"Personnel policy in science so far looks unreasonable and inconsistent," the Russian president said at the session of the Council for Science and High Technologies in Moscow.
The president recalled that in 1990-2002 the number of researchers in Russia was reduced by 50%. The main drop was seen in 1990-1994.
The president pointed out that among politicians, officials and entrepreneurs there were people who had bright scientific talents.
Putin remarked that these people would have otherwise stayed in science. However, he added, people prefer the jobs offering decent financial conditions and personal growth prospects.
In this context, Vladimir Putin pointed out that Russia "has no efficient model of science economy, and the legal status of the Russian Academy of Sciences and of research centres in addressing intellectual property issues and applying research results remains unclear." At the same time, the president stressed that "thanks to the increasing economic opportunities, we have drastically raised state contribution to scientific research and personnel training." "Those present here today would say that a lot was lost and this is insufficient. Nonetheless, since 2000 federal budget allocations for science have increased over 2.5-fold and for education - by over three-fold. Perhaps, this is not enough, but this is what the government could do and has done," said Putin.
Besides, the president emphasised that it was time to get rid of "the dangerous illusion that science can exist on its own, without economy, relevant legislation and live only on budget allocations."
