SGGP 11/09/2023 09:12

The Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee has just approved Decision No. 35/2023/QD-UBND promulgating the Regulation on Management of Science and Technology Tasks Using the State Budget of Ho Chi Minh City (Regulation 35) with many more favorable regulations for units ordering Science and Technology tasks.

Underutilized budget

Mr. Nguyen Viet Dung, Director of the Department of Science and Technology of Ho Chi Minh City, said that every year, Ho Chi Minh City allocates 2% of its budget for science and technology activities, but it has not been fully utilized. One of the reasons is that some departments, branches, districts, etc. have not really paid attention to building goals and plans to apply science and technology to solve problems in their units. In the period of 2020-2022, there are 165 city-level science and technology tasks registered for implementation, in which the number of tasks in the fields of science, technology and engineering, medical science, pharmacy and social sciences tends to increase.

Notable are the studies on nanomaterials, mechanics, chemicals, international human resource training, application of artificial intelligence in medicine, development of drugs for treatment, building digital platforms... The total budget for the 165 science and technology tasks mentioned above is 351.35 billion VND, of which the budget from the city budget is 318.3 billion VND (accounting for 90.6% of the total budget). In addition to the state budget, the budget for the topic can be supplemented from the capital of the organization in charge of the task, from sponsorship from businesses or other organizations...

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According to Mr. Nguyen Viet Dung, Regulation 35 was issued with more favorable points than before, so it has become easier for units to order science and technology tasks. Departments, branches, districts need to boldly discuss and coordinate with the Department of Science and Technology to jointly determine standard problems, find detailed solutions for each science and technology task, and then order research with schools, institutes, etc.

Encourage units to participate

Ms. Huynh Luu Trung Phung, Deputy Head of the Department of Science Management (Department of Science and Technology of Ho Chi Minh City) said that Regulation 35 has some contents that need to be noted, such as requirements for task implementation; science and technology advisory council; task cost appraisal team; task management organization; implementation organization; principles of funding for task implementation; direct assignment of science and technology public service units of the city to perform tasks.

. Regulation 35 stipulates that up to 100% of the total funding will be granted for tasks in the list as announced by the Department of Science and Technology or tasks directly assigned according to regulations. Other tasks that are evaluated by the council to achieve 80/100 points or more and have products serving the public sector, the community of people, the group of businesses in Ho Chi Minh City or breakthrough products will also be granted 100% of the funding.

“Previously, the requirement to report on the progress of scientific and technological tasks was every 6 months. In case the task had a duration of less than 12 months or a budget of less than 150 million VND, there was no need to conduct an appraisal. However, with Regulation 35, scientists must report on the progress of their tasks every 3 months and conduct an appraisal for all tasks, except in special cases decided by the Director of the Department of Science and Technology,” Ms. Huynh Luu Trung Phung shared.

Phan Thi Thuy Ly, Deputy Director in charge of operating the High-Tech Business Incubator (SHTP-IC), commented that compared to previous regulations, Regulation 35 brings many benefits to science and technology organizations, especially for enterprises that want to carry out science and technology tasks. In carrying out science and technology tasks, the regulations of the new regulation clearly define the roles and responsibilities of the components participating in the tasks, have procedures for very specific spending levels... are some of the conveniences that the new regulation brings, thereby encouraging units to participate in science and technology tasks more.

However, Mr. Nguyen Viet Dung noted that the S&T tasks under Regulation 35 will be implemented according to a number of major orientations that Ho Chi Minh City is focusing on and giving priority to, such as the smart urban construction project, the plan to promote innovation in the public sector, digital transformation programs, etc. After the S&T tasks are successfully ordered and assigned to research units, when accepted, the topics and tasks must solve specific problems raised by the ordering unit.