Boost for innovation in northern Brazil

The Brazilian government has allocated 500 million reais ($152m) to projects in northern Brazil as part of an effort to bolster innovation.

The government will also open an outpost of its innovation agency, Finep, in Fortaleza, the capital of the Ceará region in northeastern Brazil.

The decision was made following an assessment by Finep’s directors, which showed that it allocated most of its funding for innovation to the states of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. Opening an office in Fortaleza will be the first step in the agency’s attempts to diversify operations, president Marcos Cintra said in a statement on 4 July.