Resolution

Czech Rectors Conference (CRC) Plenum adopted at its 137th Meeting the following resolution:

1. CRC takes into account the information from the Minister of Education, Youth and Sports Mrs. Kateřina Valachová about the draft budget of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports for the year 2017 and draws attention to the fact that, while there is a significant growth in both the GDP and the budgets of the vast majority of sections including the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, the chapter of higher education institutions is the only one with no real increase designed for the year 2017 (compared to the year 2016). CRC welcomes the promise of the Minister to achieve for the higher education institutions chapter in 2018 a share of 18% of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports total funds.
2. CRC demands a prompt amendment to the Act No. 130/2002 Coll. which will clearly define the conditions of allowableness of project costs.
3. CRC is highly disconcerted with the violation of the Act No. 130/2002 Coll. committed by the Office of the Government of the Czech Republic as not having put the RDI information system fully into operation yet. The system still does not allow functionalities that were being used for RDI results evaluation in the previous system. CRC states that RDI results evaluation in 2016 is seriously jeopardised and demands personnel changes in the management of RDI section of the Office of the Government of the Czech Republic to be made, resulting in respecting the Act.
4. CRC draws attention to the worrying state of preparation of “Methodology 2017+” for RDI evaluation and asks the Deputy Prime Minister for Science, Research and Innovation Mr. Pavel Bělobrádek to initiate immediate discussions on this issue with all relevant partners, the representatives of higher education institutions in particular. CRC requires a guarantee of transparent and objective funds allocation to be provided by the methodology.
5. CRC asks the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports to enter into intensive negotiations with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of the Interior regarding the persisting problems associated with visa policy of the Czech Republic which poses a serious obstacle to Czech higher education internalisation.
6. In the CRC by-election the Rector of Medical College Assoc. Prof. Jitka Němcová has been elected the CRC Vice-President for legislative and organizational affairs for the rest of the two-year term of office from 1 October 2016 to 31 July 2017.

Prague, 30 September 2016