The first €60 million for task division, profiling and collaboration in research and education | news item
news item | 2022-10-03 | 06:30
Minister Djgraf gives 60 million euros this year for the first round of sectoral plans. You areThese funds will be used by non-manufacturing universities and medical colleges to initiate further collaboration within the various science sectors. Through these sectoral plans, organizations have made clear choices and sound agreements about the opportunities and bottlenecks that they will deal with together. This contributes to the promotion of Dutch research and education at the highest level. It was decided to allocate the first €60 million on the basis of positive advice from the National Committee for Sectoral Plans (NCSP). It was previously announced that a total of 200 million euros will be structurally invested annually in the plans of the sector: the second part of the allocation (140 million euros) will follow in the spring of 2023.
The government is committed to a healthy and strong foundation for higher education and the science system, with peace and space for students, researchers and lecturers. Earlier, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science announced a structural investment of €200 million per year for sectoral plans in the policy discourse on higher education and science. In order to address the most urgent bottlenecks of higher education as quickly as possible, it has been decided to make available structurally 60 million euros from 2022. This money is intended for four areas: social sciences, humanities, sciences, technology and medical sciences.
Minister Djgraf: “We have many institutions in the Netherlands that offer great education and do research. However, sometimes we have to cooperate more and dare to make choices about what we will do, where and by whom. Because not everyone wants to do everything. So that we get the right knowledge in the right place, thus we continue to lead at the international level too. “
sharp choices
Sectoral plans improve coherence and collaboration between education and research. But also for more peace and space through the use of more permanent contracts. In addition, it contributes to common and sharp choices about division of tasks and profiling between universities. For example, sometimes it is better for one organization to focus more on knowledge A and another organization to focus more on knowledge B, but agreements must be made about it. Sector plans will help in this. In this way, the Council of Ministers, in cooperation with universities, works to increase the quality of education and research.
Subject sector plans
The technology sector’s plans focus on key societal challenges such as energy and sustainability, as well as agriculture, water and food. The main techniques are also centralized. The Medical and Health Sciences Sector Plan focuses on the themes of prevention, data-driven innovation and the continuum from basic research to application. In the Experimental Science Sector plans, related topics are climate, energy, health and biodiversity.
In the social sciences and humanities, collaboration is fostered in an interdisciplinary program on prosperity, participation, and citizenship in a digital world. Furthermore, the Social Sciences focuses on five pioneers in interdisciplinary research, including youth resilience, the human factor in new technologies and social inequality. Finally, the humanities choose to strengthen the foundations of research and education in modern and Dutch foreign languages.
National Committee for Sectoral Plans
To evaluate investments corresponding to sectoral plans established in the National Committee for Sectoral Plans (NCSP). The task of the committee is to advise Minister Dejgraf on the quality and dissemination of sector plans and to advise on the approach to monitoring sector plans and the instrument as a whole.
NCSP writes: “The Committee highly appreciates the work done by the four areas. In a short period of time, high-quality plans have been drawn up to apply for sectoral planning funding. The Sector Plan process demonstrates that deans, colleges, and institutions make objective choices and actively collaborate in preparing the research and teaching activities that correspond to those choices. […] Each option contributes significantly to strengthening the national university system.”
New plans for spring 2023
Minister Djgraf recently received the accompanying advice from the National Committee for Sectoral Plans on these investments in sectoral plans. The Committee concluded that good plans had been made in a short period of time and that there was good cooperation in the process. This provides enough confidence to allocate 60 million euros this fall. After resources are allocated, the NCSP process will enter Phase Two. In the spring of 2023, Minister Djgraf will receive the second advice on sectoral plans, and he will be able to allocate the entire amount on this basis.
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