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HomePreparation of the proposal of the National Research Programme I (NRP I) was the first "foresight exercise" in the Czech Republic. The proposal was worked out in the course of 12 months in the year 2001.
The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the CR was the project sponsor who entrusted the Technology Centre AS CR with management of the project. The Engineering Academy of the CR was the cooperating partner.
The main objective of the Project was to define key research directions having high potential of contributing to a favourable economic development and to the fulfilment of social needs of the society while making optimum use of public funds for research and development. A number of cross-cutting systemic measures providing conditions for optimum development of the NRP were proposed together with key research directions. Proposal of the principles of the NRP management and its implementation process were among important outcomes of the Project.
The results of the Project were achieved under broad cooperation of several hundreds of leading representatives of research, industry, services, civil service and other organizations who had participated in the work of panels and expert groups.
Detailed description of the Project is available in the Final Report in the Publications section.
Methodology
A thorough survey of the Foresight projects conducted in other countries was carried out to devise a project methodology corresponding to the objectives of the exercise and suiting the local environment.
The work of panels was a principal methodological component, preceded by interviews of the users of research output and by detailed SWOT analyses of application sectors.
THEMATIC PANELS
In the first step panels suggested a relatively broad list of about 600 important research directions. This number was further decreased using a complex prioritization procedure based on an electronic voting procedure via Internet. Prioritization resulted into a reduced list of about 250 key research directions.
Sets of key research directions proposed by the panels were then further processed by a working group set up after the completion of the work of panels. The group included panel chairmen and panel secretaries and other experts. The objective of the group consisted in particular in identifying interdisciplinary research directions and in selecting those key research directions having the highest potential to contribute to a positive economic and social development of the Czech Republic. The selected group of 90 key research directions, identified as the most relevant to the Czech economical and societal needs, was then allocated into 19 thematic sub-programmes.
CROSS-CUTTING PANELS
After a comprehensive SWOT analysis each cross-cutting panel suggested a set of sub-programmes (systemic measures) in its respective field. Systemic measures were proposed with the objective to create a favorable environment for the thematic programmes and the National Research Programme as a whole. Similarly as in the case of thematic panels, the results of cross-cutting panels were further discussed and modified by the working group established in the final stage of the project. In total, 19 cross-cutting sub-programmes were recommended.
Panels
18 panels were set up consisting of 15 - 20 experts specialized in relevant fields. Each panel was presided by a chairman. Panel chairmen, secretaries and members were officially nominated by the sponsor of the project.
 | Thematic Panels |
| 1. Agriculture and Food 2. Environment 3. Health Care 4. Pharmaceutics 5. Information Society 6. Building Industry, Urbanism and Housing 7. Materials and Technology of Their Production 8. Discrete Manufacturing 9. Instruments and Devices 10. Machinery and Equipment 11. Chemical Products and Processes 12. Transport Systems 13. Power Engineering and Raw Materials 14. Social Transformation | |
| Cross-cutting Panels |
| 15. Human Resources for Research and Development 16. Integrated Research and Development 17. Regional and International Cooperation in Research and Development | |
| Systemic panel |
| 18. Management and Implementation of the NRP |
Results
The main result of the project is a proposal of a set of priorities of oriented research in the Czech Republic, as well as recommendation of accompanying systemic measures and a proposal of the implementation of the programme together with methodology of its operative management.
The proposed National Research Programme consists of 5 thematic programmes divided into 19 thematic sub-programmes which include 90 key research directions. The Programme further includes 3 cross-cutting programmes divided into 19 cross-cutting sub-programmes (systemic measures).
Strategic research directions - which are considered by experts to be highly perspective from the point of view of their future place in the international market - have been identified in the project as well.
The project results were used as a basis for the final version of the proposal of the National Research Programme I to be discussed by the Czech government. Government of the Czech Republic discussed the proposal at its session on 22. May 2002 and adopted a resolution No. 517 by which specified competent government bodies are requested to submit an amended proposal of the National Research Programme (NRP) by 31 December 2002 - factually based on the submitted proposal of the NRP and the new Research and Development Act (effective on 1 July 2002). Due to the floods in August 2002 the deadline for submitting the amended proposal of the NRP was postponed - the government adopted the amended proposal of the NRP I for years 2004-2005 by resolution No. 417 from 31. March 2003.