The Council of Rectors expresses its rejection of the possible transfer of CONICYT to the Ministry of Economy

17/10/2012
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In recent weeks the Minister of Economy has announced through the media the drafting of a Bill that would transfer the National Commission for Scientific and Technological Research (CONICYT) from the Ministry of Education to the Ministry of Economy.

As an explicit request from the President of the Republic, its objective is that all public investment in science and technology has a greater link with the productive apparatus.
Given this, as the Council of Rectors of Chilean Universities, we declare the following:

It is public knowledge that Science, Technology and Innovation constitute fundamental pillars for the growth and quality of life of countries, as has been demonstrated by those who have followed that path internationally.

Since its creation, CONICYT has been an effective instrument of public policy to provide Chile with a scientific, technological and human capital base; generating critical mass and human resources, both in basic and applied science, with research support programs.

In 2011, the Ministry of Education proposed the creation of a Sub-Secretariat of Higher Education, including CONICYT, and raised the need to design an innovation policy, shared by the Ministries of Education and Economy, calling on CONICYT, CORFO, DIVESUP, universities, companies and regional agencies to generate an innovation ecosystem.

We believe it is a mistake for the Minister of Economy to announce a structural reform of the institutional framework in Science and Technology without considering the strengthening of a clear policy in this area, and without recognizing the virtuous link of CONICYT with the research system that is currently being developed in more than 90% in the universities of the Council of Rectors.

Today it is not possible to justify the transfer of CONICYT to the Ministry of Economy based on the supposed favorable impact that science would have on the productive sector without considering the complexity of knowledge creation in various areas, its transfer, and the needs for scientific development in numerous fields of society.

The Council of Rectors states that CONICYT must be independent of political fluctuations and maintain its close relationship with all institutions that develop research in Science and Technology and train the advanced human capital that the country requires.

In summary, we reject the measure to transfer CONICYT to the Ministry of Economy because it harms the development of science, the training of researchers, and the link with the Higher Education System.