada has selected the India-Canada Centre for Innovative Multidisciplinary Partnership to Accelerate Transformation and Sustainability (IC-IMPACTS) as the winner of the Canada-India Research Centre of Excellence (CIRCE) competition announced in Budget 2011.

The goal of the competition – which was run by the Networks of Centres of Excellence – was to select a Canada-India Research Centre of Excellence, open to proposals in all areas of research, that would accelerate the bilateral exchange of research and enhance Canada’s international visibility and reputation as a research leader. 

“Canada needs to be connected to an international supply of ideas, research, talent and technologies in order to create jobs, growth and long-term prosperity in an increasingly competitive global environment,” said Prime Minister Harper.  “This new Canada-India Research Centre of Excellence will build stronger bilateral research ties and create valuable learning opportunities while generating positive economic and social benefits for both countries.”

IC-IMPACTS – which is being spearheaded by the University of British Columbia in collaboration with the University of Alberta and the University of Toronto and various public and private sector partners in Canada and India –will bring together a team of Canadian and Indian researchers, industry representatives, community leaders, not-for-profit organizations and government agencies that will focus on three key areas: safe drinking water, reliable infrastructure, such as well-constructed hospitals, and effective prevention and treatment of water-borne and infectious diseases.

The centre will develop and implement solutions to these issues in partner communities in India andCanada, providing a real-world testing ground, with the goal of sharing effective solutions with other communities.

Support for the CIRCE competition, in the amount of $12 million, was provided in Canada’s Economic Action Plan 2011 as part of the Government’s India Engagement Strategy.

StarBuzz, Toronto-