Circular of the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Finance on Printing and Distributing the Interim Measures for the Administration of National Key R&D Programs

Relevant ministries and commissions of the State Council, relevant institutions directly under the State Council, science and technology departments (committees, bureaus) and finance departments (bureaus) of all provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government and cities specifically designated in the state plan, science and technology bureaus and finance bureaus of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, and relevant units:

In accordance with the relevant requirements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council on the reform of the management of science and technology plans, in order to standardize the management of national key R&D programs and ensure the organization and implementation of national key R&D plans, the revised "Interim Measures for the Management of National Key R&D Plans" are hereby issued to you, please comply with them.

Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Finance

March 31, 2024

(This piece is voluntarily disclosed)

Interim Measures for the Administration of National Key R&D Programs

Chapter I: General Provisions

Article 1: These Measures are formulated in accordance with the requirements of the system for the establishment and management of major national science and technology projects, so as to thoroughly study and implement Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, to implement the decisions and deployments of the Party Central Committee and the State Council, to ensure the smooth implementation of the national key research and development plan, and to achieve efficient, scientific, standardized, and fair management.

Article 2 The National Key R&D Program adheres to the world's frontiers of science and technology, the main battlefield of the economy, the major needs of the country, and the lives and health of the people, and focuses on funding major social public welfare research related to the national economy and people's livelihood, strategic, basic, and forward-looking major scientific issues related to the core competitiveness of the industry, the overall independent innovation capability and national security, and the research and development of key common technologies and products, as well as major international scientific and technological cooperation, and strengthens cross-departmental, cross-industry, Cross-regional R&D layout and collaborative innovation provide continuous support and guidance for all major fields of national economic and social development.

Article 3 The national key R&D plan shall be managed at different levels in accordance with key special projects and projects. The key special project is the carrier of the organization and implementation of the national key R&D plan, focusing on major national strategic tasks, adhering to the goal orientation, and carrying out the whole chain of innovative design and integrated organization and implementation from basic research, technological innovation to achievement transformation and application demonstration. The project is the basic unit of the implementation of the key special organization, which should serve the key special objectives, and a certain number of topics can be set up according to the need.

Article 4 The Ministry of Science and Technology is responsible for the collection and condensation of key special motions, the overall layout, the assessment of key nodes, supervision and evaluation, and the overall acceptance. The main responsible unit is responsible for the organization and implementation of key special projects, has overall responsibility for the performance of special implementation, entrusts and guides professional institutions to do a good job in project management, and establishes a cross-departmental coordination mechanism according to the needs of implementation. Professional institutions are entrusted by the main responsible unit to undertake specific work such as project application acceptance, project review, process management, supervision and inspection, comprehensive performance evaluation, etc., and are directly responsible to the main responsible unit in terms of project management. The project undertaking unit is responsible for the specific organization and implementation of the project and strengthens the responsibility of the legal person.

Article 5 The organization and implementation of the national key R&D plan shall follow the following principles:

——Demand-oriented, dynamic deployment. Aiming at national goals, starting from the major practical and urgent needs of various industries and fields, we will strengthen the strategic forward-looking layout related to long-term development, condense and put forward scientific and technological bottlenecks and problems that need to be broken through urgently, and dynamically deploy key special projects;

-- Fully authorize and consolidate responsibilities. The implementation of key special projects fully authorizes the main responsible units, giving full play to the advantages of the main responsible units in the condensation of industry needs, the formulation of policies and standards, and the construction of application scenarios;

-- Open innovation and collaborative research. We will select advantageous scientific research teams across the country, give full play to the backbone role of national strategic scientific and technological forces, carry out collaborative research, highlight the main role of enterprises in scientific and technological innovation, promote the in-depth integration of production, education, research and application, create a good environment for scientific and technological innovation, and fully stimulate the vitality of innovation.

-- Target management and accelerated application. Focusing on the major problems to be solved, the task objectives are clarified, and the whole process target management is implemented with major landmark achievements as the traction, and the assessment of key nodes is strengthened, the "practicality" of scientific and technological achievements is strengthened, and the formation of real productivity and industrial competitiveness is accelerated.

Article 6 The whole process of the national key R&D plan shall be incorporated into the unified national science and technology management information system, including the issuance of guidelines, review and project approval, use of funds, process management, comprehensive performance evaluation, achievement transformation and application, etc. Implement the system of national science and technology reports, scientific data collection and scientific and technological achievement collection, and do a good job in sorting, preserving and archiving relevant archives.

