National Integration Committee: "Support Young Scientists' Challenges... Expand Research Life Encouragement Grants"

Kim Han-gil, Chairman of the National Integration Committee [Image source=Yonhap News]

The Presidential Committee on National Integration proposed on the 14th that a program be established to allow young scientists to lead all research processes under their own responsibility and that the stipend (research life encouragement grant) to guarantee research life be expanded.

On the same day, the Committee held a policy proposal presentation and performance report meeting of the 'Walking with Science and Technology' Special Committee (Special Committee) at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) and made this proposal.

Since the launch of the Special Committee in March, the Integration Committee has been discussing ways to enable scientists and engineers to focus on research with pride.

Accordingly, they prepared policy proposals focusing on four areas: ▲supporting stable research activities of young scientists ▲building an advanced research and development (R&D) ecosystem ▲attracting and activating exchanges of excellent and global talent ▲governance innovation to enhance R&D investment performance.

First, the Special Committee explained that the stipend should be expanded to guarantee the research activities of young scientists who have recently faced difficulties during the R&D budget restructuring process. The stipend is a monthly research life encouragement grant paid to science and engineering graduate students participating in national R&D.

Additionally, the Special Committee proposed the legalization of the 'researcher' status to stabilize the employment of postdoctoral researchers affiliated with universities.

Furthermore, they suggested institutional improvements to build an advanced R&D ecosystem, including establishing an industry-academia matching platform to jointly solve technical challenges of startups with researchers, conducting systematic surveys on researchers' human rights and preparing prevention and response measures, and securing stable budgets for basic research.

In particular, the Special Committee called for research funding support for attracting excellent overseas talent, expanding fast-track requirements for permanent residency and naturalization, and allowing broad external activities such as special salary and appointment conditions and concurrent positions to activate personnel exchanges between universities, research institutes, and advanced companies.

These contents will be supplemented through consultations with ministries and then reported to President Yoon Suk-yeol for final confirmation.

Kim Myung-ja, an advisor to the National Integration Committee and chairperson of KAIST, emphasized that for Korea's ultra-fast growth driven by science and technology investment to continue producing sustainable results, it is necessary to innovate the talent development system, improve R&D investment efficiency and commercialization, and foster a culture of convergence and communication suitable for the science and technology society.

The report meeting was attended by Lee Woo-il, vice chairman of the National Science and Technology Advisory Council, Park Sang-wook, chief of science and technology at the Presidential Office, Chairperson Kim Myung-ja, and Lee Tae-sik, president of the Korea Federation of Science and Technology Societies.

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