4.2.C-framework for Science and Technology Policies

8/6/2019 4.2.C-framework for Science and Technology Policies

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FRAMEWORK FOR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY POLICIES*

by

Roger Posadas

1. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGYPOLICY

1.1 The Meaning of a National Science and Technology Policy

As internationally accepted nowadays 1, a National Science and Technology Policy is the integrated sum of strategies, principles, methods, and

actions Adopted by a government in order to carry out the following two tasks:

(a) the long-term development of the national scientific and technologicalpotential (STP)

(b) the effective application and utilization of this potential to meet nationaldevelopment needs.

1.2 The Components of the National Scientific and Technological Potential.

The National Scientific and Technological Potential is made up of thefollowing:

(a) Human Resources - the quantity and quality of scientists,technologists, engineers, R & D technicians, S & T professors andteachers, R & D managers, STS specialists, and S & T planners andadministrators.

(b) Infrastructural resources - the system of S & T buildings, facilities,and equipment which constitute the material base for R & D, STS, andtertiary S & T education training.

(c) Informational Resources - the system of formal and informalinstitutions and mechanisms for collection, processing, storage,retrieval, packaging, dissemination, and exchange of S & T activities.

(d) Financial Resources - the public, private, and foreign funds which areavailable for S & T activities.

______________ *EXCERPTED FROM: Roger Posadas, Towards the Development of the Natural andMathematical Sciences in the Philippines. (Report on the Science Policy StudyUndertaken by the Kilusan ng mga Siyentipikong Pilipino with the Support of the

Presidents Center for Special Studies, March 1982).


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Following the scheme of the United Nations Advisory Committee on theApplication of Science and Technology to Development (UNACAST) 2, theNational Scientific and Technological Potential may also be convenientlyclassified in institutional terms as follows:

(a) National Policy-Making Bodies in Science and Technology(b) Higher Education Institutions in Science and Technology(c) Technician - Training institutions(d) Research and Experimental Development Institutions(e) Scientific and technological Public Services

1.3The relationship between the Dual Aspects of the National Science andTechnology Policy

As previously pointed out in the Introduction, while the strengthening of theNational Scientific and Technological Potential is a necessary condition for theeffective application and utilization of science and technology for nationaldevelopment, it is not a sufficient guarantee for the latter. In other words, theallocation of adequate resources to STP does not by itself automatically result inthe modernization of industry, agriculture, health services, etc.

The development of the STP must therefore be complemented by thestimulation of technological innovation, the process through which science andtechnology are applied, utilized, and diffused in the production and servicesectors of the economy.

The dual aspects of a National Science and Technology Policy aresometimes expressed as

(a) Policy for Science and Technology - measures for developing thenational scientific and technological potential.

(b) Science and Technology for Policy - measures for the utilization of science and technology for national development.

The important point to emphasize is that unless a country has a adequateSTP arising from a well-planned and persistent policy for science andtechnology, it cannot effectively apply science and technology for policy. On theother hand, without a vigorous application of science and technology for policy,the implementation of policy for science and technology may become just acostly academic exercise divorced from national development efforts. In variousLDCs including the Philippines, errors in S & T policy-making are largely due toan overemphasis on one of the aspects of S & T policy at the expense of theother. What is therefore required of a sound national science and technologypolicy is a harmonious and balanced coordination, complementation, andintegration of these dual aspects.

1.4 The Scope and Linkages of National Science and Technology Policy.

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National Science and Technology Policy may also be discussed in terms of supply and demand. National development needs are translated into demandsfor new S & T knowledge or services in utilizable form and the S & T System isthen mobilized to supply these needs.

Thus, National Science and Technology Policy must deal with both sides of the equation and their interconnecting links. Science and Technology for Policymust concern itself with stimulating and influencing demands which theproduction and service systems place on the S & T system. Policy for Scienceand Technology must concern itself with the improvement of the national systemfor R & D, STS, and S & T education and training. In other words, the scope of National Science and Technology Policy covers the entire spectrum of S & Tactivities, namely, R & D, STS, Technological Innovation (including TechnologyTransfer), and S & T Education, Training, and Popularization.

Since the demand side of the equation is a function of national socio-economic policies while the supply side is affected by national educational andcultural policies, it is obvious that national science and technology policy must beclosely integrated with overall national development plans and policies.Specifically, a permanent and close interlinkage among S & T System,production system, and the educational system must be established in order toinsure a balance between the demand for and supply of locally generatedscientific and technological knowledge and services.

2. POLICY-MAKING FUNCTIONS IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

2.1 Specific Missions of S & T Policy-Making.

UNESCO lists down the specific missions of governmental policy-making inthe field of science and technology as follows:

(a) Selection of S & T goals and objectives derived from specificnational development goals and objectives;

(b) Justification of these choices and evaluation of their consequences;(c) Judicious setting of norms that should govern the ways and means

in which science and technology are to be developed and applied;(d) Gathering, organization, and deployment of the resources needed to

pursue the selected objectives;(e) Monitoring and evaluation of the results obtained through the

application of the S & T policy.

2.2 Major Tasks of S & T Policy-Making.

Among the major tasks of governmental policy-making in the field of science and technology are the following, which are also adapted fromUNESCO 3:

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(a) Strengthening the governmental structures and mechanisms for theplanning, budgeting, coordination, management, financing, andpromotion of S & T activities;

(b) Gathering, processing, and analyzing data on the national scientificand technological potential;

(c) Preparing the National Scientific and Technological Plan and theannual State Budget for Science and Technology;

(d) Assessing and promoting the quality, efficiency, and effectiveness of R& D and STS in various sectors and institutions;

(e) Promoting the process of innovation in the production and servicesectors of the national economy;

(f) Assessing the economic, social, cultural, and political impacts of newtechnologies;

(g) Initiating legislative action called for by the National S & T Policy.

