Danish research can look forward to financial assistance of one billion Danish crowns (EUR 135 million) from the Lundbeck Foundation in the next three years.

According to Berlingske Tidende the donation will be dedicated to research within natural science and health science. It is the largest private contribution for research in Denmark so far.

Foundations such as the Lundbeck Foundation donate much money to public health research. And a significant share of the billion which will be spent on public health science research comes from private contributors.

The Lundbeck Foundation is donating another EUR 13 million besides the EUR 135 million tomorrow. The money will be dedicated to three research centres with Danish as well as international participation and is earmarked to clinical research or what Erik Juhl calls the “patient bound” research.

The Danish Minister of Research Helge Sander is impressed by the announcement from the Lundbeck Foundation.

He believes that the donation will contribute to Denmark living up to the target that three per cent of the GNP will be set off to research in 2010. Two per cent is to come from private business life whereas one per cent approximately EUR 2½ billion is to be derived from the public sector.