Circular No. 03/2012/TT-BKHCN guiding the management of the National Technology Innovation Program until 2020

CIRCULAR

Guidelines for Managing the National Technology Innovation Program until 2020

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Based on the Law on Technology Transfer dated November 29, 2006;

Pursuant to Decree No. 28/2008/NĐ-CP dated March 14, 2008, promulgated by the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Science and Technology;

BASED ON Decision No. 677/QĐ-TTg dated May 10, 2011 of the Prime Minister approving the National Technology Innovation Program until 2020;

The Minister of Science and Technology guides the management of the National Technology Innovation Program until 2020 as follows:

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation and Applicability

1. This Circular guides the management of the National Technology Innovation Program until 2020 approved pursuant to Decision No. 677/QĐ-TTg dated May 10, 2011 of the Prime Minister (hereinafter referred to as the Program).

Clause 2. This Circular applies to organizations, individuals, agencies, and enterprises participating in implementing the Program.

Article 2. Interpretation of Terms

In this Circular, the following terms are understood as follows:

Clause 1. Technology innovation is the replacement of part or all of the existing technology with more advanced and efficient technology.

2. The main activities of technology innovation include researching identification, evaluation, and pricing of technology; replacing existing technology with advanced technology; improving and perfecting technology or researching to master and create new technology; applying new production methods and advanced management methods for enterprises; enhancing product features, quality, added value, and competitiveness.

3. A technology map is a set of documents describing and analyzing the current status and potential use of technology at a specific time; the correlation between types of technology and the requirements for developing suitable technology; identifying trends in technology development, prioritized technologies, and forecasting technology needs.

Clause 4. A technology roadmap is the process of developing a specific technology from low to high levels, from simple to complex.

The technology innovation roadmap is the process of determining objectives and contents of technology innovation; the sequence and plans for using resources to implement technology innovation activities within a specified period. The technology innovation roadmap is described in a set of documents serving as the basis for implementing these innovation activities.

5. National products are products listed in the National Product Catalogue approved by the Prime Minister pursuant to Decision No. 2441/QĐ-TTg dated December 31, 2010.

6. Key products and priority products are products identified by the Prime Minister, Ministries, sectors, People's Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities in national strategies, planning, and plans of the State, Ministries, sectors, and localities.

7. An advanced technology-based sustainable agricultural production model is a production model that creates agricultural products with high added value and competitiveness, suitable for each ecological region; contributing to economic and social development and environmental protection.

8. The Office for Coordinating National Science and Technology Programs is the permanent agency assisting the Steering Committee of the National Technology Innovation Program until 2020, established and issued organizational regulations by the Minister of Science and Technology.

9. The Program Management Board (hereinafter referred to as the Program Management Board) assists the Minister of Science and Technology in organizing and managing the Program, established and issued organizational regulations by the Minister of Science and Technology.

10. The leading organization of the Program project (hereinafter referred to as the leading organization) is an organization, agency, or enterprise responsible for building and implementing the Program project.

11. The Project Leader of the Program (hereinafter referred to as the task leader) is an individual from an organization, agency, or enterprise directly named to carry out the Program project.

Article 3. Tasks of the Program

The Program tasks include projects, programs, and other activities under the Program:

1. Technology innovation projects aimed at achieving the goal of raising technological level and capacity at the national, provincial, and centrally-run city levels; industry, sector, or economic group, corporation levels.

Technology innovation projects include: projects to build a national technology map; projects to search for, discover, master (including ownership and usage rights) and apply source technology and core technology; projects to innovate technology for industries, sectors, provinces, centrally-run cities, economic groups, corporations; projects to build technology roadmaps and innovation roadmaps for industries and sectors; projects to train technology management, technology governance, and update new technology.

2. Research, mastering, and applying advanced technology projects in producing key products, priority products, and national products. Projects to build a comprehensive laboratory system including technology analysis; technology integration, replication, simulation, and creation; technology testing, evaluation, and improvement; standard testing and calibration technology.