Chapter II: Establishment of Key Special Projects

Article 7: Relevant departments, institutions, localities, enterprises, etc., shall study and propose key special motions. The Ministry of Science and Technology shall organize the demonstration and comprehensive balance in accordance with the requirements of the project management regulations, and form a proposal for the proposed project (including the special name, main responsible unit, overall goal, implementation cycle, etc.), and submit it for approval according to the procedures. For the topic selection motion with urgent needs, in accordance with the requirements of rapid response and flexible deployment, the "one thing, one discussion" approach is adopted to speed up the start.

Article 8 For the key projects approved for implementation, the main responsible unit shall take the lead in preparing the implementation plan for the key special projects (including budget estimates and professional institutions) and report to the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Finance.

The implementation plan should focus on the needs of the country, focus on the major scientific problems to be solved or the key common technologies to be broken through, sort out and form a list of problems and objectives, reasonably deploy the main tasks in the research and development stage such as basic research, major key common technologies and achievement transformation, and clarify the task deployment schedule, expected major landmark achievements and assessment requirements, and refine measures such as resource allocation, supporting guarantees, division of responsibilities, achievement transformation and promotion and application.

Article 9: The Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Finance shall organize a comprehensive demonstration of the implementation plan for key special projects, focusing on improving the advanced nature of the special target indicators, the scientific deployment of tasks, the feasibility of organization and implementation, and the rationality of resource allocation, optimizing assessment methods, supporting safeguards and management measures, and ensuring that the risks of special implementation are controllable. The implementation plan shall be submitted for approval in accordance with the procedures after consultation and evaluation by the State Science and Technology Advisory Committee.

Article 10 The Ministry of Science and Technology shall approve the implementation plan to the main responsible unit, which shall be used as the basic basis for the decomposition of key special tasks, the preparation of project application guidelines, project arrangement, organization and implementation, supervision and inspection, and evaluation of effectiveness.

Article 11 According to the characteristics and needs of the task, key special projects can adopt a variety of models such as the department (agency) responsibility system, the local responsibility system, the general contractor responsibility system, and the owner unit responsibility system. For key projects that adopt the departmental responsibility system, the main responsible unit shall entrust a professional institution to carry out specific project management, and sign an entrustment agreement with the professional institution for special management tasks, and clarify the specific matters and management requirements of the entrustment;

Chapter 3 Project Organization and Implementation Management

Article 12 The main responsible unit, in conjunction with relevant departments (units), shall organize the preparation of annual project application guidelines for key projects. The guidelines should fully follow the overall objectives and task settings proposed in the implementation plan, avoid overlapping and duplication, and clarify the conditions for formal review and the method of project selection. The project should be relatively independent and complete, with an appropriate volume, and set up specific indicators that can be assessed and evaluated. The main responsible unit relies on the national science and technology management information system to release the guidelines after checking for duplicates, and reasonably arranges the release time.

Article 13: The main responsible unit should combine the special characteristics and implementation needs, strengthen the innovation of the organization and implementation mechanism, and determine the project undertaking unit nationwide through a variety of project selection methods such as competitive merit, directional entrustment, and phased rolling support, and may adopt organizational models such as "unveiling the leader", "horse racing system", "chain master system", young scientist projects, and long-term projects, and promote the deep integration of industry, university, research and application, and improve the performance of project organization and implementation through third-party testing, real application scenario assessment, etc.

Article 14 In principle, the project undertaking unit shall be an independent legal entity registered in Chinese mainland for one year, and shall have strong scientific research capabilities and conditions, and have good creditworthiness; the person in charge of the project (topic) shall not exceed 60 years old in principle, and meet the relevant limit requirements of the Notice of the General Office of the Ministry of Science and Technology, the General Office of the Ministry of Finance, and the Office of the Natural Science Foundation Committee on Further Strengthening the Management of the Establishment and Management of National Science and Technology Plan Projects.

Article 15: Professional bodies are to carry out project applications and acceptances in accordance with the requirements of the guidelines, strengthen the review of scientific research creditworthiness, and organize reviews by employing methods such as online reviews, communication reviews, conference reviews, on-site competitions, and on-site inspections and assessments.

