Research and Innovation Council strengthens procedures for assessing the impact of central government R&D funding

Research and Innovation Council strengthens procedures for assessing the impact of central government R&D funding

The Research and Innovation Council is launching new procedures for monitoring and assessing the use and impact of central government research and development (R&D) funding during autumn 2025. The aim of the new assessment procedures is to produce an up-to-date overall picture of the situation with regard to the allocation, outcomes and impact of R&D funding for use by decision-makers and actors in the RDI system. Systematic and comprehensive monitoring practices will help bring scattered assessment information together in one place while also producing new information. It will serve as a tool for knowledge-based and impact-based management of the RDI system.

In line with a commitment by Parliament on the matter, the Government of Prime Minister Petteri Orpo has significantly increased central government R&D funding. The goal is to for research and development expenditure to total four per cent of Finland's GDP by 2030. The strong increase in public R&D funding will require more systematic and comprehensive impact assessment procedures.

The monitoring will cover both the additional funding under the Act on Research and Development Funding and central government R&D funding as a whole. The impact of R&D often becomes apparent over a long period of time, and it is important to take into account different time spans when conducting impact assessments. For this reason, the focus in the initial stages will be on monitoring the allocation of additional R&D funding and the activities launched as a result. The monitoring work will make use of both quantitative and qualitative data and will also include methodological studies.

The secretariat of the Research and Innovation Council will conduct the monitoring openly and in dialogue with financiers, the RDI field and researchers on RDI policy and activities. The secretariat will prepare an annual report to the Research and Innovation Council on the use and impact of funding. The reports will be made available to the public The first report is currently being drawn up and will be completed in the winter.
The Research and Innovation Council adopted a plan for monitoring and assessing the impact of central government R&D funding on 6 June. The plan was published on 21 August.

Inquiries: Antti Pelkonen, Chief Specialist, Secretariat of the Research and Innovation Council, tel. +358 295 160 533, Prime Minister's Office