3. Technology innovation support projects include: projects to establish technology incubation bases and science and technology enterprise incubators; projects to incubate technology and science and technology enterprises; projects to search for, discover, and support organizations, individuals, or research groups with outstanding results at universities, colleges, and research institutes; projects to support the construction and implementation of technology roadmaps and innovation roadmaps.

4. Enterprise technology innovation support projects: projects to apply information technology, build enterprise resource management and product promotion systems; projects to build databases on new technology, advanced technology, and technology experts; projects to research, trial produce, and apply advanced technology, produce new products, and change technological processes.

5. Projects to strengthen resources for technology innovation in rural, mountainous areas, and economically disadvantaged regions include: projects to enhance the capacity and improve the dissemination and transfer of technology of the network of Science and Technology Application Centers in localities; projects to apply advanced technology in agriculture; projects to innovate technology for traditional trades and craft villages.

6. Other activities under the Program are topics, projects, and programs aimed at implementing the objectives, contents, and solutions in Decision No. 677/QĐ-TTg dated May 10, 2011 of the Prime Minister not covered in the above projects. The Ministry of Science and Technology will take the lead and coordinate with relevant Ministries and sectors to determine and organize the implementation of these activities.

Article 4. General Principles for Selecting Proposals and Projects

1. Proposals and projects to be selected must fall within the tasks specified in Article 3 of this Circular.

2. The objectives of proposals and projects must be clear and quantifiable, and must have a positive impact on promoting national socio-economic development, regional, sectoral, and field development.

3. Priority shall be given to proposals and projects of domestic enterprises and organizations in science and technology; proposals and projects in areas with difficult socio-economic conditions, particularly difficult conditions; proposals and projects involving the transfer, application, and mastery of technologies listed in the Encouraged Technology Transfer Catalogue (annexed to Decree No. 133/2008/NĐ-CP dated December 31, 2008 of the Government); and proposals and projects that receive financial support and commitments from ministries, sectors, and localities for implementation.

4. Proposals and projects must be feasible, wherein the leading organization of the proposal or project must have the capacity to mobilize external resources to ensure finance, management, technology, intellectual property rights, legal aspects, and other important factors for successful implementation of the proposal or project.

Article 5. Program Code, Program Tasks

- Program Code: DM;

- Code for Technological Innovation Proposal: DM.XX.DA/YY;

- Code for Advanced Technology Research, Mastery, and Application Project: DM.XX.NC/YY;

- Code for Comprehensive Laboratory Infrastructure Construction Projects: DM.XX.TN/YY;

- Code for Technological Innovation Support Projects: DM.XX.HT/YY;

- Code for Business Technological Innovation Support Projects: DM.XX.DN/YY;

- Code for Resource Enhancement Projects for Technological Innovation in Rural, Mountainous Areas, and Regions with Difficult Socio-Economic Conditions, Including Extremely Difficult Socio-Economic Conditions: DM.XX.NT/YY;

- Code for Other Program Activities: DM.XX.HDK/YY.

Where:

- XX is the serial number of the Program's task;

- DA stands for Technological Innovation Proposal;

- NC stands for Advanced Technology Research, Mastery, and Application Project;

- TN is the code for Comprehensive Laboratory Infrastructure Construction Projects;

- HT is the code for Technological Innovation Support Projects;

- DN is the code for Business Technological Innovation Support Projects;

- NT is the code for Resource Enhancement Projects for Technological Innovation in Rural, Mountainous Areas, and Regions with Difficult Socio-Economic Conditions, Including Extremely Difficult Socio-Economic Conditions;

- HDK is the code for Other Program Activities;

- YY is the year the Program's task begins.

Chapter II

CRITERIA FOR PROPOSALS AND PROJECTS UNDER THE PROGRAM

Article 6. Criteria for Technological Innovation Proposals

1. Proposals for building a national technological map must meet the following conditions:

a) Must identify key technologies, core technologies, and supporting technologies according to foundational and source technologies along product lines and compare their current status with global technological levels;

b) Serving management tasks, strategic planning for technology development by the Government, Ministries, sectors, and fields, and for medium-term and long-term phases.

