The Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT) is a public entity attached to the Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness whose objective is to promote, coordinate and diffuse scientific and technological culture in Spain.
In order to achieve its objective, FECYT develops programs aimed at different audiences: primary and secondary school students, university students, business people, citizens in general, etc. All these programs are developed with the collaboration of experts in each field. The main programmatic lines can be summarized as follows:
-To increase the knowledge of citizens about science and technology through different initiatives such as the National Plan for Scientific Culture or the organization of events such as Science Week.
-To contribute to improving scientific literacy among young people through programs such as AulaCiencia or Ciência Viva
-To support training in new technologies by universities and research centers through Talentum or RedHUCyT
-Supporting entrepreneurship in areas related to science and technology through EmprendeCiencia
FECYT was created by Royal Decree 1716/2011 of 18 November 2011, following the merger of two previous entities: the Spanish Committee for Research Promotion (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas; CSIC) and Intramural Studies Institute (Instituto de Estudios Internos del Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia; IEM), both dependent on the Ministry of Science and Innovation. Its first president was Luis Serrano Pérez. As an agency under the auspices of Secretary General State Secretariat for Universities, Research & Development (SGURD), it reports directly to Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría Antón. It has a governing council that meets once per quarter which is presided over by Pedro Duque Moya.