First Strategic Principle:
Adopting a comprehensive vision in developing the science, technology and innovation system that leads to the collaboration among the system components, the system coordination of its plans, and closer ties and interaction with the economic, social and cultural activities, through the following policies:
1.
Coordination between the Science and Technology National Policy and the various sector policies in the Kingdom.
2.
Adopting a national mechanism that can enhance the effectiveness of planning, management, coordination and follow-up of activities of science, technology and innovation and support its resources.
3.
Completing and enforcing the infrastructures necessary to the development of the system and improvement of its efficiency.
4.
Setting up intermediate organizations among the components of the system on one hand and between the system and the various sectors such as technological development centers, science parks, technological incubators and finance funds, on the other.
5.
Establishing the necessary mechanisms to encourage and strengthen the ties between the key components of the system, such as research and development centers, education and training organizations, companies, investors, innovators, technology suppliers, consulting firms, scientific media … etc.
6.
Motivating the private sector to assume a leading role in the implementation and management of the scientific and technological activities, to identify and evaluate the research programs, and to utilize their results.
7.
Directing the different awareness means to deepen the recognition of the society members in general and the government and private sectors in particular, of the decisive role of science and technology and innovation in improving the productivity efficiency, increasing the competitive edge of the national economy, conservation the environment and natural resources, and promoting the living standard of the citizen.
8.
Adopting the Arabic language as a key basis for the development of the system components without ignoring the other languages required to transfer whatever new of scientific and technical knowledge from their sources.
Second Strategic Principle:
Activating education and training role and improving their efficiency in quantity and in quality, in a way that complies with the needs of the desired scientific and technological advancements, and laying emphasis on the scientific and international new technological developments and their challenges, through the following policies:
1.
Linking the outputs of the education and training institutions to the actual needs of the system and establishing the effective mechanisms to achieve that.
2.
Activating the applied aspects in all the education and training stages, so as to deepen the scientific and technological knowledge and thinking of the recipients
3.
Periodically evaluating the science and technology education programs in all types and grades of education and training, and developing them to cope up with and responds to the system’s new needs
4.
Developing higher studies programs, in terms of diversification, level, capacity, and distribution among the different areas of the Kingdom, paying a special attention to post-graduate studies in the applied scientific and technological fields that suits the Kingdom
5.
Setting up higher institutes, distinguished in applied scientific and technical fields, on the university and post-university levels, so as to form a leading group of scientist, engineers and technicians.
6.
Expanding the polytechnical and technology education as well as the vocational training, in both quantity and quality, to meet the system requirements and to achieve the self-sufficiency of technical and professional skills and specialties.
7.
Encouraging the establishment and development of institutions and training centers specialized in technology fields, which influence the national economy and that can activate the private sector’s role in this area.
8.
Activating and developing the roles of the higher education and scientific research institutions in the continual training and qualification.
9.
Paying attention to the collaborative education in all the educational institutions, especially in those of technological education and vocation training.
10.
Developing the social science and humanities, to increase the understanding of the Kingdom reality, and to the development of the national curricula, so as to plan for and manage science and technology, and solve the pressing social problems.
Third Strategic Principle:
Preparing the means and ways that can promote, develop and coordinate the scientific research and technology development national capabilities, and ensuring that they meet and integrate into the needs of the society and the requirements of the sustainable development, through the following policies:
1.
Establishing the proper and effective mechanism, in which the research bodies and government and private sectors take part, and coordinate and integrate with the efforts of the research institutions.
2.
Encouraging the economic and social demand for national institutions of scientific research and technological development, in every possible means.
3.
Setting up new units for research and development in both the government and private sector enterprises that have integrated technological potentials in the leading strategic fields of the national economy.
4.
Finding and promoting the national capabilities in the fields of engineering design and development and reverse engineering, especially in the productive sectors.
5.
Paying attention to the marketing capabilities of the research and development institutions, and helping the representatives of the organizations benefit from the products of such institutions and take part in setting their programs.
6.
Providing the requirements to improve and develop the research centers at the high education institutions, so as to become a pivotal pillar for development-oriented research and to effectively contribute to the contemporary scientific and technological advancement.
7.
Adopting effective mechanisms to closer ties between the scientific research and technological development institutions on one hand and the productive and service sectors on the other.
8.
Increasing the number of workers in the scientific research and development fields, taking into account the balance between their different categories.
9.
Encouraging the exchange of the various categories of researchers between the research and development centers, in universities and productive and service institutions in both the public and private sectors.