2. Proposals for seeking, discovering, mastering, and applying source technologies and core technologies must meet the following conditions:

a) Identify the need for the technology sought (necessity, urgency, role, and long-term impact...);

b) Identifying the holders of the technology and the conditions for transferring the technology;

c) Proposing methods for seeking and identifying technologies according to requirements;

d) Demonstrate the ability to master and effectively exploit the sought-after technology.

3. Proposals for technological innovation in industries, fields, provinces, centrally-administered cities, state-owned economic groups, and corporations must meet the following conditions:

a) Identifying main product lines according to the development strategy of the industry, field, province, or centrally governed city;

b) Identifying key technologies, supporting technologies, and the sequence for developing key and supporting technologies for producing product lines;

c) Proposals for conditions and requirements for technological innovation;

d) Proposals for solutions to technological innovation, including resource solutions for technological innovation.

4. Proposals for developing technology roadmaps and technological innovation roadmaps focus on the following industries and fields:

a) Priority industries, leading industries;

b) High-value-added service industries (finance-banking, postal-telecommunications and information technology, aviation...), construction and development of transportation infrastructure;

c) To serve the development of key economic regions; for large state-owned economic groups and corporations.

5. Proposals for training in technology management, technology governance, and updating new technologies must meet the following conditions:

a) Developing training materials and curricula suitable for the practical needs of the trainees, confirmed by the Ministry of Science and Technology;

b) Developing a team of training experts to ensure effective organization of training courses on technology management and governance for engineers, technicians, and enterprise managers;

c) Encourage training proposals serving other proposals and projects under the Program.

Article 7. Criteria for research projects to master and apply advanced technology in producing key products, important products, and national products.

1. The produced product must have features, quality, and competitive pricing compared to similar domestically produced or imported products.

2. Research, mastery, and application of advanced technology in production must increase the added value of the product by at least 5%.

3. The project leader must have at least three years of experience in the field of the project implementation.

4. Organizations and enterprises producing key products, important products, and national products must commit to applying the researched and mastered technology for at least two years following the completion of the project.

Article 8. Criteria for projects to build a comprehensive laboratory infrastructure system

1. The laboratory infrastructure system must be built synchronously, ensuring effective performance of technological analysis activities; integration, replication, simulation, and innovation of technology; testing, evaluation, and improvement of technology; standard testing and calibration of technology.

2. Technologies used in the laboratory system must belong to the List of Encouraged Technology Transfer Technologies (Annexed to Decree No. 133/2008/NĐ-CP dated December 31, 2008 of the Government).

3. Priority shall be given to projects constructing open laboratory systems for organizations and enterprises to jointly exploit and utilize, located in high-tech zones, concentrated technology zones, and research and development areas that have been approved by competent authorities.

4. Leaders of the laboratory system must be reputable scientists in relevant fields, with at least five years of research and work experience at modern research and development institutions and production facilities reaching international standards, having research works published in reputable scientific journals worldwide or applied in practical production and generating significant economic value.

Article 9. Criteria for projects supporting technological innovation

1. Projects constructing technology incubation bases and science and technology enterprise incubation bases must meet the following conditions:

a) Must have feasibility studies, clear operational plans, clear maintenance and development schedules; comply with national environmental standards in the project's field of operation;

b) Activities of technology incubation centers and science and technology business incubators must ensure the creation of technologies and the formation of high-level science and technology businesses to produce science and technology products.

c) Technology incubation centers and science and technology business incubators must be conveniently located near universities and research institutes, maintain good cooperation networks with domestic and foreign technology incubation centers and science and technology business incubators, and possess the ability to link with production, research, and training facilities to serve technology incubation and science and technology business incubation activities.

d) Technical infrastructure and management teams must meet the requirements for technology incubation and science and technology enterprise incubation;

đ) Have a professional management team trained and further educated at reputable training institutions; have a team of experts advising on technology, intellectual property, legal matters, finance, management, and business administration, marketing.