2.3 Major Functions of S & T Policy-Making.

The major functions of governmental policy-making in the field of scienceand technology may be classified as follows:

(a) Planning Function - This function, which is anticipatory and long termin character, is concerned mainly with defining broad S & T goals andobjectives, determining ways and means of achieving these objectives,and deciding ranges of resource allocation for S & T activities.

(b) Budgeting Function - This function, which is short term in character, isconcerned with annual budgetary allocations for S & T programmes.

(c) Assessment Function - This function is concerned with the continuingsurvey of the national STP, the monitoring of ongoing R & D, and theevaluation of the results and applications of R & D.

(d) Coordination Function - This involves the coordination and integrationof the S & T activities of various agencies and institutions in thegovernment as well as private sectors.

(e) Promotion and Management Function - This is an action-orientedfunction which is carried out through the granting of resources to S & Tprogrammes and the evaluation of the results of these programmes.

(f) Execution Function - This function has to do with the efficient andeffective implementation of S & T programmes at the level of R & D or STS units.

(g) Advocacy Function - This function is concerned with advocatinggreater public and private support for S & T activities as well asprotecting and promoting the legitimate interests of the S & Tcommunity.

(h) Advisory Function - This function includes advising the government onimportant national issues involving science and technology as well asparticipating in the preparation of the National Development Plan.

2.4 Tasks Associated with Science and Technology Planning.

Science and Technology Planning consists of the determination of acoherent set of means and resources for the purpose of achieving one or more S& T objectives within a given time frame. This involves the following tasks:

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(a) Anticipating and identifying national development opportunities andneeds which require the application of science and technology;

(b) Identifying existing scientific and technological knowledge relevant tonational development needs;

(c) Forecasting technological developments and long term S & Tperspectives in relation to future S & T opportunities;

(d) Assessing the current STP and adopting long-term strategies andprogrammes for the steady build-up of the STP;

(e) Determining major goals, objectives, priorities, strategies, and tasks for R & D, STS, and other S & T activities;

(f) Maintaining a proper balance and close linkage among basic research,applied research, experimental development, and technologicalinnovation;

(g) Ensuring a conducive working environment and a befitting status for scientists and technologists;

(h) Pinpointing areas for technology transfer and areas for domestictechnological innovation;

(i) Reconciling the competing claims of various S & T sectors andprogrammes;

(j) Determining optimum resources allocations for various S & Tprogrammes;

(k) Identifying programmes which require international scientificcooperation or assistance.

2.5 General Principles of Science and Technology Planning.

Based on the experiences of various countries, the following generalprinciples of science and technology planning have been found to beefficacious: 4, 5, 6

(a) S & T planning should be integrated with overall national developmentplanning giving special attention to the interlinkage and coordinationbetween the S & T system, on the one hand, and the economic,political, educational, and cultural systems, on the other hand.

(b) S & T planning should include subplans for various areas, sectors, or programmes with a wide degree of autonomy for each subplan.

(c) S & T planning should be able to reconcile and harmonize varioussubplans and competing programmes.

(d) S & T planning should distinguish between planning for technologydevelopment and planning for science development with the latter being limited to planning the inputs.

(e) S & T planning should avoid absolutist criteria and rigidity in theprioritization of areas or programmes so as to prevent stultification of research or stifling of scientific freedom.

(f) S & T planning should be flexible enough to follow for continuousfeedback into and adjustments in the plan.

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(g) S & T planning should be a continuing process rather than a periodicexercise and be a consistent, long-term undertaking rather than astop-and-go affair.

(h) S & T planning should ensure long-term and stable support for S & Tmanpower development, R & D programmes, and S & T infrastructuraldevelopment.

(i) S & T planning should not be regarded as a substitute for adequatefunding and proper implementation of programmes to develop theSTP.

(j) S & T planning should involve, at all stages of the process, scientistsand technologists (especially those who are active in R & D andcompetent in S & T policy matters) as well as social scientists,industrialists, and politicians, but with the former playing the dominantrole.

In connection with the latter principle, it is appropriate to quote UNESCO: 7

In the specific area of science policy planning, it is vitally important to ensure that scientists and technologists play a leading role and are not relegated to a minor position in the central science-policy-making body of the government, or in itsvarious collective planning groups.

3. S & T POLICY-MAKING STRUCTURES AND MECHANISMS

3.1 Governmental Structures for S & T Policy-Making and Administration.

The existence of a dynamic and efficient governmental organization for S &T policy-making and administration is essential and crucial to the stable, smooth,and effective implementation of national science development programs. Basedon the international comparative studies carried out by UNESCO over the pastseveral decades, it has been found useful to distinguish four functional levels inthe organization of S & T:

(a) First Functional Level - Planning, Budgeting, Decision-Making,Interministerial Coordination, and Assessment at the national level.

(b) Second Functional Level - Promotion, Financing, and ScientificCoordination of S & T activities in various sectors.

(c) Third Functional Level - Execution of R & D in various institutions.(d) Fourth Functional Level - Performance of STS in support of R & D.

3.2 National S & T Policy-Making Bodies (First Function Level).

The formulation of S & T policy (which covers the functions of overallnational S & T planning, budgeting, and assessment) is generally vested in any

of the following:

(a) Ministry of Science and Technology (e.g. South Korea)

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(b) Science and Technology Agency, a governmental body directlyresponsible to the Prime Minister (e.g. Japan)

(c) Statutory Body for Science and Technology

In each case, the central S & T policy-making body requires a scientific andtechnical Secretariat composed of scientists, technologists, and social scientists,who are highly qualified in their respective disciplines. If necessary, theSecretariat will be assisted by an Advisory Committee of experts which does notneed to have a fixed composition or a permanent character.

