Research cooperation with China

Norwegian and Chinese authorities agree on the need for an overall policy and more coordination of efforts to support cooperation on education and research, and the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has allocated funding for research cooperation between Chinese and Norwegian institutions. The Research Council administers these funds and is working to expand research cooperation in all fields and thematic areas.

Cooperation on education and research between Norway and China has increased considerably in recent years. In 2008, a cooperation agreement on research and technology was signed between the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research and the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China. A cooperation agreement was also entered into with the Chinese Ministry of Education.

Broad-based Norwegian participation at the international exhibition EXPO 2010 in Shanghai provided a starting point for further expansion of research cooperation with China.

Programmes

The Research Council has established the Programme for Research Cooperation with China (CHINOR) to expand Sino-Norwegian research cooperation. The programme covers the areas of climate, climate technology, the environment and welfare.

The CHINOR programme issues funding announcements via relevant thematic programmes under the Research Council. The largest individual measure so far was a call for proposals for NOK 30 million under the Programme on Climate Change and Impacts in Norway (NORKLIMA) in 2008.

In 2010 and 2011, the Research Council will announce funding for Sino-Norwegian research projects under several thematic programmes. The information will be published on the CHINOR webpages on an ongoing basis.

The Norway – Global Partner Programme (NORGLOBAL) encourages Norwegian institutions to integrate Chinese partners into relevant projects. Similar cooperation is also encouraged under the Programme on Norwegian Environmental Research towards 2015 (MILJO2015) as well as the Programme on Climate Change and Impacts in Norway (NORKLIMA).

Mobility grants

The Research Council offers three different mobility grants for Norwegian researchers who want to conduct research stays at or cooperate with research institutions in China: two of these are administered in cooperation with the China Scholarship Council (CSC) and the third is a joint scheme with the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC). Chinese researchers may also apply for research stays in Norway through these same schemes.

For more information, please see the International Scholarship Section