Enhancing connectivity in research, development and application of science and technology

(Baonghean) - Science and technology play a very important role in promoting the speed and quality of current socio-economic development. The application of scientific and technological advances in practical life and production attracts the attention of the whole society - demonstrated through the content-rich and interactive question-and-answer session between the Director of the Department of Science and Technology and the delegates of the Provincial People's Council at the 14th session.

Passion fruit seedlings at Napaga Agricultural Development Investment Joint Stock Company. Photo: Tran Hai

At the question and answer session, Mr. Tran Quoc Thanh - Director of the Department of Science and Technology received 11 questions from the People's Council delegates, revolving around the following 3 issues:

Firstly, the situation of “topics in drawers” ​​- meaning topics and projects that are not effective in practice, cannot be deployed on a large scale or can be deployed but do not bring high value. In fact, this is also a common situation of science and technology activities nationwide, mentioned by Minister of Science and Technology Nguyen Quan in the 9th National Assembly session. Delegate Nguyen Thi Quynh Nga (Thanh Chuong) and delegate Do Dinh Quang (Vinh City) also raised questions about the implementation and effectiveness of topics and projects in the field of social sciences and humanities. According to the opinions of the delegates, the role of science and technology in the development and transformation of fields such as national culture, spiritual culture, etc. is not as clear and noticeable as in the fields of production and economy. For a land with a diverse culture and a long history like Nghe An, cultural and social development is also an issue that needs attention in this new era.

Second, for topics and projects that have been successful and expanded, delegates Le Van Tri (Anh Son) and Tran Tan Quy (Do Luong) are both interested in the "post" stage of the model. Up to now, the mechanism of impacting science and technology on production is still "linked" and heavily focused on input thinking. That is, the impact is separate on one stage, one "link" in the production chain, not yet synchronous. For example, supporting people to use science and technology in the stages of plants, breeds and production processes, but not paying much attention to the stages of harvesting, preserving, processing and consuming. These are important "links" that close the production chain and are decisive for the development and maintenance of a model. In addition, there is still a situation where when the initial support source is no longer available, people abandon the model and return to the old production method.

Finally, the issue that most delegates were concerned about was the causes of limitations and shortcomings in applying science and technology into practice, the orientations and solutions in the coming time so that science and technology can create a deep, wide and breakthrough impact, contributing more positively to the socio-economic development of the province. Delegates Nguyen Chi Nham (Nam Dan) and Le Van Cam (Dien Chau) raised two hypothetical reasons: the survey and consultation stage of the topic was not close to reality or the implementation mechanism and policies were not linked to the market and enterprises. Delegates Phan Nhat Phuong (Nghia Dan), Le Thi Nhan (Dien Chau), Dinh Thi An Phong (Nghi Loc) and Truong Van Hien (Yen Thanh) raised solutions such as adjusting the mechanism and policies to support the development of science and technology for localities and enterprises; linking with key programs such as building new rural areas, large-scale fields; promoting the socialization of investment resources for science and technology.

“Science and technology is a"broad, deep and risky field"

Explaining and answering questions from delegates, regarding the first issue, Mr. Tran Quoc Thanh, Director of the Department of Science and Technology, said that the science and technology activities of Nghe An province in the period of 2011 - 2015 were assessed as relatively good compared to the national average. Of nearly 190 provincial-level topics and projects and 6 central-level topics and projects, over 70% were assessed as having good results, nearly 30% were not effective. This rate in the national average is 60 - 65% compared to 40 - 35%. At the same time, since 2013, the rate of successful topics and projects has tended to increase.

Within 5 years, the total budget for investment in the field of science and technology is 161 billion VND, the investment level increases by about 10% each year compared to the previous year, but the ratio of career expenditure/budget expenditure tends to decrease. Resources for science and technology development are not much, the technology content in topics, projects and products is not high, and resources from enterprises in the province have not been fully exploited.

However, the application of science and technology has made positive and noteworthy contributions to socio-economic development. For example, in agriculture, it has contributed to increasing productivity and output of major agricultural products such as rice, tea, peanuts, sugarcane (in 2014 compared to 2010, it increased by 7-15% depending on the type of agricultural product); successfully replicating production models of valuable plant varieties such as Shan snow tea (Ky Son), passion fruit (Que Phong), safe vegetables (Tuong Duong), etc. In addition, the use of biotechnology has contributed to completing the agricultural production chain, with products such as mushroom varieties (Tan Ky, Yen Thanh), animal feed from corn, cassava leaves (Thanh Chuong, Anh Son), biological bedding (Dien Chau, Do Luong);...

