After numerous delays, the European Commission and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) have officially launched on Thursday the long-awaited Research and Innovation Careers Observatory, Research Professional News reports.
The Observatory aims to provide reliable data on R&I careers in EU and OECD countries to help inform policies on talent attraction and retention.
The observatory was originally due to be launched in 2023, with EU member state governments calling for 2021, then expected to happen in May, but was again delayed. At the time, a source at the OECD told Research Professional News that it took longer than expected to reach agreement with the Commission.
Welcoming the launch of the programme this week, EU Research and Development Commissioner Iliana Ivanova said:
“Europe must attract and retain research talent to underpin its prosperity and competitiveness. Sound policies aiming to achieve this goal need to be based on reliable data. This is where the Research and Innovation Careers Observatory comes in—it will fill data gaps on research careers in Europe and provide information to policymakers, as well as researchers themselves and their organisations. It is an important step forward in our efforts to strengthen research careers in the European Research Area.”
The Commission and the OECD hope that the observatory will also help researchers and innovators better understand the career paths open to them, which in turn will improve Europe’s competitiveness.
The Commission said the observatory will utilise the OECD’s expertise to provide policymakers with data and will also benefit the wider research and innovation community.
The first dataset is expected in the first half of next year and the observatory will be updated annually.
The launch of the observatory began with a signing ceremony at an event on the European Research Area organised by the Commission in Brussels.
Speaking at the event, Jerry Sheehan, director of the OECD’s Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation, said the creation of the observatory was part of “an increased focus on skills in research evaluation reform, fuelling a culture change.”