2. Technology incubation and science and technology enterprise incubation projects must meet the following conditions:

a) Project leaders must have technological ideas, business ideas, and scientific and technological research results with commercialization potential;

b) Have a team of technology experts with the capability to cooperate and mobilize a team of management experts and advisors on technology, intellectual property, legal matters, finance, management, and business administration, marketing.

c) Must have the capacity to mobilize at least 40% of initial capital for technology incubation and science and technology enterprise incubation;

d) Ensure that at least 50% of human resources participating in research, application, and production have university or postgraduate degrees;

3. Research projects seeking to identify potential individuals, organizations, or research groups with outstanding research results from universities, colleges, and research institutes must meet the following conditions:

a) Have a team of experts capable of organizing searches, discoveries, and providing advice to organizations, individuals, and research groups.

b) Be able to identify at least 100 organizations, individuals, or research groups, with at least 40% having the potential to form technology, and 50% having the potential to continue developing technology.

4. Support projects for potential individuals, organizations, or research groups with outstanding research results from universities, colleges, research institutes, or enterprises must meet at least two of the following conditions:

a) Must have their own technological ideas or business ideas based on existing technology;

b) Must have research results certified by competent authorities;

c) Must demonstrate the inheritance of research achievements from previous projects; priority shall be given to projects creating new technology or results with commercialization potential;

d) Must have commitments of support from universities, colleges, research institutes, or enterprises for the implementation of the project;

đ) Prioritize project leaders who are young researchers or lecturers under 35 years old.

5. Projects supporting the construction and implementation of technology roadmaps and technological innovation roadmaps must meet the following conditions:

a) Technological innovation goals must align with corporate development plans and industry and sector development strategies;

b) Implementation of technology roadmaps and technological innovation roadmaps must contribute to increasing product added value by at least 5%;

c) Must mobilize sufficient resources to implement technology roadmaps and technological innovation roadmaps; priority shall be given to matching funds from corporate science and technology development funds;

d) Must forecast the scale of application and market for products resulting from the implementation of technology roadmaps.

Article 10. Criteria for projects supporting enterprises to innovate technology

1. Projects applying information technology, building enterprise resource management systems, and promoting products must meet the following conditions:

a) Having clear business plans and ensuring resources for project implementation and maintenance;

b) Identifying specific needs and economic-technical efficiency of applying a management information system for business resources and promoting products;

c) The organizing entity must commit to raising sufficient counterpart funds and utilizing the project's results; priority should be given to using funds from the enterprise's science and technology development fund.

2. Projects establishing databases on new technologies, advanced technologies, and technology experts must meet the following conditions:

a) Have plans and methods for surveying and collecting data on technological levels and expertise in various industries and fields; have strategies for exploiting information and databases on technology and technology experts from abroad.

b) Ensuring the capacity to regularly conduct statistics on enterprise technology innovation activities;

c) Prioritizing projects that comprehensively establish technological and expert databases for specific industries and fields.

3. Research, trial production, application of advanced technologies, and production of new products or changes in technological processes must meet the following conditions:

a) Possessing the capability to implement all project contents. For research and trial production projects, the organizing entity must ensure at least 30% of participating personnel have university-level qualifications;

b) Justifying additional financial sources beyond the program budget to execute the project;

c) Demonstrate the effectiveness of the project:

- For research and trial production projects, expected results and products must have application or transfer addresses;

- Advanced technology application projects must produce products or services deployed at a minimum provincial or centrally-administered city scale;

- New product manufacturing projects must produce products with competitive features, quality, and prices compared to domestically produced or imported products;

- Changes in technological processes must contribute to increasing the added value of products by at least 5%.

Article 11. Criteria for projects enhancing resources for technological innovation in rural, mountainous areas, and regions with difficult socio-economic conditions

1. Projects strengthening the potential and improving the capacity of networks of Science and Technology Application Centers in localities to disseminate and transfer technology must meet the following conditions:

a) Clearly defining the objectives, contents, and solutions of the project;

b) Accurately identifying the needs and partners for technology transfer;

c) Mobilizing resources for technology transfer and technical support for enterprises and farmers;

d) Having operational plans and receiving local commitments to support development.

2. Projects applying advanced technologies in agriculture must meet the following conditions:

a) Identifying markets, competitiveness, and economic-technical indicators of products;

b) Possessing the ability to mobilize resources and committing to expanding the application of technology;

c) Prioritize support projects for the application of advanced technology in post-harvest and agricultural product processing; crop and livestock breeding; large-scale cultivation techniques, disease control, and monitoring.

