Fonds national de la recherche scientifique (Belgium)

The National Fund for Scientific Research (Dutch: Nationaal Fonds voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (NFWO), French: Fonds National de la Recherche Scientifique (FNRS)) was once a government institution in Belgium for supporting scientific research until it was split into two separate organizations in 1992: the Dutch-speaking Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek – Vlaanderen (FWO) (Research Foundation – Flanders) for the Flemish Community the French-speaking Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique – FNRS (F.R.S.–FNRS) for the French Community The task of the FWO and F.R.S.–FNRS is to stimulate the development of new knowledge in all scientific disciplines. The means to achieve this, is to finance excellent scientists and research projects after an inter-University competition and with an evaluation by foreign experts. The criterion for support is the scientific quality of the scientist and the research proposal, irrespective of scientific discipline. Both institutions, the FWO and the F.R.S.–FNRS, are located in the same building at Egmontstraat 5 rue d'Egmont in B-1000 Brussels.