Research Policy

In this section, incrEAST offers information on national research policies, structures, programmes and organisations in Belarus.

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Context of research policy

Context of the national policy in research and technology, as far as its objectives and priorities are defined by the state line of development approved by the Government of Belarus - transition to the innovative economy, the economy of knowledge. Conceptual provisions providing for setting the strategic innovative development targets and realization thereof are set forth in the State Program for Innovative Development of the Republic of Belarus for 2007-2010.

Research policy: objectives and priorities

The science is considered the main resource and the powerful driving force for the national economy. Therefore the main objective of the state research policy is to create the favourable conditions for realization of this ambitious mission.

The following tasks of the state policy in R&D should be named among priority ones:

• ensuring innovative development of the national economy;
• efficient governmental support to the scientific sector, including its technological potential and human resources;
• assistance in integrating science, education and manufacturing;
• further improvement of the system of the S&T and innovation activities management;
• development of the intellectual property protection institutions;
• stimulation of science intensive export and expansion of international S&T cooperation;
• assistance in engineering and technological re-equipment of production facilities, output of science intensive products.

The state S&T policy in Belarus is formed on the base of priority areas of S&T activities. For the period of up to 2010, the following priorities are determined:

• resource-saving and energy effective technologies of competitive production;
• new materials and new energy sources;
• medicine and pharmacy;
• information and telecommunication technologies;
• technologies of production, processing and storage of agricultural production;
• industrial biotechnologies;
• ecology and rational wildlife management.

Based on the priority areas of S&T activities, different types of  S&T programs (applied research & developments) are developed for 5-year period (2007-2010), including

• State S&T programs,
• Branch S&T programs,
• Regional S&T programs,

as well as scientific support for presidential programs and governmental economic and social programs.

Besides them, innovation activities are being supported through the State Program of Innovative Activities in the Republic of Belarus for 2007-2010.  

Also, priority areas of basic and applied research in the Republic of Belarus are defined in the country for 5-year period which serve as a ground for the programs of basic and applied research.

The year of 2010 is a transitional one because the previously developed programs for 2007-2010 will be finalized and the new ones have to be formed. It also means the necessity to define the new priorities for 2011-2015 – both social & economic, science & technology, basic and applied research, etc.

The work on definition of the new priorities has been started already. As a first step, the List of priority areas of basic and applied research in the Republic of Belarus for 2011-2015 has been approved by the Resolution of the Council of Ministers of 19 April 2010 No. 585. It includes 13 areas, such as:

1. Energy supply, energy saving, energy efficiency and energy effective technologies;
2. Supramolecular chemistry, chemical synthesis of new substances and materials with the preliminary defined structure, functional and chemical-physical properties. New chemical products and technologies;
3. Physical-chemical basics for biology. Biotechnologies, bio-energy and bio-fuel;
4. Medicinal, diagnostic, prophylactic and rehabilitation technologies, cell and molecular biological technologies in medicine, technique and devices for medicine;
5. Information and communication, aviation and space technologies;
6. Laser, optic, opto-, micro- and radio technologies and systems;
7. Mechanical engineering. Systems and complexes for agricultural technique. Control and diagnostics in  mechanical engineering;
8. New material for industry, medicine and construction. Science-based technologies of their production. Metallurgy and founding processes;
9. Production, storage and processing of agricultural products;
10. Ecology, natural resources, resource saving, rational use of resources and emergency protection;
11. Social, economic, spiritual and cultural development of the Republic of Belarus;
12. Interdisciplinary research. Prospective and emerging technologies;
13. Scientific basics for strengthening the defensive capacity and increasing the national security.

It’s for the first time in the national S&T policy that the interdisciplinary research, as well as new and emerging high risky research are included in the priority list and emphasized in the separate line.

Each of these broad areas is further specified in 5-12 sub-areas. The full List of priority areas of basic and applied research in the Republic of Belarus for 2011-2015 in Russian is available at http://www.pravo.by/webnpa/text.asp?RN=C21000585.

Based on the List of priority areas of basic and applied research the List of state research programs for 2011-2015 is approved by the Regulation of the Council of Ministers of 9 June 2010 № 886, http://pravo.by/webnpa/text.asp?RN=C21000886 (in Russian). It includes 16 programs, their state customers and main executers, as well as programs’ goals, preliminary budget and its distribution per year.

The definition of the priority areas of S&T activities for 2011-2015 is next in turn.

In parallel, the Concept of the State Program of Innovative Activities in the Republic of Belarus for 2011-2015 was developed, it’s available in Russian  http://belisa.org.by/ru/news/stnews/innovative/conception.html. The State Program of Innovative Activities is under development.

Policy-making and coordination

Policy-making and coordination in the field of science, technology and innovation are carried out by a triangle composed of the State Committee on Science and Technology (ranked as a ministry for S&T), National Academy of Sciences and High Certifying Commission:

They share responsibilities on public administration in the field of science, technology and innovation in the following way:

• the State Committee on Science and Technology takes the issues of the S&T and innovation policy and coordinates it with a focus on the stages of developments, demonstration and, more general, on innovation activities; legislation in the field of science, technology and innovation activities; budget for STI and monitoring its end use; intellectual property rights protection; international S&T cooperation; scheduling the training of the scientific personnel of higher qualification on the national level and by the field of science;
• National Academy of Sciences organizes, conducts and coordinates basic and applied research, being the leading research organization with the highest concentration of highly qualified researchers (63% in 2008);
• High Certifying Commission certifies scientific personnel of higher qualification and carries out the state regulation in this field.

National research programmes

In Belarus, traditionally the programme method is used for financing R&D.

In 2008, over 90 national programs of different types focused on or partly included R&D were supported. Among them there are the programs which

• cover definite stages of research, e.g. programs of basic research, oriented basic or applied research. The other programs have got a complex character combining all the stages of the research process. In total, there are 38 programs of the mentioned types. For 35 of them the National Academy of Sciences plays the role of the state customer;
• support research, developments and demonstration activities, including the state S&T programs (27), branch (9) and  regional S&T programs (6);
• include some research as a scientific support for the program implementation – presidential programs (1) and social & economic programs (15). 

The lists of the ongoing programs mentioned and scheduled amounts of financing in 2006-2010 have been approved by the Resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus No. 01339 of 28 November 2005 and Resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus No. 05 of 4 January 2006 (in Russian).

The programmes are formed on the base of priority directions of S&T activities. Selection of projects is carried out based on the results of expert examination.

The results of the programs’ implementation are analyzed by the State Committee for Science and Technology, National Academy of Sciences, their state customers and included in the annual Analytical Report on the Science State and Development Prospects in the Republic of Belarus presented by the SCS&T and NAS to the Government and President of the country.  The reports for 2003-2008 are available on http://asmid.nlb.by/nbb/index.php?sec=152&pg=6 (in Russian).

Source: BellSA
Last up-date: 20 July 2010