3. Projects innovating technology for traditional trades and craft villages must meet the following conditions:

a) Support targets and contents for technological innovation align with local economic development planning;

b) Identify the potential and strengths of products in different regions, craft villages, and traditional craft villages.

c) Possessing the capability to coordinate with industrial promotion, agricultural extension, and fisheries extension programs to build research and application projects based on regional strengths and characteristics;

d) Prioritizing projects contributing to forming sustainable agricultural production models applying advanced technologies in each ecological region.

Chapter III

MANAGEMENT OF THE PROGRAM

Article 12. Organization of the Program Management Machinery

1. The organization and implementation of the Program shall be carried out according to Clause IV, Article 1 of Decision No. 677/QĐ-TTg dated May 10, 2011 of the Prime Minister approving the National Technological Innovation Program until 2020.

2. The Steering Board of the Program operates according to regulations issued by the Minister of Science and Technology. The support staff of the Steering Board of the Program shall be established as prescribed by the Minister of Science and Technology.

The Steering Board of the Program and its support staff shall be guaranteed conditions regarding funding, working equipment, and other benefits as stipulated by current regulations.

Article 13. Responsibilities and Authorities of the Ministry of Science and Technology

1. Approve the list of proposals and projects to organize the selection of organizations, agencies, enterprises, and individuals to implement; decide to recognize organizations, agencies, enterprises, and individuals selected.

2. Approve the proposal and project descriptions; adjust objectives, contents, budget items, and implementation schedules of approved proposals and projects within the Program; suspend and cancel contracts; approve the content and budget for common activities of the Program.

3. Aggregate and balance the Program's funding to allocate into the annual science and technology budget plan. Coordinate with the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Planning and Investment to ensure financial support for the Program's activities. Aggregate and approve the annual settlement of the Program's funding and submit it to the Ministry of Finance.

4. Approve procurement plans and results for machinery and equipment for proposals and projects.

5. Supervise, inspect, and audit the activities of proposals and projects including investment projects during implementation and after acceptance evaluation.

6. Decide to recognize the results of project implementation.

7. Evaluate the results and conclude the Program's activities.

8. Perform other tasks delegated by the Chairman of the Steering Committee.

9. Report to the Prime Minister on the situation and results of the Program's implementation.

Article 14. Responsibilities and Authorities of Relevant Ministries, Sectors, and People's Committees of Provinces and Central Cities

1. To be the focal point for proposing and coordinating with the Ministry of Science and Technology in building the List of projects and programs under their respective areas of management; to create favorable conditions for organizations in charge to effectively implement assigned tasks.

2. To proactively mobilize and utilize state budget funds from various sources within their management authority to ensure the synchronous and effective implementation of projects and programs.

3. To take the lead in evaluating the implementation of projects and programs within their jurisdiction; to coordinate with the Ministry of Science and Technology to inspect, supervise, and urge organizations in charge to fulfill their commitments as stipulated in the Contract.

In necessary cases, to coordinate with the Ministry of Science and Technology to review and adjust the objectives, contents, and progress of projects and programs based on proposals from the organizations in charge.

Article 15. Responsibilities and Authorities of Project Leaders and Organizations in Charge of Projects

1. The project leader shall have responsibilities and authorities as follows:

a) To sign the Contract with the Program Steering Board and the funding management agency to organize the implementation of the project according to the approved Detailed Description; to be responsible for the results and effectiveness of the project;

b) Using funds for their intended purposes, in accordance with regulations, efficiently according to the Contract content; performing financial settlement according to current regulations;

c) To be guaranteed the conditions to implement the project as agreed upon in the Contract and to propose adjustments when necessary;

d) To monitor and urge organizations and individuals participating in the implementation of the project according to the Contract. To submit periodic reports (every six months) and ad hoc reports on the progress of the project and the use of funds;

đ) To carry out the publication, submission, and transfer of project outcomes and products in accordance with current regulations.

