A Guide to the Russian Academy of Sciences - University of Texas ...

Previously, budgetary financing covered only half of the costs of SB RAS and the rest
was earned by the Institutes entering in contracts mostly with industrial enterprises.
The recent economic crisis resulted in the fact that the real financing now is one fifth of
what it was in 1990 (Fig. 6). The sharp decline in industry, especially military and
industrial complex practically destroyed this source of financing. To a certain
extent this has been offset by contracts with foreign firms. At present the
proportion of budgetary and non-budgetary financing is 60:49, i.e. the real nonbudgetary
financing has reduced 5-6 times.
Recently, the cost structure of the Institutes has changed significantly. The proportion of
salaries and wages has grown from 1987 to 1993 from 37.5% to 64.5% and the
proportion of costs of materials and equipment dropped from 27% to 5 %.
The situation is deteriorating very rapidly. Many institutes have stopped purchases of
equipment, conserved some larger plants, drastically reduced field works and some
experimental research.
Price hikes, especially with respect to energy, led to unheard of increase in overheads
which was most painful to experimental basis and infrastructure (experimental
plants, housing, nursery schools, health service etc.)
The construction of resident houses for researchers must be now financed by researchers
themselves and after a short period of optimism difficult financial situation made
the scientific community in Siberia lose interest in such innovations.
The faulty and insufficient budgetary financing made it necessary for SB RAS to set up a
special bank "Sibakadembank'' allowing the Institutes of SB RAS to manipulate
financial resources and be granted low-interest credits. Affiliations of the Bank
have been opened also in Tomsk and Ulan-Ude.
LABOUR POTENTIAL, EQUIPMENT, LOOKING FOR NEW
STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATION OF THE INSTITUTES
The budgetary financing of the SB RAS is now one fifth or one sixth of what it used to be,
say, in 1990 and the SB RAS is now on the verge of extinction.
To declare more redundancies under conditions of decreased financing is senseless as it
would mean the end of the Branch. Nevertheless, the number of people on the SB
RAS payroll has reduced by 20.7% over last four years. It can be attributed to very
small salaries, inadequate material and equipment supply, changes in housing
policy of the country so that the Institute cannot now grant an apartment to a person
working there.
More and more scientists permanently or temporarily leave the country (about 160
researchers a year).Russian scientists are in high demand in the West which is an
indirect proof of the generally high level of our science. Most researchers have
been employed by leading organizations and corporations in the USA (35%),
Germany (20%), France (15%), Japan (7%) and other countries.
In order to retain its basic labour potential SB RAS introduced a contractual system of
payment to its leading researchers which provided a social protection to actively
working scientists. In addition, special measures have been taken to support young
researchers. Special scholarships and fellowships have been established for post-
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