Government Confirms Next Year's R&D Budget at 23.5 Trillion Won... 4.6% Increase

At the National Science and Technology Advisory Council Meeting on the Afternoon of the 24th, Decisions Made
Investments in Infectious Disease Response, Three Core Innovative Growth Industries, and the Digital New Deal
Scheduled to be Submitted to the National Assembly in September for Deliberation

Reference photo. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] The government has finalized an investment of 23.5082 trillion KRW in major research and development (R&D) projects for the next year. This represents a 4.6% (1.0405 trillion KRW) increase compared to the previous year. The investment will focus intensively on research and development in areas such as infectious disease response including mRNA vaccine development, three core industries of innovative growth, the Digital New Deal, 2050 carbon neutrality, and national strategic technology fields like quantum, 6G, and artificial intelligence (AI).

On the afternoon of the 24th, the government confirmed the 2022 R&D budget allocation and adjustment plan at the 16th National Science and Technology Advisory Council review meeting chaired by Minister Lim Hye-sook of the Ministry of Science and ICT.

By major sectors, approximately 2.48 trillion KRW was allocated to foster the three core innovative growth industries: bio-health, future vehicles, and system semiconductors, marking a 9.1% increase from 2.27 trillion KRW the previous year. About 2.24 trillion KRW was allocated to secure core future technologies and strengthen the industrial ecosystem in response to the global supply chain restructuring of materials, parts, and equipment, up 6.3% from 2.1 trillion KRW this year. Basic scientific research and nurturing innovative talent will receive 2.52 trillion KRW, a 7.3% increase from 2.35 trillion KRW this year. A total of 1.89 trillion KRW will be spent on technology development to achieve 2050 carbon neutrality, showing a significant increase of 20.9% compared to the previous year.

The R&D budget to accelerate the Digital New Deal across all social sectors will also increase by 44.8% from the previous year to 1.54 trillion KRW. A budget of 525.7 billion KRW has been allocated to secure core source technologies such as space and next-generation information and communication technologies, a 28.0% increase from the previous year. Notably, 86.4 billion KRW has been newly allocated for performance improvement projects aimed at commercializing the Korean-type launch vehicle in the space sector. Additionally, 52.3 billion KRW will be newly invested in the development of the Korean Positioning System (KPS). Sixty billion KRW has been newly allocated for the development of core source technologies for the quantum internet, and the budget for the 6G core technology development project has been increased by a remarkable 73.6% to 28.5 billion KRW compared to this year.

This R&D budget allocation plan will be notified to the Ministry of Economy and Finance on the 30th of this month and will be included in the budget proposal for next year to be submitted to the National Assembly in September.

Lee Kyung-soo, Director of the Science and Technology Innovation Bureau at the Ministry of Science and ICT, stated, "Although the fiscal conditions are difficult due to the economic crisis, we will maintain the expansion of R&D investment to overcome the COVID-19 crisis and enhance future growth potential in areas such as infectious diseases, carbon neutrality, and innovative growth." He added, "In line with the fifth year of the Moon Jae-in administration, we will work together with related ministries to flawlessly accomplish national tasks and major policy goals to produce scientific and technological innovation outcomes that the public can feel."

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