The Dutch government has reserved €200 million from its National Growth Fund for the establishment of the Holomicrobiome Institute and its activities during the first ten years. The reservation was announced by Minister Adriaansens of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy.
The minister adopted the recommendation from an independent assessment committee that had advised the Dutch cabinet on all submitted proposals. Of a total of 39 proposals in the field of Research, development and innovation, twelve received final or conditional funding commitments.
The government sets aside €200 million for the Holomicrobiome Institute. The funds can be definitively awarded after additional information has been provided on some elements of the project, which the National Growth Fund Advisory Committee will then reassess.
In its report, the advisory committee states that it believes in the multidisciplinarity and the potential of the Dutch microbiome research field. The committee calls the bringing together of the various research domains ‘unique’. According to the committee, the project connects many important domains and this integration ensures accelerated applications in a multitude of fields.
The committee recognised the strong representation of renowned knowledge and research institutions in the consortium, which gives it confidence in the plan’s implementation. Setting up a centralised Holomicrobiome Institute was unanimously seen by consulted experts as a sensible approach to integrate project components and expertise.
Before advising to definitively fund the Institute, the committee asks the consortium for additional information on, amongst other things, the institute’s valorisation strategy and its mandate over the overall research programme.
The consortium will work to provide this information to the committee soon.