Project: Formal and informal networks in rural areas25Nov2014
Messages from the Ambassador of Switzerland at the RRPP Policy Conference
H.E. Jean-Daniel Ruch, Swiss Ambassador to the Republic of Serbia and Republic of Montenegro in his speech at the "Enhancing the contribution of research to policy making in Western Balkans – lessons from practice” RRPP Policy Conference held last week, shared some expirience on the results of his country in the development of research.
Video of H.E. Jean-Daniel Ruch's speech is available here. Full text of the speech reads as follows:
Dear Colleagues,
Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am very pleased to open the Regional Conference on “Enhancing the contribution of research to policy making in Western Balkans – lessons from practice” here in Belgrade. I am happy to see so many researchers and interlocutors from the whole region, showing an interest to reflect on how to bridge research and policy making in the Western Balkans.
Yesterday, I visited the business incubator located at the Faculty of mechanical engineering in Belgrade. There is no better example of how research is connected to economic development. I was impressed by the quality of the innovation skills of the young people and companies hosted there.
Switzerland is one of the leading countries in investments in R&D. Around 3% of the GDP is invested yearly in R&D, about 15 billion, out of which 75% come from private companies. But of course, the huge bulk of these investments are channeled to business-related fields like pharma, chemistry and engineering.
So, one might wonder: why does research in social sciences matter as they don’t seem related to economic development. This impression is wrong. In a knowledge-based economy, research and development (R&D) is crucial for strengthening up and orient political, economic and social reforms in all countries of the region, bringing research evidence into policy making processes. This is even more important that, in many countries of this region, the State remains the main economic actor. Social sciences offer a systemic approach aimed at improving not just segments of the social or economic fabric, but of the whole system.
The stabilization of democratic systems, the strengthening of local economies, reforms of social institutions, youth employability and the prevention of brain drain, sustainable management of natural resources, etc. are among the most important challenges facing Southeastern Europe. Swiss cooperation support to the Western Balkans is focusing on these topics.
Let me briefly focus on two issues which are very high on our list of concerns: the brain drain and regional policies.
The brain drain is affecting all the countries in the region. It is the role of social scientists to explain why entrepreneurs or young highly-qualified persons chose to go abroad to develop their enterprise. The usual mantra that there are no jobs here does not explain everything. Over the week-end, I met a young entrepreneur who has invented a potentially revolutionary method of detecting skin diseases. He is going to pursue the development of his project elsewhere. Why?
Another serious issue is the depopulation of whole regions. Whereas almost 3 Swiss persons out of 4 live in an agglomeration, we have managed, through targeted regional policies, to maintain a dense coverage of the whole territory. Here, I see often vast pieces of productive land abandoned. What does that mean for the policy-maker? Does he need to invest more in big cities so as to make them able to cope with the influx of population from the countryside or from smaller cities? Or should the government, the other way round, define policies to encourage the re-population of such deserted regions? Or should a mix of both policies be considered?
These are difficult questions that. The type of research you practice is a powerful tool at the service of a more sustainable and balanced development of the society and economy. That’s why Switzerland will invest over 72 million CHF globally in the next ten years in solution-oriented research on issues in connection with development goals that targets knowledge and its application. Western Balkans will be one of the priority regions for enhancing links between research oriented policy and practice. I thank you for your commitment and wish you concrete results in your endeavor.
Science, Research and Prosperity – where is Switzerland positioned in European/World Science?
Switzerland is member of the European Union's Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development. Swiss researchers have the same rights as their EU colleagues, including access to the European Research Council (ERC). Swiss researchers participate in European research area (ERA) programmes with with a budget approximately of CHF 2.4 billion. Switzerland is also represented in numerous other European and international research institutions and programmes.
Switzerland enjoys worldwide recognition for its research. Swiss scientists are not only the most productive in the world, with the highest number of scientific publications per researcher: their publications have also a strong impact. The fields of life sciences, agriculture, biology, environmental sciences, and clinical medicine measure the highest number of citations per publication worldwide, while Swiss performance in engineering, computer science, physics, chemistry, and earth sciences is also excellent.
Switzerland ranks among the top ten countries worldwide for R&D expenditures (3.0% of the GDP in year 2009). Private companies, particularly in the pharmaceutical, chemical, and engineering industries, fund three quarters of all R&D in Switzerland, with the remainder coming from the public sector. Most basic research is performed by Universities, whereas applied R&D is predominantly the domain of the private sector. Switzerland actively supports its research through several government organizations dedicated to funding and promoting innovation.
Research in the private sector is key to a highly competitive and innovative Switzerland. R&D mandates from the private sector from 2008 are more than doubled, reaching the sum of CHF 3.2 billion. In fact, three-quarters of all R&D in the country is financed by private companies. By sector, the largest privately funded R&D investments were made by the pharmaceutical industry (39%), the engineering and machine tool industry (19%) and the information and communication technologies sector (13%).
Private investments in R&D in Switzerland amounted to CHF 12 billion, out of a total of CHF 16.1 billion R&D expenditures. In addition, Swiss companies invested another CHF 15.7 billion in their research institutes abroad. The Swiss private sector employs more than 39,000 people (full-time equivalents) in R&D.