The decision-making function usually resides in the full Cabinet or aninterministerial committee for S & T policy which is composed of ministers fromthe so-called technical ministries. This function mainly involves the approval of the National Science and Technology Plan as well as the annual State Budgetfor Science and Technology.

Interministerial coordination is carried out during the preparation of the S &T Plan and Budget as well as throughout the implementation of these policyinstruments as approved by the Government.

3.3 Sectoral S & T Management Bodies (Second Functional Level

The principal functions at this level promotion, financing, and scientificcoordination are carried out through the allocation of research grants or fellowships to individuals; grants to research programs; grants to R & Dinstitutions; or research contracts. Promotion of R & D is also undertakenthrough the creation of national R & D laboratories and institutes in variousbranches of S & T, the organization of S & T conferences, the publication of S &T journals, and the dissemination of S & T reports and abstracts.

Until recently, the organs that most countries established to carry out the S& T policy-making functions at this level were multisectoral bodies, usually calledNational Research Councils or National Science and Technology councils.However, because of certain inherent deficiencies of such multisectoral bodies, ithas become the trend nowadays to complement or replace them with SectoralResearch Councils for promoting, the financing, and coordinating R & D withinspecific sectors of S & T. 9 Thus, in many countries today we find more or lessthe following: 10

S & T Sector Research Council

Basic Sciences National Council for Scientific ResearchAgricultural Sciences National Council for Agricultural ResearchEngineering Sciences National Council for Industrial ResearchMedical Sciences National Council for Medical ResearchNuclear Sciences National Atomic Energy Commission

It should be noted that many countries (e.g. U.S.A., United kingdom,France, Federal Republic of Germany, Egypt, Peoples Republic of China,U.S.S.R. and other Eastern European countries) have found it essential to create

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a separate Science Research Council, Academy of Sciences, or ScienceFoundation devoted exclusively to the basic sciences of physics, chemistry,mathematics, biology, and earth sciences for the following reasons:

(a) It is recognized that the basic sciences are of central importance tomodern advanced technology, that they are the motors of the presentscientific and technological revolution.

(b) It is unwise to put basic scientists together with applied scientists andtechnologists in the same research council because of the differencesin the orientations, motivations, and values of the two groups.

To ensure the optimum efficiency and effectiveness of Sectoral ResearchCouncils, most countries have adopted the following principles: 11

(a) Administrative autonomy of the Councils through their exemption fromcivil service regulations and the usual government administrativeprocedures.

(b) Fiscal autonomy of the Councils through their exemption from pre-auditing regulations and independence in the disposal of their budgets,which is also treated as a global grant that may be carried over to thesucceeding years to ensure stable financing of long-term projects.

(c) Election of members by and from among the highly qualified R & Dscientists or technologists to ensure democratic representation, highprestige, and credibility within the S & T community.

(d) Fixed term of membership of no more than four years, withreappointment to a successive term possible only once and noreappointment for at least four years after two successive terms.

(e) Democratic participation of members in policy-formulation and decisionmaking within the Council.

(f) Peer evaluation of proposed programs and projects falling under aparticular discipline or specialty by Council members belonging to thatparticular discipline or specialty.

3.4 R & D and STS Institutions (Third and Fourth Functional Levels) .

The institutions at this level comprise the operational network of scientificand technological institutions in which R & D and STS is actually performed.

The R & D institutions are usually classified as follows:

(a) University research institutes and units where most basic research aredone.

(b) Government R & D centers or laboratories where most mission-oriented R & D are carried out.

(c) Industrial R & D laboratories where most industrial research andtechnological development are carried out.

Of the various STS, the most important in terms of vital support to R & Dare the following:

(a) S & T library, information, and documentation services(b) Metrology, standards, and instrumentation services

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(c) Analytical and testing services(d) Computer services(e) S & T surveys and observatories

3.5 The National R & D and STS Systems.

The institutions, activities, and resources at the third and fourth functionallevels constitute the National R & D and STS System the system to which thenational S & T policy applies. While the S & T policy-making structures havebeen described heretofore in a static way, a dynamic picture of the interactionsamong the S & T organizations at the different levels can be given by means of UNESCOs cybernetic model of the National R & D and STS System which isillustrated in Diagram 1. 12

(a) Zone I of the Diagram shows energy (in the form of financialresources) and information (in the form of policy objectives,directives, and norms) being fed into the R & D and STS systemthrough the Sectoral Management and Promotion Bodies. Themeeting point of objectives and resources is represented by a valve.If the valve fails to operate (as in the case where the national budget

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Diagram

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office freezes or suppresses, on technical grounds, the budgetaryresources earmarked for S & T activities), then the whole S & T policyimplementation and operation break down.

(b) Zone II covers the R & D and STS institutions and their activities aswell as the publication, storage, packaging, and dissemination of R & Dresults and STS data.

(c) Zone III covers the users of S & T knowledge; it is where practicalapplication and utilization of science and technology take place.

6. Efficiency and Effectiveness of the R & D and STS System.

In the evaluation of R & D and STS, two concepts are usually applied: 12

(a) Efficiency - This is something intrinsic to S & T for it is a measure of how far resources invested in R & D or STS have been productivewithin reasonable time limits. It may be considered as the ratio of thenew S & T knowledge actually produced to that which might have beentheoretically expected on the basis of the given resources.

(b) Effectiveness - This is something extrinsic to S & T for it measures theoutput of R & D or STS, both qualitatively and quantitatively, againstthe socio-economic benefits which may be expected from investmentin R & D and STS.

