National Council of Science and Technology

What National Council of Science and Technology does

The National Council of Science and Technology (CONACYT), recently operating under the name SECIHTI (Secretaría de Ciencia, Humanidades, Tecnología e Innovación), is a decentralized public body of the Mexican Federal Administration operating within the education sector. Headquartered in Mexico City (contact: (55) 5322-7700), it is the principal federal instrument for science, humanities, technology, and innovation policy in Mexico. Its operational surface spans scholarships (Becas Nacionales and Becas al Extranjero), the National System of Researchers (SNII), National Laboratories, the Universidad Nacional Rosario Castellanos, oversight of public research centers, and the PRONACES (Programas Nacionales Estratégicos) and ENI (Ecosistemas Nacionales de Información) program lines.

Its core instruments are formal calls for proposals (Convocatorias) across two verticals — Ciencias y Humanidades and Tecnologías e Innovación — supplemented by a fiscal stimulus program for R&D (Estímulo Fiscal), inter-agency commissions including CIBIOGEM for biosafety of genetically modified organisms, and normative frameworks such as the Principios de Chapultepec for AI ethics. The agency also drives global science dissemination, hosts international conferences, and runs cooperation programs with partners including AECID and AMEXCID. Rafael Ibarra is listed as Director.

The business model is non-commercial: the agency is funded through Mexican federal budget allocations and operates as a grantmaker, policy setter, and institutional operator rather than a revenue-generating entity. It has no disclosed pricing model and no fee-for-service streams. Its customer base is institutional — researchers, graduate students, universities, and public research centers — reached primarily through official government channels, periodic calls for proposals, and earned media coverage of program announcements.

Name

National Council of Science and Technology

Website

https://conacyt.mx

Company type

Private

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The National Council of Science and Technology (CONACYT/SECIHTI) is Mexico's federal agency administering science, humanities, technology, and innovation policy, funding scholarships, research grants, the National System of Researchers, and public research centers across Mexico.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Mexico City

HQ country

Mexico

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

SECIHTI (formerly CONACYT) is the Mexican Federal Government's decentralized organism responsible for designing, coordinating, and funding national science, technology, innovation, and humanities policy. It administers national and international scholarships, the National System of Researchers (SNII), a network of National Laboratories and Public Research Centers, the Rosario Castellanos National University, and strategic national programs such as PRONACES, ENI, and CIBIOGEM, serving researchers, students, universities, and public research institutions across Mexico.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Becas Nacionales (National Scholarships) Federal scholarship program offering financial support to Mexican students pursuing higher-education studies in science, technology, engineering, humanities, and related fields at domestic institutions.
• Becas al Extranjero (International Scholarships) Federal scholarship program providing funding to Mexican students and researchers to pursue graduate studies or research stays at foreign institutions.
• SNII – Sistema Nacional de Investigadores (National System of Researchers) National accreditation and stipend program for Mexican researchers, granting recognition, prestige, and economic support based on peer-reviewed research productivity.
• Laboratorios Nacionales (National Laboratories) Federally designated network of National Laboratories that provide advanced research infrastructure and shared scientific capabilities to researchers, universities, and public institutions across Mexico.
• Centros Públicos de Investigación (Public Research Centers) Federally operated public research centers delivering applied and basic scientific research, technology development, and graduate training across priority areas for Mexico.
• Universidad Nacional Rosario Castellanos Federal public university operated under SECIHTI's purview, offering higher-education programs, including research-oriented programs tied to SECIHTI's science and innovation priorities.
• PRONACES – Programas Nacionales Estratégicos (National Strategic Programs) Federal funding instrument grouping strategic science, technology, and humanities projects under priority themes defined at the national level.
• ENI – Ecosistemas Nacionales de Información (National Information Ecosystems) Federal initiative to build national information ecosystems that aggregate and provide access to research data, scientific information, and related digital resources.
• CIBIOGEM – Comisión Intersecretarial de Bioseguridad de los Organismos Genéticamente Modificados Inter-ministerial commission coordinated through SECIHTI for biosafety policy relating to genetically modified organisms, linking multiple federal agencies.
• Estímulo Fiscal a la Investigación y Desarrollo de Tecnología (Tax Incentive for R&D) Federal tax-based incentive administered by SECIHTI to encourage private-sector investment in research, development, and technology innovation in Mexico.

Quantifiable outcome

• Science centers serving nearly 1 lakh visitors with operational galleries

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Assam GovernmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 March 2026Joint development of Guwahati Science City at Sonapur with the Assam government. The Assam government collaborated with NCSM for this INR 288.13 crore project, with Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma inaugurating the facility. The project includes Eureka and Space Odyssey sections.
• Odisha GovernmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Odisha government signed a memorandum of understanding with NCSM to upgrade and modernize the Pathani Samanta Planetarium in Bhubaneswar into a world-class facility. The Rs 8.5 crore project includes hybrid planetarium system, interactive science gallery, and VR-based space simulator.
• Creative Museum DesignersminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerNCSM works with Creative Museum Designers for exhibit design of 175 additional exhibits at Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Science City in Patna. The total project cost is Rs 213 crore.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Helmholtz Association: Germany's largest scientific organization, comprising national research centers funded by federal/state sources. Comparable at the level of nationally mandated large-scale research infrastructure and program-level governance.
• Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS): France's largest public research organization, funding and operating national labs. Comparable as a federally backstopped national research and education agency, though at significantly larger scale and centralized lab-management model.
• National Research Council of Canada (NRC): Canada's federal research and development organization, operating national labs and supporting industrial R&D. Comparable as a publicly funded national R&D council with both grant funding and direct research operations.
• Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC): Spain's largest public research institution, operating research centers across disciplines. Comparable as a federal/national research performer and funder, though CSIC's model leans more toward in-house labs while SECIHTI combines funding + labs.
• National Science Foundation (NSF): U.S. federal agency funding basic research and education through grants, fellowships, and research infrastructure. Directly comparable in mandate (federal research funding and STEM education), though operating at much larger absolute scale in a different country.
• UK Research and Innovation (UKRI): United Kingdom's primary public funding body for research and innovation across all disciplines. Comparable at the level of federal/national research funding architecture and scholarship programs directed by a single national council.

Direct peers

• Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq): Brazil's national science and technology council, part of the federal government. Closely comparable as a large federal S&T funding and scholarship agency within the same regional context as SECIHTI.
• Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET): Argentina's federal council for scientific and technical research, the closest structural analogue in Latin America: publicly funded national agency that funds researchers, scholarships, and research centers. Directly comparable as a sovereign S&T funding and governance body to the Mexican entity described in the firmographics.
• Agencia Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo (ANID, ex-CONICYT): Chile's national agency for research and development, administering scholarships, grants, and R&D programs. Highly comparable in scope (federal R&D funding, scholarships, program calls) to SECIHTI/CONACYT, and serves a structurally similar Latin American federal-market mandate.

Others

• National Council of Science Museums (NCSM, India): The Indian council that operates science centers and planetariums whose operational data appears mixed into this record. Listed as a peer only to flag the data provenance overlap; structurally distinct (museum/planetarium operator rather than S&T policy funder), which is precisely why the data mixing is a concern.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/conacyt_mx
• Facebookfacebook.com/conacytmx
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sistema-nacional-de-investigadores

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments3 records

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Frequently asked questions about National Council of Science and Technology