10.
Establishing the mechanisms and means that can make use of the prominent non-Saudi scientists and researchers to develop the national capabilities in the leading strategic fields of research and development.
Fourth Strategic Principle:
Adopting main trends for scientific research and technological development that can satisfy the priorities of the comprehensive national security and sustainable development requirements, through the following policies:
1.
Directing the scientific research and technological developent towards achieving water security.
2.
Directing scientific research and technological development towards securing the strategic requirements of defense and national security.
3.
Directing scientific research and technological development towards enhancing the competitive capabilities of the sector of oil, gas and petrochemical industries.
4.
Supporting the scientific research and technological development in the fields of environment conservation and exploration and development of natural resources, and rationalization of their uses.
5.
Paying attention to scientific research and technological development in the areas of electronics, communications and information.
6.
Directing scientific research and technological development to the service of Islamic rites and streamlining of their performance.
7.
Monitoring and tracking the promising opportunities provided by the contemporary and new scientific and technological developments, especially in the fields where the impact on the national economy is expected to be tangible over the next two decades.
8.
Developing effective mechanisms and methodologies to set and review the priorities of scientific research and technological development on the national level, in which the competent bodies take part.
Fifth Strategic Principle:
Promoting, developing and diversifying the financial support sources allocated for the activities of the national science, technology and innovation system, in a way that guarantees performing its tasks properly, through the following policies:
1.
Setting a timetable to increase the research and development resources from the various sources (government, private sector, individuals, international organizations, foreign institutions or companies … etc.) to reach, by 1441H (2020G), 1.6% of the Kingdom GDP.
2.
Developing the proper mechanisms and approaches that can motivate the private sector institutions to invest in and support the activities of the science, technology and innovation.
3.
Encouraging the research and development centers and support services in the government sector to continue the increase in the self-finance sources of their activities.
4.
Developing a national mechanism to finance the scientific research and technological activities in which the private sector institutions take part beside the State.
5.
Establishing venture capital companies to finance the high-risk developmental projects in the in the promising fields of advanced technology.
6.
Encouraging the allocation of a specific share of the private and governmental institutions budgets to research and development and training and continuous qualification.
7.
Improving the efficiency of the cooperation programs in the support of science, technology and innovation activities.
8.
Achieving the optimal benefit from the developmental contracts of the greater projects to support the different components of the system.
Sixth Strategic Principle:
Enhancing technology transfer, endogenization and development of adequate technologies to improve the productivity and competitiveness of the productive and service sectors, through the following policies:
1.
Encouraging the exchange and transfer of experienced workers among the production institutions & technology institutions, as a fundamental mechanism to apply & generalize the local use of technology.
2.
Encouraging the exchange and transfer of experienced workers among the productive and technology using institutions, as basic mechanism for application and generalization of local benefit from technology.
3.
Supporting and encouraging the transfer of advanced technologies that are suitable for the sustainable development in the Kingdom, and providing the developmental sectors with the capabilities and means required for their endogenization.
4.
Strengthening and enhancing the national potentials to assess, test and negotiate the proper foreign technologies.
5.
Emphaizing knowledge, skills and expertise transfer related to machines, systems and equipment, and setting the mechanisms and regulations required to ensure thereof.
6.
Achieving the optimal benefit from the big technology investment projects and agreements in the Kingdom, such as the Economy Offset Program, in improving the national technological potentials and accumulating them locally.
7.
Investigating and understanding the technology packages in various projects and finding the mechanisms required for the national research institutions to take part therein.
8.
Adopting national programs to promote and strengthen the implantation and development processes of technology locally, including setting up and activating the institution, laboratories and support services required.
9.
Promoting and activating the role of the national consulting and engineering firms in technology transfer, endogenization and development.
10.
Continuing the development of standardization (quality and calibration standards) in ways that improve the competitiveness of the national products on the local and world markets and guarantee the consumer protection.
Seventh Strategic Principle:
Supporting, fostering and encouraging the national human capabilities, for creativity and innovation, through the following policies:
1.
Providing the proper environment and the suitable potentials to encourage and motivate the creativity and initiatives of individuals, groups and private sector enterprises.
2.
Looking after and paying attention to the talented and creative persons, especially in the scientific and technological fields, and developing the motivating competitive conditions.
3.
Encouraging the adoption by the private sector and investors of the inventions of the creative and innovative nationals.
4.
