Simplification of R&D Preliminary Feasibility Study... Alleviating Ministry Burden

Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Yang-woo (right) and Minister of Science and ICT Choi Ki-young are having a conversation during the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting on COVID-19 held at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the 3rd. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Junho Hwang] Going forward, the selection process for preliminary feasibility study (PFS) targets in government R&D projects will be conducted through national-level relative evaluation and eligibility screening. Subsequently, the PFS itself will be carried out as an absolute evaluation of the project's feasibility. On the 24th, the Ministry of Science and ICT announced that it will strengthen the distinction between the PFS target selection survey and the PFS, simplify the system, and reduce the burden on related ministries.

The government took this measure because some R&D project ministries regarded the PFS target selection survey and the PFS as similar tasks.

Additionally, the government has ensured that factors such as alignment with science and technology policies and the necessity of resource allocation from a budget perspective are reviewed and reflected in the PFS. This is a measure to strengthen the linkage system among policy, budget, and evaluation.

The government also consolidated the evaluation meeting bodies, which were composed of multiple committees, into the 'National R&D Project Evaluation Advisory Committee' that advises on the PFS. This body discusses the entire R&D process, including target selection and PFS results.

To consider the ministries' willingness to promote projects, the government decided to implement a plan to significantly reflect the priority order of projects submitted by the ministries.

Kim Seongsu, Director of the Science and Technology Innovation Headquarters, stated, "By clarifying the purpose of PFS target selection and strengthening the linkage among science and technology policy, budget, and evaluation through this system improvement, the evaluation burden on ministries will be greatly reduced, and projects that are important from a policy perspective are expected to be selected as PFS targets."

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