Article 16 The project evaluation experts shall be high-level experts with rich experience, objectivity and impartiality in the relevant fields, and shall be selected from the national science and technology expert database in principle, and the recusal system shall be implemented. Strictly manage and use review experts through methods such as prior creditworthiness reviews, in-process reminders and supervision, and post-event spot checks and evaluations.

Article 17 The main responsible unit shall be responsible for approving the project, and organizing professional institutions to sign the project task book with the project undertaking unit; After the project is approved, the project undertaking unit shall be allocated funds in a timely manner according to the agreement of the task book, the progress of the project implementation and the completion of the task.

Article 18 The project undertaking unit shall complete the relevant R&D tasks with high quality according to the objectives, tasks and division of labor determined in the project task book. During the implementation of the project, the main responsible unit should guide the professional organization to strictly follow the requirements of the task book, strengthen the management of technical readiness, the assessment of "milestone" nodes, etc., and do a good job in the management of the project process.

Article 19: Where major adjustments need to be made in the implementation of a project, the unit in charge shall, in conjunction with a professional body, study and approve the adjustment;

Article 20 Within 6 months after the expiration of the project implementation period, the main responsible unit shall organize professional institutions to carry out comprehensive performance evaluation according to the project task book and relevant requirements, and the main responsible unit shall issue a comprehensive performance evaluation conclusion to the project undertaking unit. The conclusions of the comprehensive performance evaluation of the project are divided into two categories: passed and failed. The comprehensive performance evaluation of the project should highlight the goal-oriented and result-oriented, pay attention to the core objectives and representative achievements, and strictly control the project acceptance.

Article 21 The main responsible unit shall give full play to the advantages of relevant fields, industries and industries, create good conditions for the transformation and application of project achievements, coordinate and mobilize policies and resources from all aspects, and accelerate the transformation and application of project achievements and product iteration and upgrading through scenario construction, government procurement, financial support, etc. The Ministry of Science and Technology, together with the main responsible unit, shall organize a follow-up evaluation of the transformation and application of the results within 3 years of project acceptance.

Article 22 Professional institutions shall continue to strengthen professional capacity building, strengthen the follow-up and judgment of scientific and technological development in relevant fields, formulate management work plans suitable for special characteristics in accordance with the requirements of the management system and the main responsible unit, do a good job in the specific work of project management, improve the quality of project management, and promote the output and application of major achievements; strengthen the guidance and supervision of all kinds of experts participating in project management activities, and promote the fairness and justice of project management.

Chapter IV Key Special Management and Summary Acceptance

Article 23 The main responsible unit, in conjunction with professional institutions, shall prepare an annual report on the implementation of key special projects and submit it to the Ministry of Science and Technology before the end of December each year;

Article 24: During the implementation of key special projects, if it is necessary to make major adjustments to the main tasks of the special projects (including budget estimates) or terminate the implementation of the special projects due to changes in the situation or implementation needs, the main responsible unit shall report to the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Finance for review and approval, and submit them for approval in accordance with the procedures.

Article 25: After the end of the implementation period of key special projects, the main responsible unit, together with professional institutions, shall summarize the implementation of key special projects, and form a summary report of key special projects within 6 months of the end of the special implementation period and submit it to the Ministry of Science and Technology.

Article 26 The Ministry of Science and Technology, in conjunction with the Ministry of Finance, shall organize and carry out the overall acceptance of key projects, make a comprehensive evaluation of the degree of achievement of the objectives of key projects, the level of organization and management, and the effects and impacts of supporting economic and social development, and form an overall acceptance and evaluation report for key projects, which shall be submitted in accordance with the procedures. The overall acceptance and evaluation of key special projects will be used as an important reference for the rolling implementation of special projects and the establishment of new special selection units and professional institutions.

The special acceptance adheres to the results-oriented, focuses on the evaluation of major landmark achievements and the transformation and application of achievements, and adopts methods such as test platform verification, real application scenario assessment, and user unit assessment to strengthen the objectivity, pertinence and scientificity of the acceptance evaluation.

Article 27: The units with primary responsibility should strengthen the establishment of a secrecy system for key special projects, improve the responsibility system for secrecy work, and implement and strictly manage special projects involving sensitive scientific and technological information and state secrets and their results in accordance with relevant provisions, and do a good job of information security management at different levels and categories, to ensure the security of state secrets.