Applying high technology to grass production for dairy farming at TH farm (Nghia Dan). Photo: CL

Regarding the field of social sciences and humanities, answering the question of delegate Nguyen Thi Quynh Nga, Mr. Tran Quoc Thanh said that the Department of Science and Technology has implemented a number of projects such as research on ethnic cultures through traditional festivals; survey of temples and pagodas in the province; teaching and building software to teach the Thai alphabet;... Specifically, the project on folk festivals has been accepted in phase 1, and is implementing phase 2 of the pilot project of the Nine-chamber Temple Festival; the project on research and survey of temples and pagodas has been completed, and a complete database has been built. The project on restoring and teaching the Thai alphabet has not been accepted but is being implemented quite well in Quy Hop and Que Phong. It may be implemented in 2016 in Tuong Duong according to the proposal and request of the locality. The results of the acceptance of completed projects will be transferred to the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism for use.

In addition to the above results, the Director of the Department of Science and Technology also noted opinions on the second group of issues, according to which the impact of science and technology on economic production is still fragmented, lacking synchronization and continuity. There are topics and projects that initially received support for breeds, but after a period of implementation, they cannot be maintained because the source of breeds is not self-sufficient, depending on the source from the provincial or central level. This is often the case with new plant and animal varieties, not native varieties, which can only be implemented on a small scale. Sometimes, the problem lies in the processing and consumption stage: for example, the model of raising commercial square-head perch, which yields up to 30 tons/ha but can only be sold at a small retail level to local restaurants, does not ensure stable output, so it cannot be maintained or expanded. These are the shortcomings in the process of applying science and technology into practice that the governing agency, the Department of Science and Technology, acknowledges responsibility for and draws lessons for the future.

However, in addition to subjective reasons from the management unit, there are also objective reasons, because the reality is that the field of science and technology is a field that is broad in scope of influence, deep in intellectual content and contains many risks when going from theory to practice. One of the obstacles to bringing science and technology into life is the passive thinking of some people, abandoning the model when not provided with financial support and returning to traditional production methods with limited technology content. To overcome this situation, it is necessary to have the participation and close monitoring of all levels and sectors and to have adjustments in the way the model is implemented after the Department of Science and Technology has completed the transfer. The passion fruit model in Que Phong is a model that has been implemented very systematically with the level and support mechanism gradually decreasing each year. "Slow and steady wins the race", after a certain period of time, people will gradually get used to the new production method, creating the durability of the model.

The Director of the Department of Science and Technology affirmed: “The effectiveness of applying science and technology into practice is not really high, for both reasons. First of all, in the survey and consultation stages, it is not really close to the practical situation. The Department of Science and Technology is responsible for receiving proposals and conclusions from the Science Councils at all levels and in all sectors; researching and reviewing to advise the Provincial Science Council. The Department takes responsibility for not completing the screening and consultation tasks well, leading to cases where topics and projects are not successful because they are not suitable for the local situation”. The second reason is that the mechanism and policies for science and technology development are still spread out with 12 programs (the Central has 14 programs), leading to resource dispersion, fragmented investment, and lack of focus. The human resources operating in the field of science and technology are still limited, in some places there are no specialized staff, and have not received proper attention for science and technology development.

Solutions

To overcome and improve the quality of science and technology activities as well as efficiency in practice, in the coming time, the Department of Science and Technology will identify and implement the following specific solutions:

Firstly, from 12 programs reduced to 6 programs. Priority is given to topics and projects ordered by units, levels, sectors and enterprises to ensure meeting practical needs. Determine to build a closed-chain model, linked with enterprises to ensure product output. At the same time, integrate with the task of building a brand for the locality, with 100 key products listed.

Second, to increase resources for science and technology development, it is necessary to promote two main directions: science and technology development in the business sector and mobilize social resources. Currently, Nghe An has 4 science and technology enterprises, but among nearly 8,000 enterprises operating in the province, the level of participation in science and technology development is still low. We must find a way to shift the ratio of state budget/enterprise capital for science and technology development, through shifting the thinking of enterprises about the role and significance of science and technology for economic development in the period of industrialization and modernization. For small enterprises, we will mobilize a portion of profits to raise funds for technology development and innovation and provide loans for science and technology development when enterprises have a need.

Finally, it is necessary to improve the human resources of science and technology and state management, and increase the connection between the competent departments and all levels and sectors. This will not only ensure the practicality of research and survey work but also create a foundation for the application of science and technology into life in a convenient and systematic way.

At the end of the question and answer session, Standing Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Council Nguyen Xuan Son, on behalf of the chairman, highly appreciated the active exchange between the Department of Science and Technology and the delegates; and affirmed: “The science and technology market is a special market, where scientific and technological advances are products and scientists are producers. In that market, there also exist consumers, service networks, ... that is, there must be close connections between the parties: the State - scientists - businesses - farmers. Along with the connection, it is also necessary to strengthen the autonomy mechanism of public service units to ensure flexibility, creativity and the ability to serve society most practically".

Thuc Anh