It is, however, important to caution against the indiscriminate application of the concepts of efficiency and effectiveness to R & D, especially basic research,because of the inherent uncertainties involved in exploring the unknown.Evaluation of research on the basis of input/output ratios, whether qualitative or quantitative, is extremely difficult because research outputs do not yet lendthemselves to econometric calculations.

4. DEVELOPING THE SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL POTENTIAL

4.1 Human Resources for Scientific and Technological Activities.

Scientific and technological manpower is the basis of all S & T activities.An adequate national supply of highly trained and competent scientists,technologists, and technicians is an absolute prerequisite to the advancement or application of science and technology because obviously R & D and STS cannotbe carried out efficiently and effectively without highly qualified S & T manpower.In fact, the shortage of high-quality manpower constitutes the principal bottleneckin the scientific and technological development of LDCs because it takes 10 - 15years to train a first-rate R & D scientist or engineer and several decades todevelop a critical mass of R & D workers, that is, a self-generating, self-sustaining R & D community which can make significant impacts on nationaldevelopment. 13

The best documented historical example of this is the case of Japan whereit took about 50 years from the time when the first generation of Japanese were

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sent abroad in the late 1860s for advanced training in science and technology tothe time when the later generations of Japanese scientists and engineers begancontributing significantly to international science as well as Japaneseindustrialization. 13

UNESCO has repeatedly stressed the necessity of long-range planning for S & T manpower development because of its crucial importance and long-rangenature. 14 The Republic of Korea puts emphasis on manpower development in itsregular Five-Year Science and Technology Development Plans. 15 As Moravcsikputs it, 16

Manpower development in LDCs is a crucial and long-term project.Consequently, it must be started immediately, even if other short-term

problems appear to dictate different priorities. Efforts must also be made to plan for scientific manpower for in advance. This may involve estimates of manpower supplies and needs as far as two decades ahead requiring along-term general science policy .

4.2 Categories of Scientific and Technological Manpower.

In examining a countrys trained human resources in science andtechnology it is important to clarify and distinguish the following terms:

(a) Scientists and Engineers - This category includes all persons whopossess at least a bachelors degree in any branch of science andtechnology.

(b) S & T Professionals - This category is synonymous with Scientists andEngineers.

(c) Technicians - This category includes persons who have undergonespecialized vocational or technical training in any branch of scienceand technology for one or more years beyond the level of secondaryeducation.

(d) R & D Professionals - This category comprises those scientists andengineers who are actively engaged in R & D.

(e) R & D Technicians - This category comprises those technicians whoare engaged in work which is supportive of R & D.

(f) Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) - This is a measurement unit representingone person working full-time for a given period.

(g) Total Stock of S & T Manpower - The countrys total supply of S & Tprofessionals and technicians without regard to type of employment.

(h) Total Stock of R & D Professionals - The countrys total full-timeequivalent number of R & D Professionals.

(i) R & D Support Ratio - The number of R & D technicians per R & Dprofessional.

For policy-making in science and technology, the most importantcategories are obviously the total stock of R & D professionals, the total stockof R & D technicians, and the R & D support ratio.

Quantitative Aspects of S & T Manpower

In the UNACAST World Plan of Action for the Application of Science andTechnology to Development, the quantitative targets set for the LDCs regarding

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the number of R & D professionals per million of population to be attained by theyear 1980 were as follows 17:

African countries : 200

Asian countries : 380

Latin American countries : 400

It is interesting to compare these targets with the S & T manpower projections for Asian countries which were forecast by UNESCOs CASTASIAModel for Scientific and Technical Manpower on the basis of parameters andassumptions reflecting the Asian manpower situation in 1965. 18 In this Model,the Asian countries were classified according to 1965 levels of educationaldevelopment into three groups:

Group I : Ceylon, Republic of Korea, Malaysia,PHILIPPINES, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand

Group II : Burma, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Iran,Mongolia, Pakistan, and South Vietnam

Group III : Afghanistan, Laos, and Nepal

As projected by the CASTASIA Model, the number of R & D professionalsper million population in the three groups by 1970, 1975, and 1980, starting from1965 data, would be as follows:

1965 1970 1975 1980Group I countries:

Alternative I 124 231 370 588

Alternative II 124 263 478 845

Group II countries:



Group III countries:



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where Alternative I assumes a constant proportion of S & T professionalsengaged in R & D till 1980 and Alternative II assumes a proportion increasing tothe maximum possible under foreseeable conditions.

Taking the Asian region as a whole, the CASTASIA Model projects that thenumber of R & D professionals per million populations would increase from 69.4in 1965 to 328.5 in 1980 (according to Alternative I) or to 483.9 in 1980(according to Alternative II). Table 1 presents the CASTASIA Models projectedincreases from 1965 to 1980 for the different indicators of S & T manpower for the whole Asian region.

The S & T manpower statistics compiled by UNESCO in the 1970s is givenin Table 2 for a selected number of LDCs and HDCs. 19 The UNESCO statisticsshow that the international S & T manpower situation in the mid-1970s was asfollows:

(a) more than 90% of the worlds total stock of S & T professionals wereemployed in the HDCs.

(b) the number of S & T professionals per million population is roughlybetween 15,000 to 40,000 in the HDCs and between 500 to 7,000 for most of the LDCs.

(c) the number of R & D professionals per million population is roughlybetween 1,000 to 4,800 in the HDCs and between 50 to 200 in theLDCs.

Based on its analysis of international statistics on S & T manpower,UNESCO recommends that an LDCs total stock of R & D professionals shouldconstitute at least 10% of its total stock of S & T professionals and that its R & Dsupport ratio (number of R & D technicians to number of R & D professionals)should be at least 1:2. 20

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Table 1

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Table 2

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Qualitative Aspects of S & T Manpower.

