bridges -- The OST's Publication on Science & Technology Policy
Vol. 4 -- December 7, 2004
Feature Articles
© OST 2004
http://bridges.ostina.org
by Klaus Schuch
Abstract
After the cessation of violent conflict in
the West Balkan region, the international community soon began to
support the reform of higher education systems in the region.
Modernization of the university structure and teaching was at the
center of many initiatives. The Austrian Development Cooperation was
among the forerunners in this respect. However, it was some time until
attention was directed toward the miserable situation of science and
technology (S&T) in the target region. The Ministerial Conference
in Thessaloniki in 2003 and the EU-Balkan Countries Action Plan for
S&T, which was adopted there, were major milestones in this
respect. The Southeast European ERA-NET, initiated by Austria and
supported by the European Commission, has been established to add to
the Action Plan by emphasizing a better synergy of the existing and
planned activities that single EU member states conduct with the West
Balkan countries on a bilateral basis.
Status Analysis
The systemic problems that negatively affect the sphere of S&T in most West Balkan countries are connected with
- The overdue reform of S&T policy and R&D structures
- The revitalization of R&D activities
- The internationalization of R&D
As regards (1) the first issue, the major problems are
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The disruptive S&T policy formulation processes and the overall marginal status of S&T in governmental policy priorities
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The weak policy delivery systems in terms of institutional structures and capacities
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The lack of sufficient public budget allocations for R&D
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The reform of the university system and the associated allocation struggle
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The generation change, related conflicts and the problem of brain drain.
As regards (2) the second issue, the major problems include
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The very low industry demand for R&D results
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The imbalance between basic and applied research and between disciplinary and interdisciplinary research
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The need to improve the knowledge base in
the technical disciplines—with a potential for industrial
exploitation—as well as in the social sciences and humanities
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The deterioration of physical R&D infrastructure.
As regards (3) the third issue, the major problems concern the following:
- The marginal position of most West Balkan scientific communities vis-à-vis European scientific communities
- The rebuilding of S&T links between the West Balkan countries.
Challenges to Problem Solving
From a system-of-innovation perspective, one has
to differentiate the system’s elements (such as “R&D,” “higher
education,” “industrial structure,” “finance and banking,” “school
education,” “vocational adult education,” etc.) from the connections
between them. The quality of the system’s elements varies by country,
but the system’s links are too weak everywhere.
During the transition period of the last
fifteen years (which was heightened by the armed conflicts, the problem
of nation building and the problem of governance), R&D itself
became one of the most negatively affected system elements. The
research budgets in many of the West Balkan countries are below any
critical mass. The modernization of institutions and structures is long
overdue. The links to other subsystems, like education or economy, are
underdeveloped.
Some of the structural and
development-oriented issues mentioned above are being actively tackled
by the Austrian Development Agency. This is especially so in terms of
the improvement of the university system and its connections with
regional economies and labor markets, as well as with international
know-how and technology transfer.
As regards the third block of problems mentioned above (i.e., the internationalization of R&D), the Austrian Ministry for Education, Science and Culture has started a new initiative in the field of science. It is targeting the West Balkan countries by contributing
to the EU-Balkan Countries Action Plan. This Austrian “West Balkan
Initiative” includes, inter alia, the Southeast European ERA-NET
(SEE-ERA.NET) and the Austrian Science and Research Liaison Offices
(ASOs). The S&T relations between the EU and the West Balkan
countries will be a priority topic during the Austrian EU presidency in
the first half of 2006.
The Southeast European ERA-NET (SEE-ERA.NET)
SEE-ERA-NET is a major pillar of this new
Austrian initiative toward the West Balkan countries. It is the first
regional European Research Area (ERA) network supported by the European
Commission. The main objective of SEE-ERA.NET is to enhance R&D
cooperation between already established and new EU member states and
candidate countries, as well as the West Balkan countries. SEE-ERA.NET
is designed to support a much better exploitation of existing bilateral
R&D cooperation under a flexible network that enables
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A systematic exchange of information and
best practices on bilateral R&D programs and activities supported
hereunder on the project level
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A sound understanding of the state-of-the-art research systems of the West Balkan countries
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A comprehensive needs analysis from the
viewpoint of collaborating researchers, especially from the West Balkan
countries as regards international R&D cooperation
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Awareness raising on important, yet
insufficiently tackled, problems and opportunities, including the
identification of joint strategic activities and the development of
practical policy recommendations
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The implementation of joint instruments and initiatives under a variable geometry
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The conduct of multinational research by the
implementation of a regional R&D program with a pilot multilateral
call for proposals.
SEE-ERA.NET comprises fifteen partners. Most
of them are ministries, though there are a few agencies, from twelve
countries (Austria, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, France,
FYROM, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Montenegro, Romania and Slovenia). The
project will last for five years and constitutes one of the major
platforms to enhance S&T cooperation at an explicitly strategic
level. In Austria, SEE-ERA-NET is coordinated by the Zentrum für Soziale Innovation (ZSI) on behalf of the Austrian Ministry for Education, Science and Research.
Other West Balkan Activities of the ZSI
Since March 1, the Austrian Science and Research
Liaison Offices (ASOs), which are located in Ljubljana and Sofia and
coordinated by the ZSI in Vienna, have been operating on the basis of
yearly thematic programs with a regional focus in order to address—in
addition to the relevant scientific communities in Austria, Bulgaria
and Slovenia—researchers and S&T policy delivery systems from the
West Balkan countries. A series of conferences and seminars has been
launched on topics such as Ethnic Minorities in Science and Higher
Education; Women and Science in Southeast Europe; Benchmarking R&D
Organizations in Southeast Europe; Participation of West Balkan
Countries in the 6th and 7th European Framework
Program for R&D; The Role of Research in the Bologna Process in
Southeast Europe; and so forth. In addition, a dedicated call for
proposals has been prepared on behalf of the Austrian Ministry for
Education, Science and Culture to foster regional cooperation between
researchers from Austria; the two ASO host countries, Bulgaria and
Slovenia; and the West Balkan countries. The call addresses important
topics of the target region, such as Civil Society Development;
Governance; Inequality and Minorities; Knowledge, and so forth. The
call for proposals will be launched in December 2004.
In addition, the ZSI acts as a monitoring
agency under the Austrian Development Cooperation. It supports the
respective activities of the Austrian Ministry for Foreign Affairs and
the Austrian Development Agency in the field of (higher) education
implemented in the West Balkan countries. It helps to establish
education programs for the target region and to identify relevant
projects, and it assists in public procurement procedures. The main
activity of the ZSI is to monitor and evaluate the funded projects that
are implemented by different Austrian service providers such as the
World University Service Austria, which is a strong key player in the
region.
Last but not least, the ZSI represents a
resource and knowledge pool in many different fields that are important
for the target region. It is engaged in research projects dealing with
technology-enhanced learning, migration and labor market policies,
international S&T policy and technology assessment. On behalf of
the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), it
implements, for instance, the OECD Forum on Partnerships and Local
Governance, which explicitly addresses the West Balkan region, among
other countries. Policy advice given by ZSI experts on the
establishment of a new industrial-oriented Austrian R&D program
with explicit international focus toward Central and Southeast Europe
might serve as another example. Calls for proposals under this new
program, labeled CIR-CE—Cooperation in Innovation and Research with
Central and Eastern Europe—will be launched in the first half of 2005.
CIR-CE will be managed by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency on
behalf of the Austrian Ministry for Economic Affairs and Labor.
More information can be obtained by visiting the following links:
http://www.zsi.at
http://www.aso.zsi.at
http://www.oecd.org/els/leed
http://www.see-era.net
