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Origins and development of EU S&T policy
Scientific and technical policy of the EU goes back to the origins of the post-war all- European political space - points on carrying out the scientific research contained treaties on establishing the European Coal and Steel Community (1951) and the European Atomic Energy Community (1957). Despite the fact that the Treaty on Establishing the European Economic Community (1957) did not contain any special "scientific" points, its implementation allowed to initiate a number of research programs in priority areas such as energy, environment, biotechnology and others in the years of 1960-1970.
The First Framework Programme for research technological development of the European Economic Community began in early 1980ies with the aim to conduct at least the initial ordering of scientific works constantly increasing in number and volume of funding levels and implemented in the EEC states by embedding them into a single "frame" (the program was of medium-term character and the budget was designed for a few years). In 1987, the existing practice of research support was anchored in the Integrated European Act, where a special chapter was devoted to the questions of the development of science. Then the Institute of Framework Programme developed in three dimensions: as a consistent increase in the budget from several hundred million euros (converted) to 7 billion euros a year in the 7th Framework Programme; as an extension of the list of scientific and technological areas that receive central support; as the diversification of mechanisms, types of financial support and management techniques, including projects, trans-national scientific networks, individual grants, special measures for small and medium-sized enterprises, schemes to support the training of specialists and scientific activities.
The 7th Framework Programme for Research, Technological Development of the European Union (hereinafter - FP7), calculated for 2007-2013.,on the realization of which the EU provides 50.5 billion euros, announces knowledge and innovation as the heart of economic progress. The objectives of FP7 are the strengthening of scientific and technological bases for the EU industry to enhance the competitiveness of the EU economy to the international arena, the promotion of citizens for the acquisition of a profession of a scientist, the support of the system designed to prevent the outflow of scientific staff from the EU. It is specifically noted in the program that scientists from other regions should be involved in the implementation of European research projects, and Europe should become more attractive for foreign researchers.
Opinions have often been expressed that the EU framework programmes cover a very limited part of funding research in Europe and therefore the expediency of the further application of this form of implementation of science policy in the EU was doubted. The First Framework Programme provided exceptionally small share of total public expenditure on research in Europe, FP7 provides support for only 5% of the current expenditure on science in the EU. However, to assess this process only in absolute terms is not entirely correct. If we consider the "free funds", i.e. funds not for the basic salary of researchers or the creation of scientific infrastructure, but on research projects, the role of FP7 will be different. In France, for example, research funding from the budget of the Framework constituted half of the "free funds" in 2007-2008, the functioning of research institutions at universities in the UK depends on funding from the FP7 projects to a greater extent. In such countries as Spain, Portugal, Greece, many of the new EU members, funds received from the Framework Programme are almost equivalent to the amount of public funding of the scientific sector. The influence of FP7 (and its predecessor RP) is undoubted in the process of bringing the less-developed in scientific terms countries of the EU to a higher level in this area. Spain and Portugal, for example, have made significant progress in the development of scientific sector only through expert use of European funding - Structural Funds, and also of the ER. The same forecasting model of science are put forward by a number of analysts for the 12 new Member States of the European Union [1,p.9].
See also: European Community Research
Mechanisms of EU-Belarus cooperation development
© National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, 2011
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