While it is necessary for LDCs to increase their stock of R & Dprofessionals to at least the levels set by the UNACAST World Plan of Action, itis not sufficient simply to achieve quantitative targets, for a crucial element in R &D is the quality of the R & D professionals.

Among the factors that determine the quality of R & D scientists andengineers are

(a) level of education and specialized training(b) extent of postdoctoral research experience(c) scientific creativity and productivity(d) capacity for leading research groups

It is important to guard against poor quality and low standards in S & Tmanpower development because a mediocre S & T cadre, whatever its size, isnext to useless in R & D. Furthermore, mediocrity has a strong tendency tomultiply itself and to repel excellence. Thus, a Moravcsik points out 21

Some argue that at the outset of scientific development one should compromise on quality in order to create the beginnings of scientific community, a dangerous argument. Quality is difficult to achieveeven under the best circumstances, when one is fully intent on it.Compromising from the start can result in clogging the scientific manpower system with unemployables who are unable to contributeto the scientific development of the country.

Retention of S & T Manpower.

Even if an LDC can develop the required quantity and quality of R & Dprofessionals, it will still have to tackle the problem of retaining its R & D talents.Loss of S & T professionals is commonly referred to as the brain drain, which canbe classified into two types:

External Brain Drain - The emigration of S & T professionals from their home country.

Internal Brain Drain - The misemployment of S & T professionals withintheir home country.

The principal reasons behind the brain drain may be categorized into

(a) Professional Factors - Poor environment and facilities for R & D; bleakcareer prospects in terms of lifelong professional advancement;isolation from the international scientific mainstream; lack of participation in S & T policy-making; an unfavorable, demoralizing S &T policy.

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(b) Economic Factors - Poor compensation, employment benefits, andstandard of living relative to other professions within their homecountry.

(c) Socio-Political Factors - Insufferable political system or government;exasperating bureaucratic system; undesirable administrators; poor social status and image of scientists.

Among the most commonly recommended measures to reduce brain drainare the following: 22

(a) Provision of a proper and conducive physical environment for researchthrough the establishment of Centers for Advanced Studies andResearch or the improvement of facilities in existing institutions.

(b) Reduction of isolation through fellowships and travel grants for temporary visits abroad, through international exchange programs,through international cooperative research programs.

(c) Provision of attractive and competitive salary scales or compensationschemes, career paths, and employment benefits for R & Dprofessionals.

(d) Strengthening of domestic capacity for providing advanced training inscience and technology.

(e) Improvement of the professional status and social image of scientistsand technologists.

(f) Close supervision by LDC institutions of their staff members who areundergoing postgraduate S & T training in HDCs.

4.2 Infrastructural Resources.

While first-rate people are the most important ingredients of R & D, theyare not the only component for they cannot properly carry out R & D without thefollowing indispensable facilities:

(a) Properly Designed and Furnished Laboratories(b) Adequate Laboratory Equipment and Spare Parts(c) Adequate Library and Documentation Facilities(d) Adequate Computer Facilities(e) Instrument Service Facilities(f) Analytical Testing Facilities.

These facilities, needless to say, are also essential for high-quality S & Tmanpower training and effective STS.

In the development of the national scientific and technological potential,therefore, it is extremely important to insure that the institutions doing R & D,tertiary-level S & T training, and STS are provided with adequate facilities.

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Hence, the infrastructural development of S & T institutions must go hand-in-hand with their manpower development.

University-Linked Science Complexes.

Given the inadequate scientific and technological potential of LDCs, theimportance of optimizing the use of present resources has often been stressed.UNESCO, for instance, points out that 25

wherever the research potential is limited, as it usually is in Asiancountries, scientific resources should not be dispersed. There is acritical threshold of talent and resources (libraries, technical servicesand special equipment such as computers) below which scientific research cannot be effectively performed or science taught.

In line with this idea as well as the need to strengthen the interlinkages

between S & T training, research (basic and applied), and experimentaldevelopment, there is now a trend to establish university-linked sciencecomplexes or science parks, where R & D and STS institutions are clusteredaround selected universities. The advantage of such an arrangement is that itcan provide the physical environment for stimulating cross-fertilization amongbasic researches, applied researchers, and students and close cooperationbetween R & D work and S &T training. As UNESCO expressed it 26

The aim, then, in a developing country, must be to concentrate thescientific activities as much as possible into large complexes clustering round the university as the institution which has to provide the scientific succession; to have very flexible arrangements whereby the professor takes some part in the work of government laboratories and industrial establishments and scientist in government or industry takes some part in teaching students.

Centers for Advanced Studies and Research.

Since science is international and the only standard of excellence inscience is an international one, it has also been often recommended thatcenters of excellence or centers for advanced studies and research of international caliber be established in selected universities for advanced S & Ttraining and research. 27 The basic rationale for such centers of excellence isthe need to expand and strengthen indigenous capacity to provide advancedscientific and engineering manpower training of internationally recognizedstandards.

An LDC can establish such centers of excellence by simply identifying itstop university science and engineering departments and building them up tointernational standards in terms of faculty, facilities, and degree programs. Inaddition, an LDC must also establish at least one national research center of international caliber in the basic sciences, engineering sciences, agriculturalsciences, and medical sciences.

There is a need, however, to caution against the methodof establishingindependent national research centers outside universities because, as thenegative experiences of India have shown 28, this method has serious

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disadvantages in an LDC where there is an acute shortage of available first-rateresearch scientists. For such independent national centers tend to siphon off topscientists from universities and undermine the latters capacity to train futureresearch workers. The guiding principle that LDCs ought to follow in establishingresearch centers is the one adhered to by the Max Planck Society of Germany inestablishing the world-renowned Max Planck Institutes: first find a distinguishscientist or a group of outstanding researchers and then build a research center around them rather than first build a research center and then seek out thepeople to staff it.