Article 28: The ownership, use, and transfer of intellectual property rights formed by key special projects are to be implemented in accordance with relevant state laws, regulations, and policies. For the needs of national security, national interests, and major social public interests, the state may permit others to implement the intellectual property rights formed by the project for a fee or without compensation. The research results formed by the project should be marked with the words "funded by the National Key R&D Program" and the project number, and marked with "National Key R&D Program of China" in English.

Chapter 5 Diversified Investment and Fund Management

Article 29: Adhere to the principle of diversification in raising funds, and on the basis of the support of central financial funds, strengthen the linkage between the central government and the local government, and the linkage between government and enterprises, guide the joint investment of localities, enterprises, financial capital and other social funds, and support relevant departments and institutions to strengthen the full life cycle and full chain of scientific and technological financial services for science and technology enterprises undertaking relevant projects.

Article 30 In accordance with the principle of "combining decentralization and decentralization, and equal rights and responsibilities", various methods such as simplifying budget preparation, delegating the right to adjust budgets, and implementing the "lump sum system" and "negative list" shall be adopted to expand the autonomy of scientific research fund management, reduce the administrative burden of scientific research personnel, and stimulate the vitality of innovation.

Article 31 The National Key R&D Program shall provide classified support for specific projects through pre-subsidy, post-subsidy, "milestone" allocation, etc. In arranging and using the funds of the central government, it is necessary to strictly implement the relevant regulations on the management of the state budget and the management of the treasury, comprehensively implement the management of budget performance, implement the management of special accounts, and use special funds for specific purposes, establish a fund supervision mechanism covering the entire process of fund management and use, and improve the efficiency of the use of funds. Where government procurement is involved in the use of project funds, it shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of the legal system for government procurement.

The measures for the management of funds for national key R&D programs shall be formulated by the Ministry of Finance in conjunction with relevant departments.

Chapter VI Supervision and Evaluation

Article 32 The National Key R&D Program shall establish a whole-process, multi-level, and embedded supervision and evaluation system. Supervision and evaluation work should be based on key special implementation plans, project application guidelines, project approvals, task documents, agreements, etc., and be organized and carried out in accordance with the principle of consistency of responsibilities and powers.

Article 33: The Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Finance are to supervise and assess the implementation of special projects and the performance of duties and responsibilities by implementing entities through methods such as assessment of key nodes of key special projects and random spot checks, and use information technology to reduce the burden on scientific research personnel. The conclusions and opinions of the supervision and assessment shall be fed back to the responsible units and professional institutions in a timely manner, and major matters shall be reported in accordance with the procedures.

Article 34: The main responsible unit is to supervise and assess the implementation process and progress of key special projects, and to supervise the management of entrusted professional institutions. Professional institutions carry out daily supervision of the implementation of the project and the unit undertaking the project. The main responsible unit, in conjunction with professional bodies, is to establish a working mechanism for public participation in supervision, strengthen coordination with external oversight such as audit oversight and third-party oversight, and implement a system for the supervision of science and technology ethics.

Article 35: Establish mechanisms for incentives for innovation and mechanisms for pursuing responsibility. Units, teams and individuals that have made important contributions in the course of the implementation of special organizations are to be commended and rewarded in accordance with relevant state provisions. Where enforcement is not effective, dynamic adjustments are to be carried out, and the responsibilities of each entity are to be checked backwards, and accountability is carried out step by step. Untrustworthiness and violations in scientific research are to be included in the database of serious untrustworthy conduct in scientific research creditworthiness as appropriate, and are to be severely dealt with in accordance with laws and regulations. and where there is suspicion of violation of discipline or law, it shall be transferred to the relevant departments.

Chapter VII: Supplementary Provisions

Article 36 Each responsible unit shall formulate detailed implementation rules in accordance with these Measures, and report to the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Finance for system consistency review and filing before issuance. Key special projects that are otherwise provided for in management requirements shall be implemented in accordance with relevant provisions.

Article 37 R&D tasks that focus on major national strategic needs of localities, units, enterprises, etc., may be included in the management of national key R&D plans in accordance with relevant procedures. The specific measures are provided for separately.

These Measures shall come into force on the date of promulgation. The "Interim Measures for the Management of National Key R&D Programs" (Guo Ke Fa Zi [2017] No. 152) shall be repealed at the same time.