As part of UC Davis Chile's role in linking research carried out in California with Latin America, at the end of 2019 a Collaboration Agreement was signed with Uruguay's National Research and Innovation Agency (ANII).

With this agreement, both organizations declare to be linked in the interest of advancing towards activities that support the development of specific collaboration programs in science, technology, innovation, technology transfer and extension.

As a promoter of collaborative work between the two organizations, the agreement has as its main objectives:

-Support the implementation and execution of ANII's R&D+i and Extension programs in Uruguay.

-Identify gaps and develop projects that correspond to technological needs of companies and actors of the national R&D+i system of Uruguay.

-Transfer models and practices that facilitate access to information, knowledge and technologies that generate changes at the productive level, improving competitiveness - through links with experts from Chile and UC Davis who can provide capabilities for problem solving - of Uruguayan companies and Technology Centres.

-Facilitate the establishment of academic collaboration relationships, student mobility and research program development with the campus in California. This, through the exchange of researchers, teachers, specialists, students, science and technology managers and staff from both institutions.

The role of the ANII

The objective of the National Agency for Research and Innovation of Uruguay is to prepare, organize and manage instruments and programs for the promotion and encouragement of scientific and technological development and innovation, in accordance with the political-strategic guidelines and the country's priorities. In this way, it promotes the articulation and coordination of public and private actors involved in the creation and use of knowledge, in order to enhance synergies between them and make the most of available resources.

The first activity carried out under this collaboration agreement is mobility scholarships for postgraduate students from Uruguay to the University of Talca in Chile. Despite the fact that any type of internship is impossible at this time, Uruguayan postgraduate students and researchers from the University of Talca already have the terms and conditions available to access the scholarships offered by this agreement.