Experts from industry, university, and research institute circles pose at the 8th NIS Policy Colloquium: How To Design National R&D Strategies for Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises? (Photo: KISTEP)

President Kim Sang-seon of the KISTEP.

The Korea Institute of S&T Evaluation and Planning (KISTEP) is accelerating efforts to explore public and corporate participation and new innovative growth engines – products and services related to public lives expected to emerge within a decade or less and future new industries that will likely bigger spill-over effects on downstream and upstream industries.

They will be implemented along with the conventional new candidate categories like innovative displays. KISTEP plans to support execution of new growth engine policies and upgrade. KISTEP assists in R&D projects involving two or more government agencies designed to enhance R&D investment efficiency and promote innovative growth and solve social issues.

These steps are part of government policy measures President Kim Sang-seon of the Korea Institute of S&T Evaluation and Planning (KISTEP) spoke while appearing on an audit of KISTEP by the National Assembly Science, Technology, Broadcasting and Communications Committee on Oct. 10.

KISTEP provides support to the implementation of major tasks under the 2nd Master Plan on the Solving of Social Issues based on Science and Technology between 2018 and 2022. KISTEP operates the “Social Issues Science & Technology Policy Center,” designated by the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT). An on-line platform on the solving of social issues based on science and technology is place to spur public participation and open innovation.

The National Science & Technology Information Service (NTIS ), opening in December, is the knowledge portal for national R&D information that provides information on programs, projects, human resources, research equipment/facilities and outcomes in one place.

The primary purpose of NTIS is to increase investment efficiency of national R&D programs and to maximize the use of information about government-funded R&D programs by preventing duplicated investment that arise from having research projects managed separately by different ministries and departments.

KISTEP is evaluating social robots’ impacts on economic, social, cultural, ethical and environment sectors whose outcomes will be reflected in drafting policies.

8th NIS Policy Colloquium: How To Design National R&D Strategies for Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises?

Experts from industry, university, and research institute circles assembled to examine national R&D policy strategies to support innovation and growth of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the crucial pillar of national economy, and to design new policy directions for the future.

 The 8th NIS Policy Colloquium was held in the theme of “How To Design National R&D Strategies for Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises?” on Nov. 4.

As the government is gradually expanding R&D investment and prosecuting support policies in various aspects to strengthen SMEs’ competitiveness, it has positively affected to survival and growth of SMEs. Significant improvement in innovative performance, however, is still required.

So this colloquium was planed to seek national R&D policies for SMEs in order to enhance national competitiveness, in the view of that strengthening promotion strategies suited for the nature of SMEs’ R&D is the top priority for innovation and improvement of SMEs.

Presentations consisted of (1) Innovation plans for R&D support systems of SMEs (Hoon Hee Lee, Director, Directorate for R&D Strategy, Korea Technology and Information Promotion Agency for SMEs (TIPA), and Analysis of national R&D strategies and policy projects for SMEs (Seung-Ku Ahn, Policy Advisor, Research Institute of S&T Innovation and Strategy, KISTEP), and panel discussion was followed.

Director Lee introduced the ‘Innovation plans for R&D support systems of SMEs’ that presented by Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) in August, and explained that this policy was prepared to accelerate SMEs-centered innovation growth strategies and to effectively support emergence of new industries in the era of the 4th industrial revolution.

Then he explained the major contents of the innovation plans as ▲new business generation of 4th industrial revolution, ▲strengthening in cooperation among industry, university, and research institute circles, and ▲fair selection of R&D enterprises, and presented detailed plans to realize these.