The Ministry of Science and ICT announced on August 31 that it has established a plan for improving the national research and development administrative system for 2026, which has been communicated to relevant ministries including the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, and the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment. The core of the plan is to abolish the results-oriented project evaluation method and promote more challenging research.
This improvement plan was finalized on August 26 after being reviewed at the 8th National Science and Technology Advisory Council, based on a total of 349 opinions collected from the research community through online channels and in-person meetings. The Ministry of Science and ICT is committed to improving administrative systems annually by gathering feedback from stakeholders and experts in accordance with Articles 28 and 29 of the National Research and Development Innovation Act.
The main goals of this year's improvement plan are: 1) to promote challenging research through a paradigm shift in project evaluation; 2) to enhance autonomy and accountability in research funding execution; and 3) to improve administrative efficiency and systematize international collaborative research management.
Previously, in July, the Ministry abolished the results-oriented grading and scoring-based project evaluation method. As a follow-up, a new project evaluation system is planned to be established by October. This new system will recognize not only projects with significant academic, technological, and industrial impacts but also 'excellent challenges' that, despite falling short of their goals, generate meaningful data and knowledge through trial and error. These projects will be eligible for follow-up research connections and government awards. Conversely, projects found to have legal violations, unmet contractual obligations, or research misconduct will be classified as 'inappropriate projects' and face penalties such as funding recovery and participation restrictions.
Starting next year, a 'moving target' system will be fully implemented, allowing for flexible changes to research objectives. The process for changing objectives will be significantly expedited, and a negative guideline for approval will be presented to enhance predictability.
Regarding research funding execution, the timing restrictions for introducing research facilities and equipment will be relaxed from 'two months before the end of the phase' to 'a certain period before the overall project end date.' If there is a delay in starting the next phase after the completion of a phase, the remaining direct costs will be automatically carried over, allowing essential personnel costs to be executed immediately even before the phase evaluation results are finalized. To prevent excessive concentration of research allowances on specific researchers, a new individual cap will be introduced, limiting it to 'within 100% of the personal labor cost allocation for each project,' in addition to the existing total cap (20% of labor costs) and distribution cap (70% for one person).
To reduce administrative burdens, the Ministry will produce and distribute a standard settlement guide and a casebook of recognized and unrecognized research expenses. Procedures will also be improved to allow for integrated processing of annual reports in the following year when the agreement period for the first or final year is less than six months. In terms of international collaborative research, the Ministry plans to strengthen management and monitoring of the usage of research funds sent to overseas institutions and expand support for protecting rights related to intellectual property and other outcomes of domestic research institutions throughout the entire research and development process when signing agreements with foreign institutions.
The Ministry of Science and ICT plans to begin implementing follow-up measures, including amendments to relevant laws and regulations such as the Enforcement Decree of the National Research and Development Innovation Act, starting in September, with the improved system set to be fully implemented in 2027.
Park In-kyu, head of the Science and Technology Innovation Bureau, stated, "To maximize South Korea's R&D competitiveness, it is essential to create an autonomous research environment where researchers can engage in bold and challenging research. We will swiftly implement administrative improvements to eliminate unnecessary practices and establish a practical support system that can be immediately felt in the field, thereby completing an innovative research ecosystem based on trust and accountability."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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