National research, innovation system to be optimized in Moldova

Chisinau, 10 July /MOLDPRES/ – The government approved a draft law amending and supplementing the Code on Science and Innovation and the Education Code today. The document aims at enhancing the quality of the educational process, also the performance of the field of research and innovation by applying the principle of competition in the distribution of funds, the government’s communication and protocol department has reported.  

According to the project, in the education sector, the National Agency for Quality Assurance in Education and Research (ANACEC) will be created, which will include the attributions of the National Agency for Quality Assurance in Vocational Education, the National School Inspectorate and the National Council for Accreditation and Attestation. The Agency will also evaluate how to implement the National Curriculum and how to administer exams and assessments in general education.

Also, the project proposes to adjust the institutional framework for the management of the research and innovation fields, the competences being focused at the Executive level, which will approve the policy documents reflecting the sector priorities. The latter will be developed by the scientific community within the supreme forum, represented by the Academy of Sciences of Moldova (ASM), which will act as a Government strategic consultant in the field of research and innovation.

Another important aspect is to improve the funding of priorities in the areas of research and innovation. Referred to it, it will be established the National Agency for Research and Development (ANCD). The Authority will be responsible for evaluating project proposals submitted by researchers, through competition, irrespective of their institutional ownership. The access to funds managed by the Agency will be facilitated by excluding the mechanism for the accreditation of organizations in the field of research and innovation and replacing it with the ANACEC scientific evaluation and confirmation tool.

The financial resources required for the implementation of the project are estimated at 2.2 million lei. Similarly, the reorganization of the mentioned entities will ensure optimization of the annual budget expenditures for the domain administration by around 9.1 million lei.