4.3 Informational Resources.

While buildings, facilities, and equipment constitute the hardware of R &D, informational resources provide the software without which R & D canbecome sterile. Recognizing the importance of informational resources, theUNACAST World Plan of Action for the Application of Science and Technology toDevelopment states 29:

the Second Development Decade [1971-1980] should provide for asystematic and adequately supported effort to improve the facilities and arrangements for the transfer of existing knowledge and technology from the developed countries to the less developed ones. Developing countries require scientific and technical information systems of their own, suited to the type, capacities and location of producers and usersof such information, and giving emphasis to the type of knowledgemost needed for economic and social development. Such internal systems must be effectively connected with the information networks of the highly developed countries.

In building up S & T informational resources, the main requirement is theestablishment of formal and informal systems for collecting, storing, evaluating,retrieving, and disseminating information from outside and within the country.

Because of the international, collective, and cumulative aspects of scientificresearch, scientific information and communication are vital to researchscientists. Scientific communication - the flow and common sharing of scientificinformation - involves both external scientific communication (interaction of localscientists with scientists of other countries) and internal scientific communication(interaction among local scientists).

External or international scientific communication is a matter of extremeimportance to scientists in LDCs because isolation from the internationalresearch fronts is a major concern of the fledging scientific communities of LDCs.Among the standard measures that are taken to facilitate external scientificcommunication and alleviate the problem of isolation are:

(a) Providing local scientists in LDCs with means or services for the fastacquisition of foreign scientific preprints, reports, journals, and books.

(b) Providing them with regular opportunities and means for periodicsabbatical leaves or extended visits to leading research centersabroad.

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(c) Providing them with yearly travel grants which would enable them tospend two to three months abroad for attending international scientificmeetings, visiting leading research centers, and interacting with foreigncolleague

(d) Hiring foreign scientists to serve as visiting professors and /visitingresearcher in local universities and institutes.

(e) Establishing bilateral links between universities, departments, andresearch units in LDCs and HCDs for the exchange of personnel,coordination of research, training of students, etc.

(f) Establishing for each discipline regional cooperative programs inconnection with research, journal publication, scientific training, etc

A good internal scientific communication system is also essential to thedevelopment of local research groups, local research groups, local scientificsocieties, a local scientific research tradition in various disciplines, and a self -sustaining scientific community. Among the measures that are usually taken toimprove internal scientific communication are:

(a) Establishing first-class science libraries with complete. Up- to-datebooks, periodicals, and documentation services.

(b) Supporting the local seminars, workshops, and annual conventions of national scientific societies;

(c) Supporting the publication of local scientific journals;(d) Supporting the production of high-quality local university textbooks in

science and technology.(e) Providing scientists with local travel grants for visiting colleagues in

other parts of the country or giving seminars in various localinstitutions.

To strengthen the formal information system of an LDC, it is necessary toestablish a national scientific and technological information and documentationcenter which is easily accessible to local R & D workers and effectively linkedwith regional and international information networks.

Financial Resources.

Financial resources for S & T comprise the total amount of public, private,and foreign funds which is available for national expenditure on R & D and other related S & T activities. Such resources will be discussed here in terms of (1) theoptimum level and growth rate of the national S & T expenditures, (2) nationalschemes for S & T budgeting, and (3) national schemes for S & T financing.

National S & T Expenditure.

The determination of the overall national expenditure on R & D and other related S & T activities involves two questions:

(a) What is the optimum level of the national S & T expenditurecorresponding to the maximum growth rate of the national economy?

(b) What is the maximum permissible growth rate of the national scientificand technological potential (STP)?

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With respect to the first question, no satisfactory quantitative solution hasyet been found by economists; hence, it is generally recommended that LDCssimply increase their expenditures on S & T a priori to a certain percentage of their gross national product (GNP). 30 As for the second question, it has beenpointed out that based on the experience of the HDCs an annual STP growthrate exceeding some 15% (i.e. a doubling time of 5 years) is likely to subject acountrys R & D and STS system to serious stresses, since the buildup of S & Tmanpower and infrastructures cannot keep pace with the fast growingrequirements. 31

Thus, the World Plan of Action for the Application of Science andTechnology to Development recommends that LDCs should spend a minimum of 1% of their GNP on R & D and STS by 1980 and that of this minimum national S& T expenditure, at least 50% (i.e., 0.5% of GNP) should be allocated to R & Dproper. 32 This target, incidentally, has been approved by the U.N. GeneralAssembly in its Resolution 2626 (XXV) on the International DevelopmentStrategy for the Second Development Decade. 33

At the same time, the World Plan of Action also states; 34Experience suggests that a doubling in five years of the national expenditure for science and technology (at fairly constant prices and aninflation rate of no more than 3% to 4% a year) cannot be exceeded incountries that have reached or exceeded the figure of 0.2% of GDP devoted to science and technology. This five-year doubling time corresponds to anannual growth rate of 15%, which, if exceeded, may lead to waste, either because the infrastructure of research institutions cannot be built and organized in time, or because the education and training of scientificworkers does not keep pace with the increase of the financial resourcesdevoted to science and technology, or for both reasons. A limitation to the

financial target might thus be that developing countries devoting more than0.2% of their GDP to science and technology should not, as a general rule,increase their national expenditure for science and technology by more than15% a year at constant prices.

