Presidential Office Dismisses Controversy Over 'Rushed Abolition of R&D Preliminary Feasibility Study' as "Discussed for Years"

Abolition for R&D to R&D Down Conversion
Subsequent Supplementary Measures Already Fully Prepared

President Yoon Suk-yeol is giving a congratulatory speech at the 'Hoeamsa Relics Transfer Commemorative Cultural Festival and Samdae Hwasang Daryejae' held on the 19th at Hoeamsaji in Yangju-si, Gyeonggi-do. [Image source=Yonhap News]

The Presidential Office dismissed criticisms that President Yoon Suk-yeol's directive to abolish the preliminary feasibility study (PFS) for research and development (R&D) projects contradicts policy consistency, stating that it was an adjustment made to transition to "R&D that is truly R&D."

A senior official from the Presidential Office told reporters at the Yongsan Presidential Office on the 20th, "It has been about 16 years since the R&D PFS was introduced, and during that time, there have been multiple criticisms that the system does not fit well with research and development," adding, "Discussions including abolition have been ongoing not only recently but for several years, and numerous policy studies have been conducted."

Earlier, on the 17th, President Yoon presided over the '2024 National Fiscal Strategy Meeting' at the Government Complex Sejong and instructed relevant ministries to completely abolish the PFS for R&D projects funded by the national budget.

In response, some in the political sphere criticized that President Yoon's abolition of the R&D PFS after cutting the R&D budget lacks policy consistency.

The official emphasized, "When adjusting the 2024 R&D budget, the adjustments were made to transition to R&D that is truly R&D, so ultimately, they are aligned," adding, "The abolition of the PFS was carried out to reinvent R&D as genuine R&D."

He further explained, "The PFS system was a mechanism suitable for the catch-up phase of R&D (in advanced countries)," and "Now, our government has explained that it is moving toward innovation-challenge type and leading-country type R&D, so we must now take paths that others have not yet taken."

He continued, "In that regard, the system significantly hinders the timeliness of research and development implementation, and since it does not allow changing plans once set, it does not align with the direction we want to go. Therefore, we judged that abolition rather than minor improvements is appropriate. This is not a sudden decision," he added.

The Presidential Office stressed that even if the R&D PFS system is abolished, the side effects will not be significant.

The official said, "Before announcing the abolition of the PFS, the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Ministry of Science and ICT collaborated to thoroughly prepare follow-up measures such as securing fiscal soundness and strengthening prior appropriateness reviews of R&D projects," adding, "These plans will be submitted for deliberation and approval at the Economic Ministers' Meeting at the end of May and the National Science and Technology Advisory Council in early June."