"South Korea's Science Community Has No Nobel Laureates; Long-Term Research Projects Make Up Just 1.2%" [2026 Parliamentary Audit]

Choi Hyungdoo: "Short-term results and oversight-focused science administration are the problem"
Advanced countries provide 5-12 years of research support... Call for reforming the foundations of basic research

A lack of support for long-term basic research and science administration focused on oversight have been cited as reasons why no Nobel laureates have emerged from South Korea's scientific community. The view is that the country needs to move away from a research funding system that demands short-term results and create an environment where scientists can focus on their work over the long term.

At a parliamentary audit held on October 20 at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) in Daejeon, Choi Hyungdoo of the People Power Party presented data showing that long-term basic research projects account for just 1.2% of all domestic research projects and called for fundamental changes to the research funding system.

People Power Party lawmaker Choi Hyungdoo. Reporter Kim Hyunmin

Choi said that since the establishment of the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), Korean science and technology had laid the foundation for industrial development, but science and technology administration had gradually shifted its focus from supporting research to oversight.

Referring to the fact that South Korea had no Nobel laureates in scientific fields in 2025 or 2026, Choi questioned the weakness of the country's foundations for long-term research. He also presented comparative data showing that research projects in major advanced countries, including the United States, receive support for five to seven years, and for as long as 12 years in some cases.

Choi said this kind of research environment lays the groundwork for basic research that can lead to Nobel Prizes and for the development of technologies with an overwhelming competitive edge. He also pointed to the lack of support for long-term research in South Korea and the concentration of research resources in the capital region.

"This approach can no longer work," Choi said, stressing that government-funded research institutes should use the reform of the Project-Based System (PBS) as an opportunity to redefine the fundamental direction of government support for science and technology. He also urged the heads of research institutes to work toward creating an environment where scientists can focus on their research without administrative burdens.

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