President Chen Xiaohong Attended Meeting of “Research on Science Fund Operation and Management in A New Era” Advisory Committee
2020-12-08
On the morning of December 4, the 2ndmeeting of the “Research on Science Fund Operation and Management in A New Era” Advisory Committee of National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) were held in Beijing Normal University. Officials from NSFC, including Li Jinghai, NSFC Director and CAS Academician, and Hou Zengqian, NSFC Deputy Director and CAS Academician, attended the meeting. As member of the Advisory Committee, Chen Xiaohong, HUTB President and CAE Academician, attended the meeting upon invitation and delivered an address.
Academician Chen Xiaohong pointed out that the country continues to strengthen the orientation and supporting role of science fund in a new era. Based on the “Four Orientations” initiative proposed by Secretary General Xi Jinping and in light of new situation in science and technology innovation, science fund should encourage integration between basic research, applied research and industrialization, and further increase the proportion of investment in basic science. We should proactively establish funds for enterprises and industries to encourage enterprises to participate in frontier, exploratory research. The result-oriented evaluation standard for funds should be more prominent. We should provide talents with platform and continual support to give full play to their strengths and role.
The meeting had an in-depth discussion on how to help science fund to accomplish the reform task of “targeting cutting-edge technology in the world, targeting main economic battlefield, targeting the country’s major demand and targeting people’s life and health” in a new era and how to improve the science fund operation mechanism. To realize a science fund governance system featuring well-established funding layout, advanced construction concept, regularized system, fairness and efficiency, the “Research on Science Fund Operation and Management in a New Era” project proposes a new concept to advance the reform tasks of clarifying fund orientation, improving review mechanism and optimizing discipline layout, and puts forward strategic advisory suggestions for the innovation and development of science fund in a new era. After a year or so of research and closely following the reform demand of science fund, the Research Group of the project put forward many policy suggestions such as project declaration by category, RCC review mechanism (“Responsibility, Creditworthiness and Contribution”) and the establishment of a cross-science department, which have been incorporated and used in the operation and management of science fund.
