Kazakhstani scientists to get monthly bonus - Senate enacts law

The Senate has approved the law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Science and Technology Policy” in the second reading, Kazinform News Agency reports.

The objectives of the bill are to create favorable conditions for the development of science and to implement technological policy in the country. This will ensure the competitiveness of the country by accomplishing the results of scientific achievements and defining the main directions and principles of science development. It will also define the mechanisms of state support for subjects of scientific and (or) scientific-technical activity.
Core functions of the statute are to address the strategic, professional, and social issues of scientific activity by eliminating legal gaps, facilitating inter-sectoral coordination of scientific, scientific-technical, and innovation activity, creating conditions for the training of scientific personnel, implementing guarantees of social protection for scientific workers, and introducing corporate governance.
The law outlines the mechanisms for developing the national scientific system of Kazakhstan, defines the subjects of scientific activity, their rights, and fixes the legal status of the National Academy of Sciences, the activity of the Foundations of Science, and the mechanisms of financing scientific activity.
The act stipulates the principal components of scientific infrastructure, the modalities of scientific organization financing, and the measures of assistance to scientific and scientific-technical activity subjects in the implementation of programs for the commercialization of scientific and scientific-technical activity outcomes. Additionally, it delineates state measures to stimulate the development of science, including through the financing of scientific, scientific-technical projects in the forms of basic, grant, and program-targeted funding, as well as measures of state support for scientific activity.
The law delineates the roles and responsibilities of state bodies in the realm of scientific and scientific-technical activity, as well as the mechanisms for the commercialization of the results of scientific and scientific-technical activity. It also defines the participants and their rights in this process.
The decree also establishes mechanisms for the collection, processing, and analysis of scientific and technical information, as well as the introduction of new mechanisms for assessing the validity and technological readiness of scientific research proposed for implementation.
In order to encourage scientific activity among employees with academic degrees, the legislation establishes additional monthly payments for them, provides leading scientists working in organizations of higher and (or) postgraduate education with sabbatical leave, and expands the package of social support for scientific workers, including young scientists.
The anticipated outcomes of the enactment of the legislation include enhanced contributions from science to the advancement of the country's economy and heightened competitiveness of scientific potential.