Federal Universities Have Lost 73 Percent of Infrastructure Funding In Ten Years

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Over the past 10 years, the amount granted to universities and federal institutions to invest in infrastructure – to purchase equipment for laboratories, change computers and renovate classrooms and libraries – has shrunk by 73 percent. A G1 survey showed that in 2010 the amount was R$2.78 billion – and it dropped to well below half in 2019 (R$760 million). The figures have been adjusted for inflation.

With increasingly less money to invest, universities have incomplete works, outdated laboratories, and struggle to expand the number of personnel. Scientific research is also feeling the pinch: there are insufficient conditions to conduct significant studies for the country.

At the Fluminense Federal University (UFF) in Rio de Janeiro, the chemistry and pharmacy course buildings have not been completed. “These are areas that would not only train professionals but also produce innovative drugs,” says Antonio Claudio Lucas da Nóbrega, the institution’s dean.

In Oriximiná, in the state of Pará, the UFF manages a maternity school, but is unable to find the resources to expand care. And in Nova Friburgo, in Rio, the university’s speech therapy clinic operates in a rented house, outside the campus, according to the dean. “We would need to build a new facility for care, which would help the local population. The lack of investment has a direct impact on the residents’ quality of life,” Nóbrega says.

The impact is also felt at the Federal University of Goiás (UFG). Nelson Amaral, a professor at the institution’s post-graduate education program, says the university’s expansion into the state’s interior requires investments. “We have four campuses that need a laboratory and a classroom,” he says.

Losses exposed by the pandemic

The value of investments in federal institutions became more evident during the coronavirus pandemic. The urgency of developing new drugs and creating a vaccine shows how critical the incentive to science is, experts say.

Fernando Marinho Mezzadri, Planning, Budget and Finance director of the Federal University of Paraná (UFPR), says “research requires infrastructure, resources.”

“In the biological sciences sector, we need new equipment; in the biochemistry department, we need facilities for magnetic resonance imaging. Our labs have been left unfinished for a long time.”

Denise Imbroisi, dean of Planning, Budget and Institutional Evaluation at the University of Brasília (UnB), stresses the role of federal institutions in the pandemic. “They have had a model performance, but the answers are only possible when there is investment in teaching and research,” she says.

The urgency of having a larger budget is also noted by Edward Madureira, president of the National Association of Directors of Federal Institutions of Higher Education (ANDIFES). “We need to exchange magnifiers, computers, microscopes. We are now tracking the demand for university studies in the pandemic. But with this budget, the activity becomes unviable,” he says.

Brain drain

The federal University of Brasília (UnB) main library also requires investments. “The university is aging and the challenge of maintaining teaching quality is increasing. We have the largest public library in the Federal District, open to the whole population. The databases, new books and even the renovation of the building would provide benefits for the whole community,” says Imbroisi.

According to Edward Madureira, of Andifes, the main risk is a “brain drain”. “Youths who are graduating are unable to continue their research. They eventually decide to seek opportunities abroad,” he says.

According to the Ministry of Education (MEC), the reduction in the budget is a result of the financial crisis during the pandemic. When the deans were advised of the projected cuts, they said the universities’ operations would be compromised.

Sports, accessibility, wi-fi…

The universities heard by G1 also mention other impacts of lower investments:

*Computing: the investment sum is also used for computer maintenance and purchase and for improvements in wi-fi networks. When in-person classes restart, a hybrid system with virtual activities may be adopted. An outdated computer structure can hinder the students’ performance.

*Accessibility: Universities in very old buildings may not have the required adjustments for people with disabilities. This is a law – whether to build a ramp that allows the circulation of a wheelchair user, like myself, or to buy special study lenses for people with low eyesight. The lack of investment in universities impoverishes society by not including these people,” says Nóbrega.

*Sports facilities: the construction of courts and a structure for physical activities also depends on investments.

A significant drop

In 2010, the federal institutions’ annual budget amounted to R$40.58 billion. Of that total, R$2.78 billion (6.8 percent) was allocated to infrastructure. In the following two years, the budget for investments stood at an even higher level, around R$3.8 billion.

At that time, the Program to Support Restructuring and Expansion Plans of Federal Universities (REUNI) was in force. The goal was to increase the offer of vacancies and the physical structure of higher education institutions by 2012.

In 2014, the amount earmarked for investments dropped to R$2.7 billion – until it plunged to R$0.76 billion in 2019.

During this period, the “spending ceiling”, included in the 2016 Constitution, was passed during Michel Temer’s administration. It places a limit on public spending by the government as a whole. It is up to the Executive branch to define which areas will be prioritized, among education, health, defense, etc. The sum of all areas cannot exceed the ceiling.

Projected cuts.

The government projects an 18.2 percent cut in non-compulsory spending for federal universities in 2021. Each institution will be notified of how much it will need to spend on investments and current expenses next year. The proposal is yet to be put to a vote.

Nóbrega, the UFF dean, says there’s a fiscal imbalance. “But we need to choose what will have more investment, under the current circumstances. It seems science and education are not considered solutions for the country to grow again.”

By August 12th, 2020, the amount earmarked for investments stood at R$66 million.

The budget path

Each federal institution has three major spending levels:

1- Compulsory spending: Employees’ salaries and pensions. These expenses take up most of the university’s money – typically approximately 80 percent. There can be no cuts here.

2- Non-compulsory spending, subject to cuts:

a) Investments: Here are all the expenses mentioned in this report – works, purchase of equipment, laboratory renovation, library maintenance, wi-fi networks, etc.

b) Current expenses: Electricity, water and telephone bills; academic scholarships; research supplies; payment of outsourced employees.

Source: G1