2. The organization in charge of implementing the project shall have responsibilities and authorities as follows:

a) To be responsible for the content and results of the approved project; to ensure that the outcomes and products of the project are applied and implemented according to commitments;

b) To jointly sign the Contract with the Program Steering Board and the funding management agency with the project leader; to be responsible for managing and organizing the implementation of the project and to fully and strictly fulfill all commitments in the Contract together with the project leader;

c) To manage the allocated funds, raise sufficient funds, and disburse funds according to the schedule committed in the Contract from the agreed sources; to organize bidding, procurement, and management of equipment of the project in accordance with current regulations;

d) To coordinate with the Program Steering Board to follow up, urge, inspect, and supervise the implementation process of the projects and resolve issues within their authority; to track and consolidate the mobilization and use of non-state budget funds for the projects; to periodically check the implementation of the projects every six months and annually through functional units of the Ministry of Science and Technology, ministries, sectors, and localities; to confirm the volume and results of the project implementation as the basis for settlement and further allocation of funds;

đ) To comply with reporting requirements to the Ministry of Science and Technology (through the Program Steering Board) as prescribed. To facilitate and provide full information to supervisory agencies during the implementation and post-evaluation phases of the project;

e) To organize the management, exploitation, and transfer of project outcomes in accordance with the law.

Chapter IV

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROGRAM

Article 16. Determination of the List of Projects and Programs under the Program

1. Ministries, sectors, localities, organizations, and enterprises shall submit their proposed projects and programs to the Steering Board of the Program and the National Office for Coordination of Science and Technology Programs.

2. In cases where organizations or enterprises propose a group of projects and programs as part of an investment project, the proposals must clearly define the tasks and expected outcomes of each individual project and program, as well as the overall outcome of the investment project. At the same time, there must be a written commitment to mobilize sufficient funding sources (excluding state budget funding) to ensure the implementation of the investment project.

3. The Steering Board of the Program shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant units under the Ministry of Science and Technology to establish a Scientific and Technological Council or invite experts to provide preliminary advisory reviews on the feasibility of the proposed projects and programs.

Based on the advisory results of the Scientific and Technological Council, the Steering Board of the Program shall compile the proposed list of projects and programs to be implemented during the planning period and submit it to the Minister of Science and Technology for consideration and approval.

Article 17. Selection of Organizations and Individuals to Lead Implementation of Projects and Programs

Based on the Decision approving the proposed list of projects and programs by the Minister of Science and Technology, the Steering Board of the Program shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant agencies and organizations to organize the selection process.

The selection of organizations and individuals to lead the implementation of projects and programs shall be carried out according to the regulations on the selection of organizations and individuals leading national science and technology tasks issued by the Ministry of Science and Technology.

Article 18. Organization of Review of Projects and Programs

1. The Steering Board of the Program shall take the lead and coordinate with agencies and organizations under the Ministry of Science and Technology and related ministries and sectors to review the content and funding of the projects and programs.

The review of the projects and programs shall be conducted in accordance with the regulations on the review of national-level science and technology tasks issued by the Ministry of Science and Technology.

2. If necessary, the Minister of Science and Technology may seek the advice of domestic and foreign experts regarding the review results before making a decision.

3. Individuals and organizations entrusted to lead the implementation of the projects and programs shall perfect the Detailed Description based on the review results of the content and funding and submit it to the Steering Board of the Program for submission to the Ministry of Science and Technology for consideration and approval.

4. For groups of projects proposed within an investment project:

The content and funding requested to be supported from the state budget for scientific and technological affairs shall be reviewed by the Steering Board in coordination with relevant units under the Ministry of Science and Technology, representatives of organizations with investment projects, and related ministries and sectors, in accordance with the regulations of the Ministry of Science and Technology.

Other contents shall be reviewed by competent agencies and organizations.

Article 19. Approval of Projects and Programs and Leading Organizations

1. The Ministry of Science and Technology shall approve the projects and programs and the leading organizations implementing the tasks under the Program.

2. For investment projects specifically, the competent agency or organization shall approve them after obtaining the concurrence opinion of the Ministry of Science and Technology regarding the content and funding support from the state budget.

