00:00Hundreds of people have taken to the streets of Buenos Aires to protest funding cuts to science and technology under
00:06President Javier Millet's government.
00:08Protesters accused the government of allowing Argentina's scientific and research sectors to deteriorate since Millet took office in December 2023.
00:20Protesters are calling for postdoctoral fellowships to be extended, vacant positions to be filled and salaries to be increased.
00:27They point to a 50 percent cut in the science and technology budget since 2023.
00:33The cuts have left science funding at just 0.14 percent of GDP.
00:38This contrasts sharply with regional neighbors like Brazil, which invests over 1.1 percent of its GDP in research and
00:45development.
00:46Scientists say the sector has also lost around 6,000 researchers, technicians and support staff,
00:53with salary freezes and the closure of research programs contributing to a brain drain.
00:58The protest comes as 24 Nobel laureates and leading scientists from around the world have signed a letter backing Argentine
01:05researchers.
01:06They warn that continued cuts could cause lasting damage to the country's scientific capacity.
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