At a latest assembly of the Central Steering Committee for Science, Technology, Innovation and Digital Transformation Development, Party General Secretary and State President To Lam harassed the necessity to clearly outline growth targets for primary scientific analysis within the new period and take away bottlenecks hindering long-term information creation for the nation’s fast and sustainable growth.
Associate Professor Dr. Dao Ngoc Chien, director of the National Foundation for Science and Technology Development (NAFOSTED), affirmed in an interview not too long ago granted to VOV.VN that the message displays a long-term strategic imaginative and prescient for science and know-how growth.
He famous that the historical past of worldwide growth has proven that each main technological breakthrough originates from achievements in primary science. Artificial intelligence, semiconductor know-how, quantum know-how, biotechnology and superior supplies are all constructed on the information generated by elementary analysis.
For Vietnam, funding in primary science shouldn’t be solely an funding in information, but additionally an funding within the nation’s long-term competitiveness, Chien stated. Basic science helps develop high-quality human sources, generate new concepts, open up rising technological instructions and strengthen the nation’s capability to soak up and grasp superior world applied sciences.
This imaginative and prescient was additionally mirrored in prime chief To Lam’s assertion that primary science serves as the foundation of nationwide innovation capability. Chien believed the message reaffirms the central position of primary science inside the broader science and know-how ecosystem whereas encouraging scientists to pursue long-term foundational analysis.
One of essentially the most notable factors within the Party and State chief’s path was the decision to reform funding and funding mechanisms and undertake a extra open strategy towards analysis dangers, marking a major shift in science governance.
“Scientific research, especially basic research, is inherently associated with risk. Many breakthrough ideas cannot guarantee immediate success. If management mechanisms focus solely on controlling risks without accepting the possibility of failure, transformative discoveries will be difficult to achieve,” the NAFOSTED director argued.
In his view, the orientation towards versatile funding mechanisms, affordable threat acceptance and analysis primarily based on substantive scientific worth is in keeping with worldwide follow. It additionally offers a foundation for analysis funding companies to proceed enhancing operations in a extra aggressive, clear and internationally peer-reviewed method.
The NAFOSTED director stated these orientations have been integrated into the draft decree on the organisation and operation of the National Foundation for Science and Technology Development.
A key new level is the precept of accepting scientific and technological dangers inside managed limits, managing funding actions primarily based on outputs and sensible impacts, and permitting versatile funding mechanisms relying on the chance degree of every analysis venture.
According to the director, the brand new framework will create beneficial circumstances for pioneering analysis concepts and encourage scientists to pursue main and extremely difficult scientific questions.
Beyond emphasising the position of primary science and funding reform, the highest chief additionally referred to as for the event of robust analysis teams and internationally aggressive centres of excellence.
Reflecting on greater than 15 years of implementing internationally standardised funding mechanisms for primary analysis, Chien stated Vietnam has constructed many respected analysis teams in arithmetic, physics, chemistry, supplies science, life sciences, data know-how, as effectively as a number of social sciences and humanities disciplines.
Many Vietnamese scientists have revealed analysis in main worldwide journals, participated in world analysis networks and skilled a brand new era of high-quality younger researchers. These achievements present an essential foundation for establishing internationally aggressive analysis facilities sooner or later.
However, he identified, the best problem stays guaranteeing secure, long-term and adequately scaled funding. Other priorities embody enhancing institutional autonomy, upgrading analysis infrastructure, increasing worldwide cooperation and growing insurance policies able to attracting and retaining prime scientific expertise.
He harassed that internationally aggressive analysis centres can’t be constructed by way of short-term initiatives, however require a long-term funding imaginative and prescient sustained over a few years.
From a science governance perspective, Chien underscored that crucial job now could be shifting from an administrative administration mindset to fashionable scientific governance. Scientists ought to be granted higher autonomy in deciding on analysis instructions, organizing initiatives and utilising analysis sources. Evaluation methods ought to focus extra on the standard and impression of analysis outcomes fairly than extreme administrative procedures or formalistic indicators.
According to him, primary analysis is a long-term course of of information accumulation, and main discoveries could take years to emerge. Therefore, coverage stability, sustained funding and a wholesome educational atmosphere are important circumstances for scientific growth.
Overall, if Vietnam goals to grasp know-how, construct a knowledge-based financial system and strengthen its nationwide place within the twenty first century, it should start with funding in primary science. Such funding shouldn’t be solely about creating information for right now, but additionally about strengthening nationwide competitiveness and guaranteeing sustainable growth for a long time to return.
