Research Institutes in Science and Technology to Expand 'Stable Research Funding'

Promotion of Financial Efficiency in Affiliated Organizations and Expansion of Contributions and Policy Designations

Minister Choi Ki-young of the Ministry of Science and ICT is attending the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting on COVID-19 at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the 23rd. Photo by Moon Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Junho Hwang] The government is taking steps to secure financial efficiency for scientific and technological research and development. It will separate the roles of grants and government commissions and support finances in a performance-oriented manner. Stable research funding will be expanded to enable government-funded research institutes to produce mid- to long-term large-scale research outcomes.

The Ministry of Science and ICT, together with the National Research Council of Science and Technology, held a meeting on the 7th at the council to discuss measures to improve the financial management system of government-funded research institutes.

This meeting was held to discuss ways to improve the efficiency of finances for government-funded research institutes and to explore mid- to long-term stable budget support measures. The government aims to streamline finances so that government-funded research institutes can conduct research according to their roles and responsibilities (R&R), and focused on improving institutions with a low proportion of grants such as the Korea Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI).

To improve financial efficiency for government-funded research institutes, the government will establish a financial structure specialized for these institutes from an overall institutional perspective, encompassing both grants and government commissions. To this end, the roles of grants and government commissions will be clearly distinguished and linked in a performance-oriented manner. Additionally, each government-funded research institute will establish a specialized mid- to long-term financial strategy (income structure portfolio) and continuously update linked plans as needed.

Furthermore, the government will expand stable grant support so that government-funded research institutes can focus their capabilities on producing mid- to long-term large-scale research outcomes according to their R&R and so that researchers can fully immerse themselves in their research. To achieve this, grant projects will be made mid- to long-term and large-scale, and project adjustments will be made to plan and carry out new projects reflecting the research demands of related ministries.

Finally, the government will activate policy designation of government-commissioned projects to reduce excessive administrative burdens on researchers and enable them to start research promptly.

The Ministry of Science and ICT stated, "Based on the discussions at this meeting, we plan to finalize and implement efficiency measures after collecting opinions from the research field."

Kwon Seok-min, Director of Science and Technology Job Innovation at the Ministry of Science and ICT, said, "In preparation for the era of a 30 trillion won national research and development (R&D) budget, it is necessary to improve the financial efficiency of government-funded research institutes, and along with their efforts, the government intends to expand stable budget support."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.