According to the Communication and Information Center in the Vice Presidency of Science, Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy, the 27th meeting of the Board of Trustees in the National Science Foundation of Iran was held on Saturday evening, at the Vice Presidency's office, in the presence of Hossein Afshin, Vice President of Science, Ali Mohammad Soltani, President of the National Science Foundation of Iran, and members of the Board of Trustees of the foundation.

In this meeting, Hossein Afshin, the Vice President of Science, Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy, pointed out the importance of training research-oriented, creative and innovative human resources in the field of emerging technologies and emphasized the support of the Vice Presidency for the National Science Foundation of Iran's movement in this direction, saying: "We must also take strong steps in the field of human resources training and the serious weaknesses that exist in the training of human resources and the education of emerging technologies such as quantum must be addressed by the National Science Foundation of Iran." Training human resources in quantum, artificial intelligence and emerging sciences is one of the main priorities of the Vice Presidency of Science, which has been entrusted to the National Science Foundation, so that the trained human resources can be directed in a centralized manner towards research work.

Afshin, referring to creating balance and alignment in the support and missions of different sectors of the technology and innovation ecosystem, said: In defining the missions, priorities, and support of different sectors, we are trying to avoid parallelism and conflict in the missions; accordingly, the support of the National Foundation for Student-Centered Elites and the path of the National Science Foundation should move in line with the support of research-centeredness and professors.

Referring to the readiness to create a mechanism to support think tanks to make research mission-centered, he said: In the Seventh Program Law, the Ministry of Science has been selected as the focal point for think tanks, and the Scientific Deputy is ready to play a role in line with this mission of the Ministry of Science, in the form of a specific mechanism and in the position of supporting and strengthening think tanks, in order to make research problem-centered and solve the country's problems, especially in the area of ​​governance.

Emphasizing that investing in fundamental research and the frontier of knowledge is not a cost at all and that its benefits will accrue to the country in the coming years, the Vice President of Science continued: "One of the things that can contribute to the country's progress and sustainable development is moving in the direction of fundamental research and the edges of knowledge and technology. Support and investment in this area should not be considered a cost, and we must use all available support capacities in the field of fundamental and frontier research and have maximum support."

Afshin emphasized that the budget of the National Science Foundation of Iran should be increased in cooperation with relevant agencies to support problem-oriented and fundamental research in line with the country's capacity and urgent needs, adding: "This year's report by the National Science Foundation of Iran on budget, spending, and supported individuals showed that this foundation has supported an audience of approximately six thousand students, university professors, and researchers with a budget of only 300 billion Tomans. Given the existing scientific and research capacity and the country's urgent needs, this amount should be increased; research projects should also be considered with a broader perspective and we should generously support projects at the frontier of knowledge and emerging ones."

The Vice President of Science, Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy, referring to the vice presidency's serious support for the National Science Foundation of Iran in developing mission-oriented research, promoting knowledge, and developing emerging technologies, stated: "The total budget allocated by the country for this work was about 110 billion tomans, but the vice presidency has targeted 500 billion tomans to support projects, which is expected to increase to 700 billion tomans next year; of course, support for research plans and projects will all be provided by the National Science Foundation of Iran and based on the foundation's defined and specific mechanisms. Plans referred to the Science Foundation by the vice presidency will be reviewed based on the Science Foundation's opinion and priority, and there is no specific direction for any research plan or project or knowledge frontier. This approach has been adopted in order to create integration, order, and coordination in supporting elite research and knowledge-based companies.

Emphasizing that there will be no prohibition for members of the Scientific Council in the National Science Foundation of Iran to participate in research projects and receive support from the foundation, he added: "Members of the working group councils can also participate in research projects and benefit from the foundation's support. To fully realize this, it is necessary to review the regulations by the members of the Board of Trustees so that there are no restrictions."