Resolution

Czech Rectors Conference (CRC) Plenum adopted at its 145th Meeting the following resolution:

1. CRC supports the Minister of Education, Youth, and Sports efforts to maintain the promised budgetary framework for higher education institutions for 2019 with a year-on-year increase of CZK 3.2 billion.
2. CRC does not agree with the cuts in the approved state budget for 2018, which significantly affect research and development expenditures in various sectors. Changes in the budget during the year that are not justified by unexpected circumstances introduce a non-systemic element in expenditure planning and reduce state behavior predictability. Political debate on government expenditure priorities is legitimate but should take place at the proper time of state budget preparation and not after its approval by the Chamber of Deputies of the Parliament of the Czech Republic.
3. CRC supports such research evaluation under the Methodology 17+ that will lead to an objective quality assessment of all research organizations in the Czech Republic on the basis of clearly defined criteria and verified data, allowing field-specific comparisons on an international scale, and appeals to the Research, Development and Innovation Council for initiating the Methodology 17+ implementation.
4. CRC strongly protests against incompetent statements about the ERASMUS+ programme disseminated by Lubomír Volný (SPD), a member of the Committee on Science, Education, Culture, Youth and Sports of the Chamber of Deputies of the Parliament of the Czech Republic. The ERASMUS+ programme significantly contributes to broaden experience and knowledge of Czech higher education institutions students as well as to enhance the competitiveness of the Czech Republic.
5. CRC supports the project and economic specialists (PES) initiative to reduce the administrative burden of projects. The requirements of Czech authorities are often beyond European managing authorities.
6. CRC does not recommend some of the proposed Institutional Plan modifications, which restrict activities that can be supported at higher education institutions due to this Plan. At the same time, the Institutional Plan should preserve its character of centrally managed priorities of higher education institutions. CRC recommends taking into account the specifics of non-university and predominantly professional higher education institutions.
7. CRC appeals to the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports to push funds to increase in the investment programme financing of higher education institutions to preserve and further develop the modern quality learning environment.
8. CRC is preparing higher education institutions involvement in joint projects to support organization of joint tenders for goods/services purchase, which could contribute to significant savings at higher education institutions.

Ostrava, 12 April 2018