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The Czech Science Foundation (GA ČR), the most important provider of support for basic research projects in the Czech Republic, has announced the results of its competitions for 2026. In total, more than 400 scientific projects across all areas of basic research will be funded. Over CZK 3.7 billion has been earmarked to support the projects. Among the successful applicants are scientific teams from Palacký University, which are listed in the table below.
An overview of the supported projects for Palacký University is available HERE.
"The Grant Agency is here to give scientists the opportunity to have their scientific projects independently evaluated by experts in the field and to fund the best ones," says GA CR Chairman Prof. Milan Jirsa. All project proposals underwent a two-stage evaluation process involving exclusively female scientists and scientists from Czech and foreign institutions. "The evaluation process complies with the standards of the most prestigious European provider of grants for basic research – the European Research Council (ERC). Thanks to its standards, the outputs of our evaluation are used both by foreign partner institutions in international projects and by Czech institutions to fund other excellent projects for which there are no remaining funds in the GA CR budget," adds Professor Jirsa.
Standard projects
Standard projects form the basis of grant support for basic research in the Czech Republic. From 2026, the GA CR will support 336 new standard projects worth CZK 3 billion. Project proposals with a duration of up to three years can be submitted by all researchers and their teams, regardless of their age and experience. This type of project has been supported since 1993. Due to budget constraints, the proportion of supported projects is historically the lowest, reaching only 14%.
Return grants
The latest grant competition, announced for the first time this year, is Return Grants. These will enable 19 excellent female scientists to restart their careers after taking a break for parental leave or to care for a dependent person. The duration of the support will depend on the chosen workload and will be two to four years. Almost CZK 70 million will be allocated to new projects.
POSTDOC INDIVIDUAL FELLOWSHIP
The POSTDOC INDIVIDUAL FELLOWSHIP (PIF) competition is announced in the OUTGOING and INCOMING variants. The first variant will enable early-stage researchers to complete a two-year internship abroad, where they will gain valuable experience in the early stages of their careers. In the third year, they will put this experience to good use at a Czech workplace. Thanks to the second branch of the competition (PIF INCOMING), foreign researchers can work at a scientific workplace in the Czech Republic. This competition is also used to encourage young Czech scientists to return from abroad. A total of 30 early-stage researchers will receive these three-year grants starting next year. The grants will amount to over CZK 145 million.
International projects
GA ČR currently cooperates with 12 foreign agencies from around the world. The results of competitions and calls announced jointly with a foreign partner agency will be announced gradually after their approval by the partner agency. The decision to support the above-mentioned projects is subject to the condition that the Czech Republic's state budget law for 2026 allocates GA ČR special-purpose funds in the in the amount approved by the Council for Research, Development, and Innovation and the Government of the Czech Republic. The funds will be allocated to the aforementioned researchers only after the state budget law comes into effect.
Source: gacr.cz