In Table 3 we present UNESCO statistics on the R & D expenditures of selected LDCs and HDCs in the first half of the 1970s. 35 The complete accuracyand reliability of these data, as noted by UNESCO, are questionable becausewhat many LDCs report as R & D expenditures most likely include a largeproportion of STS expenditures. Nevertheless, even if the LDC data wereaccepted at face value, the Table would still indicate that most LDCs spend lessthan 0,5% of GNP on R & D in contrast to HDCs which generally spend from1.0% to 2.0% of GNP on R & D. The LDCs very low levels of S & T expenditureis accentuated if the national per capita R & D expenditure is considered: this isbetween US$50 to US$185 for the HDCs and a mere US$0.50 to US$3 for mostLDCs.

National S & T Budgeting.

The traditional type of state budgeting gives the total appropriations,ministry by ministry, in administrative rather than functional terms, making itdifficult to identify individual activities such as scientific and technological

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activities, the allocations for which are scattered and hidden in the appropriationsof various ministries.

Because of the need for government authorities to keep a check onscattered budgetary items such as S & T appropriations, there is a growingworld-wide trend to prepare, in addition to the traditional administrative budget,an annual functional budget (programme-budget) with science and technologysingled out as a separate function of first or second category. 36 The advantage of functional budgeting for S & T, as pointed out by UNESCO, is that: 37

A national budget for science and technology prepared in functional terms not only allows for the co-ordination of scientific and technological activities carried out in various branches of government and the economy; it also provides a rational basis for governmental decision -making in relation to its optimal size.

The S & T content of the functional State budget is usually broken downinto four subcategories:

(a) S & T planning and general administration(b) R & D training of scientists and technologists(c) Research and experimental development (R & D)(d) Scientific and technological services (STS)

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Table 3

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One of the thorny questions to be resolved in S & T budgeting is theamount of financial allocation to basic research. Although there has been muchemotional discussion in the literature on science policy regarding the place of basic research in LDCs, there is a general consensus that of the total national R& D expenditure, at least 10% should be allocated by LDCs to basic research. 38

In the HDCs, the percentage allocation to basic research varies from 10%(for UK) to 24% (for Japan). 39 In the Republic of Korea, about 20% is devoted tobasic research. 40 In fact, UNESCO suggests that the fraction of the national R &D expenditure to be allocated to basic research should be greater in LDCs than itis in HDCs. 41

The rationale for basic research in LDCs will be elaborated upon inChapter VII where it will be discussed in relation to domestic technologicalinnovation and technology transfer.

National S & T Financing.

The main forms of State financing for S & T are the following: 42,43

(a) Financing through the State budget - The funds for S & T in this caseare taken from government revenues and tax collections.

(b) Financing through special funds - These are autonomous or semi-autonomous State funds for S & T which are maintained by public andprivate contributions.

(c) Financing through selective indirect taxation - This generates funds for R & D in specific sectors (e.g., oil, steel, etc.) by selective taxation oncertain goods or services.

(d) Financing through foreign loans - This seeks to provide funds for R &D through government borrowing from external sources.

Among the schemes for encouraging greater S & T expenditures on thepart of the private sector are the following: 44

(a) Encouragement of private science foundations.

(b) Statutory regulations requiring well-established industries to spend 1%to 5&% of their turnover for R & D.

(c) Tax concessions on R & D investments by industrial firms.

(d) Encouragement of cooperative industrial research associationsthrough partial government subsidy of their R & D budget.

4.5 International S & T Resources.

International S & T resources comprise the foreign S & T resources whicha country can tap for the build-up of its own scientific and technological potential

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and for the scientific and technological solution of its national developmentproblems. The two ways through which international S & T resources can betapped are:

(a) International S & T Assistance - This refers to the assistance given byan HDC to an LDC for the development of the latters STP.

(b) International S & T Cooperation - This refers to the various bilateraland multilateral schemes for cooperation in S & T activities.

International S & T Assistance.

In terms of the human, infrastructural, informational, and financial aspectsof STP, the S & T assistance provided by an HDCs to LDCs can take one or more of the following forms:

(a) Human aspects - Assistance to enable LDC scientists andtechnologists to obtain advanced R & D training in HDCs or to enableHDC scientists and technologists to work in LDCs.

(b) Infrastructural aspects - Assistance in the form of donations or grantsfor S & T equipment or buildings.

(c) Informational aspects - Assistance in the form of library donations or sharing of non-proprietary information.

(d) Financial aspects - Assistance in the form of loans and direct financialaid for S & T development.

In this connection, the World Plan of Action recommends that HDCs shouldincrease their S & T assistance to LDCs to a level equivalent to 0.05% of their GNP by 1980. 45 At 1970 prices this target would have amounted to US $1,250million for which two subsidiary targets were set:

(a) Expert assistance of US $750 million to enable 20,000 HDC scientistsand engineers to work in LDCs at an average annual cost of US$37,500 (at 1970 prices).

(b) Equipment assistance of US$500 million to support R & D and STS inLDCs.

International S & T Cooperation.

Among the important reasons for international S & T cooperation are:

(a) The need to pool limited human, infrastructural, informational, andfinancial resources so as to reduce costs of R & D and STS and avoidunnecessary duplication of work.

(b) The need to maintain international standards in R & D and keep upwith international developments in science and technology.

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(c) The need for world-wide study of global natural phenomena.

(d) The need for international coordination of legislation pertaining toscientific and technological issues.

Types of Cooperation Schemes.

International S & T cooperation may be classified as follows:

(a) Institutionalized Cooperation - This is a characterized by a common S& T programmed of action and a common budget fed by nationalcontributions. Included under this category are international researchcenters created by special international agreements (e.g. ICTP) andnational S & T institutions with an international vocation.

(b) Concerted Cooperation - This is characterized by the coordination of national research projects according to a commonly planned workingprogramme with heads of national research teams meeting at intervalsto exchange and compare research findings. In this arrangements, thecosts of collaboration are usually borne by an internationalorganization but each participating country pays its own expenses.

