The 2013 law on science and technology regulates spending on science and technology projects will be no more than 2% of the year’s total budget spending of a locality, but HCMC has beat the upper limit, the city’s Department of Finance said.

Le Huynh Minh Tu from the department unveiled the city’s higher-than-allowed spending on science and technology at a meeting between the Economic and Budgetary Committee of the HCMC People’s Council and the HCMC Department of Science and Technology last week.

HCMC’s spending on scientific and technological investments and research was over VND1.32 trillion in 2013, VND1.75 trillion in 2014 and an estimated VND1.34 trillion this year. Meanwhile, the city’s total budget spending was nearly VND54 trillion in 2013 and VND42 trillion in 2014 and is projected at some VND54 trillion this year.

Therefore, the proportion of the city’s spending on science and technology was 2.44% in 2013 and 4.16% in 2014 and this year’s percentage is put at 2.46%.

However, Nguyen Viet Dung, director of the HCMC Department of Science and Technology, said the department only got over VND300 billion each year, with just around VND100 billion for research.

In particular, this year’s budget for the research programs managed by the department has been approved at VND104 billion. The amount is insignificant for 21 major research programs as an average of just around VND5 billion is planned for a research project. 

The HCMC Department of Science and Technology said the budget for research projects handled by the department has not been fully disbursed in the past years. 

In addition to the Department of Science and Technology, hi-tech parks, biotechnology centers and research institutes are also provided with finance for research programs.

According to Dung, his department is not a research unit but in charge of managing scientific and technological development, investments and studies. Therefore, the city’s budget spending on these fields should be disbursed via the department to avoid inefficient spending.