The Decision approving the projects and programs and leading organizations by the Ministry of Science and Technology serves as the legal basis for signing the Scientific and Technological Contract to implement the projects and programs.

Article 20. Assignment of Tasks and Execution of Contracts

1. The Program Management Board shall, together with the financial management agency, enter into contracts for implementing projects and programs with the organizations or individuals primarily responsible for their implementation. The model contract shall be issued by the Ministry of Science and Technology.

2. For investment projects, the Program Management Board and the financial management agency shall enter into contracts with the organizations having such investment projects.

At the same time, the Program Management Board, the financial management agency, and the organization having the investment project shall enter into contracts with the organization primarily responsible for and managing the project according to the model contract issued by the Ministry of Science and Technology.

3. Annually, the Ministry of Science and Technology shall assign tasks and guide the content and plan of the Program to the Program Management Board, and simultaneously notify this content to relevant ministries, sectors, and provincial and municipal people's committees directly under the central government.

Article 21. Inspection and Evaluation of Program Task Implementation

1. The Program Management Board shall, on a six-monthly basis, take the lead and coordinate with related agencies to organize inspections and evaluations regarding the progress, scientific content, and products of projects and programs according to the signed contracts.

2. The Ministry of Science and Technology shall periodically or at random inspect the situation and results of the implementation of projects and programs within the Program.

Article 22. Adjustment of Content, Budget, and Implementation Schedule

1. The organization primarily responsible for and managing projects and programs may, based on work requirements, proactively adjust the budgeted funds among assigned expenditure items within the total allocated budget of the project or program.

2. On the basis of written requests from individuals, organizations, or enterprises implementing projects and programs, the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Program Management Board shall consider and decide to adjust the following items up to two times:

a) Objectives, products, and implementation schedules of projects and programs;

b) Approved budget for expenditure items not assigned in projects and programs.

3. For investment projects, based on written proposals from organizations having such investment projects, the competent authority shall consider and decide to adjust the objectives, products, and implementation schedules of the investment projects.

Any adjustments to the content and funding of investment projects related to support funds from the Program must have the written agreement of the Ministry of Science and Technology before making such adjustments. Adjustments to the content and funding from the Program shall be limited to two times.

Article 23. Termination of Contracts

1. Based on the request of the Program Management Board and the organization primarily responsible for projects and programs, the Ministry of Science and Technology shall consider and decide to terminate the execution of contracts in the following cases:

a) Projects and programs encounter force majeure situations leading to the inability to complete approved contents and objectives;

b) The project manager and the organization primarily responsible for projects and programs lack the capacity to manage and implement them; the implementation approach of the projects and programs is blocked or there is no longer a need to implement them;

c) Breach of Contract: conditions stipulated in the contract are not met, leading to the inability of the projects and programs to be completed; the projects and programs are implemented contrary to the research content agreed upon in the signed contract; funds are misused for purposes other than those intended.

2. Based on the decision to terminate the contract, the parties carry out the procedures to terminate the contract according to the terms of the contract signed between the parties and in accordance with the law.

Article 24. Evaluation of Proposals, Projects, and Programs

1. Basic-level evaluation for proposals and projects:

a) The main organizing body of the proposal or project shall conduct the basic-level evaluation for the proposal or project and complete the evaluation result report to be sent to the Program Steering Committee and the National Office for Coordination of Science and Technology Programs for formal acceptance evaluation.

b) The Program Steering Committee shall monitor and supervise the process of conducting the basic-level evaluation.

2. Formal evaluation and acceptance of proposals and projects:

a) The Program Steering Committee shall organize the formal evaluation and acceptance of proposals and projects.

b) The Ministry of Science and Technology shall inspect and supervise the process of organizing the formal evaluation and acceptance.

3. Acceptance evaluation of investment projects:

a) Based on the results of the acceptance evaluation conducted according to the procedures stipulated in Clause 1 and 2 of this Article for direct subordinate projects, the organization with the investment construction project shall compile a comprehensive report on the implementation results to be submitted to the Program Steering Committee and the National Office for Coordination of Science and Technology Programs for acceptance evaluation.

b) The Program Steering Committee shall take the lead in coordinating with relevant ministries, sectors, and localities to organize the overall acceptance evaluation of investment projects.

c) The Ministry of Science and Technology shall monitor and supervise the process of organizing the acceptance evaluation of investment projects.

