How was the position born and what do chief scientists in government ministries in Israel do?
Following an unsuccessful and even outrageous statement by Chief scientist in one of the government ministries It is worthwhile to examine what is actually the role of a chief scientist in a government office and what is his status.
The term "Chief Scientist of a Government Ministry" is quite unique to the State of Israel. Since most government ministries have an affinity for research and development, the need arose and the importance of appointing chief scientists to head the scientific-research activity of the ministry arose. There are differences in the activities of the chief scientists in the various government ministries, these arise from the nature of the ministry, its size and the degree of importance that the minister and the management attach to activity in the field of research and development. But the guiding line common to all is that the chief scientist must think "beyond the horizon" and for that he must activate research activities on the issues important to the ministry to formulate future policies. The scientist also supports, from a budget designated for this purpose, studies initiated by researchers in the ministry's field of interest.
The proposal to appoint chief scientists to government ministries was formulated in the discussions of the Kachelsky Committee in the late 60s and established by a government decision in 1969. Over the years, the position was examined and expanded, and it was determined that the chief scientist has overall responsibility for research and development in the office and the bodies subordinate to the office, mainly research institutes. In 2001, the government strengthened its scientific research system and, in order to achieve its goals, emphasized again the importance of the role of the chief scientist in the government ministries, as well as his competence and skills as an active scientist, with authority and status.
The government's decision in 2001 also anchored the activity of the Forum of Chief Scientists. This forum, chaired by the Minister of Science and centered by the Chief Scientist of the Ministry of Science, is a body that professionally coordinates governmental research and development (with the exception of security R&D) and works to promote it. , including the way the research funds are operated and the methods of evaluating the studies that the ministries finance. The forum discusses the research policy, handles the promotion of "cross-departmental" issues and initiates collaborations between the scientists. The chief scientist in the Ministry of Science gathers the relevant data from the chief scientists of the government ministries dealing with research and development and presents them to the government in an annual report.
Despite the common goals, the working patterns of the chief scientists in the government ministries differ from each other and are a result of the demands and needs of the ministry and the budget available to the scientist.
The highest budget is at the disposal of the chief scientist of the Ministry of Commerce and Employment. His main occupation is the management of a large fund that supports research and industrial development and his conduct is different from the conduct of the other chief scientists. At the Ministry of Defense, the Chief Scientist (head of the Ministry of Defense) proposes new projects and supervises their implementation. Research is mainly carried out within the research frameworks of the Ministry itself. In matters that the Ministry wishes to promote, the Chief Scientist advises the Minister and also manages competitive research funds whose role is to support those engaged in agricultural research according to the issues. The work of the chief scientist in the Ministry of Health, which I held, is somewhat different. His role is to promote medical research in the State of Israel and for this purpose he has a budget for research initiated by doctors and researchers A special need, the scientist initiates and finances them from his budget. The chief scientist at the Ministry of Health even judges studies for various bodies that finance medical research and are unable to maintain a system Professional judgment. The chief scientists in the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Environment and other ministries have a similar activity. Apart from advising the minister and the management of the ministry, the chief scientist is a member of the chief scientists' forum and represents his office in national and international forums and committees.
Since the main role of the chief scientist is to maintain continuous contact with researchers in the academy, the research institutes and the hospitals (Chief Scientist of the Ministry of Health), he must have status and authority, a renowned researcher and accepted by the community of researchers and the academy, a community in which he is very helpful in judging the research requests.
The scientist is not responsible for the conduct of the office nor for determining its policy. Advising the minister is considered his contribution in determining the overall policy of the ministry and it is not his responsibility to express his opinion publicly unless requested to do so by the minister and the management of the ministry.
The promotion of research in the field for which the scientist is responsible is an important and sacred task, for this purpose a person is appointed who will devote all his time and energy to the subject. It is worth paying attention to this. Abnormal behavior is out of place.
Bracha Reger served as the chief scientist of the Ministry of Health. She is an emeritus professor of microbiology and immunology at the Faculty of Health Sciences at Ben-Gurion University, a member of the Council for Higher Education and currently the president of Ort Israel and the chairman of Ort's academic council.
One response
And why is there not a chief scientist for the country instead of a prime minister?
Isn't this the specialty of scientists to understand reality?