Gowin: It is important to select flagship universities and research areas in Poland

During his speech at the congress of the Jagiellonian Club in Warsaw Gowin noted that he would proposed certain priorities for the Ministry of Science to the head of the new government. He stressed that the most urgent issue is to diminish bureaucracy of higher education. He announced that he would eventually seek to enact a new law on higher education. This law would be "new, very slimmed down, leaving much more freedom to universities".

Gowin said that there would be no political or ideological purges at the Ministry of Science, and that each officer would have a chance to participate "in the sanation of the Polish state". "I will hold all officers very strictly accountable for the amount of legislation that they eliminate" - he said.

"This will not be the culture of creation of new regulations, but the culture of expanding freedom, deregulation, limiting the number of provisions" - he stressed.

Another area is the innovativeness of the Polish science and economy. He admitted that these matters will require coordinated action of several ministries. He noted that changes at the National Centre for Research and Development might be necessary so that the director of the agency is more accountable for the results of the programs carried out by the agency.

Gowin also stated that "what needs to be done as soon as possible, and what will trigger enormous resistance from the scientific community (...)will be the selection of research areas in which we can really reach the world level in a short time". He explained that he meant applied research, which translates into economic growth. "If we, as the state, do not decide to initiate the process of identifying flagship universities and flagship research areas, we will not use the chance to catch up and make a qualitative leap, and that chance does exist" - said Gowin.

He admitted that he was aware that this proposal might be politically controversial and "provoke opposition within the parliamentary backing".

Jagiellonian Club National Congress is held under the theme "We want more!". The congress organizer, Jan Maciejewski told PAP: "The congress is an opportunity to present the Jagiellonian Club community’s vision of changing Poland". He explained that this includes changes in culture, economy, innovation, higher education and the school system. This vision is to be confronted with a vision of invited politicians.

The Jagiellonian Club was founded in Kraków 26 years ago. Now it operates throughout the country. It is an association of students and young graduates from across Poland. "We are a conservative organisation, but we do not affiliate with any political party" - Maciejewski told PAP.

PAP - Science and Scholarship in Poland

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