Setting the mechanisms and incentives required to attract the prominent creative and innovative nationals to work in the research centers.
5.
Encouraging the establishment of the small and medium-sized enterprises through adopting them by the technological economic incubators.
6.
Paying attention to the intellectual production of scientists and creative persons, motivating them to publish their production and providing the proper channels for publication.
7.
Supporting and strengthening the scientific societies in the community and activating their role in the national creative and innovative capabilities development.
8.
Finding the means required to activate the roles of the school, the family and society in discovering and fostering the talented and creative people.
9.
Highlighting the inventions of the talented and creative people in the different mass communication media and making the society aware of their vital role in the scientific and technical advancement and in the comprehensive economic and social development.
Eighth Strategic Principle:
Developing the regulations that govern the performance of the science, technology and innovation national system, and improving the efficiency of organization and management in the scientific and technical institutions to cope up with the current and future requirements of the comprehensive and sustainable development, through the following policies:
1.
Revising and updating periodically the regulations related to science and technology to provide the proper environment for the improvement of the system performance and efficiency, and to keep abreast with the world developments.
2.
Adopting financial and administrative regulations that meet the requirements of the science and technology activities.
3.
Setting the regulations that encourage the cooperation between the scientific and technical institutions and the other sectors.
4.
Developing the incentives and encouraging regulations, which urge the advanced technology producers to invest in the Kingdom.
5.
Preparing regulations that take into account the peculiarities of the work and the potential risks involved in the science and technology activities.
6.
Developing the administrative structures of science and technology institutions, and continuously assessing them so as to achieve the cohesion among their units, to improve their performance and to coordinate their activities.
7.
Developing organizational and administrative techniques in the science and technology institutions, periodically assessing them, and adopting the advanced technological means in the management of those institutions.
8.
Completing the institutional structures required to draw up the scientific and technological policies, to manage and plan the scientific and technological activities, and to conduct identification, feasibility studies … etc together with the coordination of their duties and efforts.
Ninth Strategic Principle:
Developing the different aspects of the scientific and technological cooperation on the Gulf, Arab, Islamic, and International levels, focusing on the cooperation with the advanced countries and institutions in the scientific and technological fields in which the Kingdom seeks to achieve superiority, through the following policies:
1.
Establishing the mechanisms that achieve the optimal benefit from the bilateral and multilateral agreements with the scientifically advanced countries and institutions. Also improving the benefits derived from the international and regional organizations in the different fields of science and technology, especially in the fields of priority in the Kingdom.
2.
Investing the relative advantages and developmental projects of the Kingdom to provide better opportunities for technological and scientific cooperation, thus enhancing the priority scientific and technological fields in the Kingdom.
3.
Increasing the level of the scientific and technological cooperation among GCC countries to achieve integration in the common fields of interest.
4.
Boosting the bilateral and common scientific and technological cooperation with the Arab and Islamic countries.
5.
Promoting the mechanisms required to monitor and track the current developments in the scientific and technological fields worldwide, and generalizing them to the bodies concerned in the Kingdom.
6.
Encouraging and motivating the scientific and technological cooperation on the individual level between scientists and researchers in the Kingdom and their counterparts abroad.
7.
Promoting and supporting the scientific and technological institutional cooperation with the outside organizations.
8.
Encouraging the cooperation through the twinning between the universities and research centers and their counterparts in the outside world.
9.
Coping with the new world trends of scientific and technological cooperation.
Tenth Strategic Principle:
Making scientific and technological information available and accessible in every way, within the environmental & goals perspective of the Kingdom, through the following policies
1.
Supporting and developing national scientific & technological databases, ensuring ease of access to them as well as constant update.
2.
Adopting national regulations and programs that encourage the information production, transfer, publication and exchange and that streamline its use.
3.
Supporting and developing the scientific and technological information systems and their technologies as well as facilitating access to them, so as to enable the Kingdom to cope up with the information age.
4.
Connecting the scientific institutions and research centers through a high-speed national information network so as to exchange expertise inside and outside the Kingdom, and to enrich the scientific research and technological development.
5.
Adopting the mechanisms required for the information security and protection.
6.
Supporting and enhancing the Arabic language position in the information technology field.
7.
Concentrating on the endogenization and development of the information technologies that have effective impact on the improvement of the efficiency and effectiveness of the information systems and their services in the Kingdom.
8.
Preparing a national information plan that complies with the goals and directions of the Science and Technology National Policy (STNP) and that support the comprehensive development in the Kingdom.