3rd Research Plan

3rd Research Plan

1. The general framework | 2. The 3rd Research Plan for Catalonia (2001-2004)

2.6 Programming, Co-ordination and Management

CIRIT will devise a plan to manage the relations between the various agents participating in the implementation of the actions proposed in the 3rd Research Plan. Managing the implementation will be the responsibility of the Direcció General de Recerca (General Directorate for Research, DGR) under the control of DURSI, the relevant organisations -CIDEM, the Agency for the Assessment of Technology and Medical Research (AATRM)- of other ministries of the Generalitat, or other recognised institutions such as the Fundació Catalana per la Recerca (Catalan Foundation For Research, FCR)

In order to improve the funding system and the success rate of proponents in calls for proposals run by the DGR or other bodies of the Generalitat, Parliament is considering a proposal for creating the Agency for Managing University Research and Funding. The objective is to increase the efficiency of funding procedures and improve the levels of satisfaction among users of the funding system. In particular, efforts would be made to ensure that all calls for proposals can be answered on-line with user-friendly electronic application forms.

2.7 Evaluation, Monitoring and Assessment

It is particularly important to develop a monitoring and evaluation system at all levels of the R&D system, from the application procedures through the implementation of programmes to the longer-term impact of the Research Plan. It would also be valuable to evaluate the impact of the European Framework Programmes and the Spanish National Plan on the development of the science and technology system in Catalonia.

During the period of the 3rd Research Plan (2001-2004) the Consell d'Assessorament, Seguiment i Avaluació (Board of Consultancy, Monitoring and Assessment, CASA) will be developed. It will be composed of experts from industry, science, technology and social sciences. The composition and functions of this Board will be finalised at the time of its foundation. The Board will also be able to advise on scientific-technical issues and collaborate on the evaluation of research.

2.8. Budget

To estimate the resources that should be dedicated to R&D in Catalonia over the next years we must start from the latest data regarding the likely growth of the Catalan GDP. According to INE, in 1999 R&D expenditure and GDP in Catalonia were 1132 MEURO and 106632 MEURO respectively which gives a figure of 1.06% of GDP dedicated to R&D. Assuming an annual increase in GDP of 5% and a linear growth in R&D expenditure, the level of funding for R&D as a percentage of GDP would reach 1.4% in 2004 as Table VIII demonstrates.

TABLE XIX

Estimated evolution of R&D expenditure and GDP in Catalonia (1999-2004) (in MPTA)
	1999*	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004
R+D expenditure	187,976	210,021	234,183	258,187	286,157	316,279
GDP	17,700,892	18,585,937	19,515,233	20,490,995	21,515,545	22,591,322
R+D expend. /GDP	1.06%	1.13%	1.20%	1.26%	1.33%	1.40%
*1999 data are those published by INE

To reach the level of 1.4% in 2004 annual R&D expenditure must increase from 1265 MEURO in 2000 to 1950 MEURO in 2004, an annual increase of 12.6%. Therefore, it is necessary that all R&D resources, public and private, must grow at this rate if the level of 1.4% is to be reached in the life of the 3rd Research Plan. Regarding the DGR/CIRIT budget, the amount approved by the Parliament of Catalonia for the year 2001 is 51 MEURO which is an increase of 6 MEURO (13.3%) on the previous year.