Increased science budget to help research schools contribute to scientific progress – Hrant Matevosyan

Scientific progress requires committing tasks to scientists, Hrant Matevosyan, Director of the Science Development Foundation, National Academy of Sciences of Armenia, told Tert.am.

All the previous problems still require solutions.

According to press reports, Head of the Government Staff, Minister David Harutyunyan, at a discussion of the 2016 draft budget, was irked by scientists’ proposals for increasing the science budget.

Without making any assessments, Mr Matevosyan said that the relevant government bodies are ignoring science.

“The science budget will increase as much as the state budget – about one or 1.5 percent. Funds have been budgeted for the Horizon 20-20 project for Armenia to be a member. It will enable research schools to be more actively involved in the European progress in the field and attract investments,” he said.

As regards the statements that scientific work does not produce any results, Mr Matevosyan said:

“It is a most simple approach to raise a question of economic benefits of science in Armenia. Of course, scientists are working in numerous fields and are on the cutting edge. Their papers are published in authoritative international journalists. Never have economic entities set scientists any tasks and they failed to accomplish them. For example, we do not have heavy engineering industry any more. Capital was invested in economy then. But economic entities are not interested in it now.”

According to him, scientific papers Armenian scientists play an important role in global science. A number of innovative proposals have been submitted to Armenia’s government, and the Academy of Sciences is now preparing an entirely new package of innovative proposals.

“So Armenian science is living on,” Mr Matevosyan said.