(c) Reciprocal Cooperation - This comprises the formal and informal,bilateral and multilateral, linkages among universities, researchcenters, departments, or research groups for the exchange of personnel, reciprocal training of postgraduate students, coordinationsof research, channeling of preprints, etc.

UNESCOs schematic representation of the various possible levels andmodalities of international S & T cooperation is reproduced in Diagram 3. 46

From the viewpoint of LDC scientists, the most vital and most effectivecooperative schemes are those that enable them to be integrated into theinvisible colleges, the informal groups of scientists scattered throughout theworld who collaborate extensively on common research interests and determinethe research fronts in a particular area. Hence the most important form of scientific cooperation between LDC scientists is the linkage between researchgroups. A proposed linkage of this type is the scientific adoption of an LDCresearch group by an HDC research group. 47

Based on an in-depth study of bilateral links between S & T institutions inBritain and in Thailand, as reported by Moravcsik, it has been found that theconditions which are conducive to successful bilateral cooperation between S &T institutions in LDCs and S & T institutions in HDCs are: 48

(a) links should be initiated not through an intermediary but through directcontact between scientists in the two institutions;

(b) objectives should be set by the LDC institution;(c) visits by HDC scientists to the LDC institution should be short but

frequent rather than one long stretch;

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(d) funding for such links should be given directly to the cooperatinginstitutions rather than administered by an outside agency on an item-by-item basis.

(e) small links tend to be more effective than large ones.

* * * *NOTES:

1UNESCO, An Introduction to Policy Analysis in Science and Technology. Paris,1979.

2 United Nations, Advisory Committee on the Application of Science and Technologyto Development for the Second United Nations Development Decade, World Plan of Actionfor the Application of Science and Technology to Development. New York, 1971.

3UNESCO, Introduction to Policy Analysis in Science and Technology. Paris, 1979.

4UNESCO, Science and Technology in Asian Development. Paris, 1970, pp. 105-108.

5 Michael J. Moravcsik, Science Development: Toward the Building of Science inLess Developed Countries. International Development Research Center, Blooming5on,Indiana, 1974, pp. 137-154.

6 Michael s. Wionczek, Science and Technology Planning in LDCs, in Integrationof Science and Technology with Development, edited by D. Thomas and M.S. Wionczek.Pergamon Press, New York, 1979.

7UNESCO, Science and Technology in Asian Development, op. cit., p. 108.

8UNESCO, An Introduction to Policy Analysis op. cit., p. 21-23.

9Eduardo Amadeo, National Science and Technology Councils in Latin America:Achievement and Failures of the First Ten Years, in Integration of Science andTechnology with Development, op. cit., p. 149.

10UNESCO, Science and Technology in Asian Development, op. cit., p. 113.11Ibid., p. 177.

12UNESCO, An Introduction to Policy Analysis op. cit., p. 23-24.13Moravcsik, op. cit., pp. 49-51.

14UNESCO, Science and Technology in Asian Development, op. cit., p. 109

15Hyung-Sup Choi, Adapting Technology - The Korean Case in Views of Science,Technology and Development, edited by E. Rabinowitch and V. Rabinowitch. PergamonPress, Oxford, 1975.

16Moravcsik, op. cit., p. 50.

17United Nations, World Plan of Action op. cit., p. 63.

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18UNESCO, Science and Technology in Asian Development, op. cit., p. 159-213.

19Sources: Annex of UNESCOs An Introduction to Policy Analysis in Science andTechnology and the 1977 UNESCO Statistical Yearbook.

20UNESCO, Science and Technology in African Development. Paris, 1974, pp. 119-121.

21Moravcsik op. cit., p. 51.

22UNESCO, UNESCO, Science and Technology in Asian Development, op. cit., pp.73-74.

23 Moravcsik, op. cit., pp. 51-72, and other references cited therein.

24 Djerassi, Carl, A High Priority? Research Centers in Developing Nations,Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (January 1968) pp. 22-27.

25 UNESCO, Science and Technology in Asian Development, op cit., pp. 47-48.

26Ibid., p. 49.

27Djerassi, Carl, op. cit.

28Bhabha, H.J., Science and the Problems of Development, Science 151 (1966), pp.541-548.

29UNACAST, World Plan of Action op. cit., p. 49.

30UNESCO, The Role of Science and Technology in Economic Development. Paris,1970, pp. 13-15.

31UNESCO, Science and Technology in Asian Development, op. cit., p. 127.

32UNACAST, World Plan of Action op. cit., pp. 56-58.

33Footnote to UNESCO, An Introduction to Policy Analysis op. cit., p. 41.

34UNACAST, op. cit., p. 57.

35UNESCO, An Introduction to Policy Analysis op. cit.., pp. 82-92.

36Ibid., pp. 36-37.

37Ibid.

38Moravcsik, op. cit., p. 110.39Ibid., p. 124.

40Ibid.

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41UNESCO, The Role of Science and Technology in Economic Development, op. cit., p. 17.

42UNESCO, The Role of Science and Technology in Economic Development, op.cit.,. pp. 23-25.

43UNESCO, Science and Technology in Asian Development, op. cit., pp. 128-129.

44Ibid.

45UNACAST, The World Plan of Action op. cit., pp. 56-58.

46UNESCO, An Introduction to Policy Analysis op. cit., p. 60.

47Wijesekera, R.O.B., Building National Scientific and Technological ResearchCapability in the Context of Underdevelopment in Integration of Science and Technologywith Development, op. cit., p. 29.

48Moravcsik, op. cit., pp. 102-103.

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Documents

4.2.C-framework for Science and Technology Policies