4. The evaluation of the Program shall be carried out through three stages: mid-term evaluation; final evaluation, and post-final evaluation of the Program.

a) The Program Steering Committee shall lead the mid-term evaluation of the Program's activities during the five-year plan period and report the results to the Minister of Science and Technology.

b) The Ministry of Science and Technology shall lead the organization of the evaluation of the Program's activities at the end of the five-year plan period and after the Program has ended, and report to the Program Steering Committee.

5. The procedures and processes for evaluating and accepting proposals, projects, and Programs shall be implemented in accordance with the regulations on evaluating and accepting national science and technology tasks.

Article 25. Recognition of Proposal and Project Results

1. The Ministry of Science and Technology shall issue a decision recognizing the results of proposals and projects based on the conclusion of the Science and Technology Council's formal evaluation and the recommendation of the Program Steering Committee.

2. The Ministry of Science and Technology, based on the recommendation of the Program Steering Committee, shall determine the responsibilities of related parties and apply appropriate measures as prescribed for proposals and projects whose formal evaluation results are rated as "unsatisfactory."

3. In necessary cases, the Minister of Science and Technology may decide to recognize the results of proposals and projects based on the evaluation conclusions of independent consulting organizations.

Article 26. Liquidation of Contracts and Management of Proposal and Project Results

1. The Program Steering Committee shall proceed to liquidate contracts with organizations, individuals, and enterprises implementing proposals and projects in accordance with current regulations.

2. Organizations and enterprises implementing proposals and projects shall be responsible for managing, exploiting, and transferring the results of the proposals and projects in accordance with the law.

3. The registration of retaining the results of proposals and projects shall be carried out in accordance with the Regulation on Registration, Retention, and Utilization of the Results of Science and Technology Tasks issued together with Decision No. 03/2007/QD-BKHCN dated March 16, 2007, of the Minister of Science and Technology; Circular No. 04/2011/TT-BKHCN dated April 20, 2011, of the Minister of Science and Technology amending and supplementing certain provisions of the Regulation on Registration, Retention, and Utilization of the Results of Science and Technology Tasks issued together with Decision No. 03/2007/QD-BKHCN, and other related documents.

Article 27. Disposal of Assets

The handling of assets after the completion of program tasks shall be carried out in accordance with current regulations.

Article 28. Budget for Implementing the Program

The Program budget includes the budget for implementing proposals and projects; the budget for organizing and managing the common activities of the Program and other activities mentioned in Clause 6, Article 3 of this Circular.

The Program budget shall be balanced within the annual state budget allocation for science and technology and allocated to the Ministry of Science and Technology to disburse under contracts to the main organizing bodies implementing proposals and projects and for the common activities of the Program including the operational budget of the Steering Committee, the National Office for Coordination of Science and Technology Programs, the Program Steering Committee, and the supporting staff of the Program Steering Committee.

The financial mechanism for implementing the Program is specifically regulated in the Joint Circular between the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Science and Technology guiding financial management for the National Technology Innovation Program until 2020.

The Ministry of Science and Technology shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance to balance, allocate, and guide the use of state budget funds for implementing the Program approved by the competent authority.

Article 29. Information and Database of the Program

The Ministry of Science and Technology shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant ministries, sectors, provincial People's Committees, and centrally-administered city People's Committees to organize guidance, online registration of tasks, and the establishment of electronic databases on Program tasks.

Chapter V

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 30. Effectiveness and Responsibility for Enforcement

1. This Circular takes effect 45 days from the date of issuance.

2. Ministries, sectors, provincial People's Committees, and centrally-administered city People's Committees shall base themselves on this Circular to guide agencies, organizations, and individuals participating in implementing the Program.

3. In the course of implementation, if there are difficulties, agencies, organizations, and individuals are requested to report to the Ministry of Science and Technology for study and consideration to amend and supplement accordingly./.