At the end of 1989, the accumulation of the effects of the hypercentralized management system almost completely paralyzed the Romanian Science and Technology (S+T) System.
The situation was all the more serious as the activity of scientific research, engineering and technological development had contributed to a decisive extent to the creation and development of a national industry, with some components having a real competitive potential on the international level.
Under these conditions, the scientific community was one of the first professional communities that became aware from the first days of 1990 (on the basis of studies, analyzes and evaluations carried out in previous years as well) the requirements, difficulties and objectives of the period of profound political and economic transformations in who had entered Romania.
Even if in the first part of this period there was no fully developed conception of the restructuring and the objectives of the reform of the S+T system, the actions carried out by the representatives of the scientific community pursued three main objectives:
- maintaining the scientific research potential of Romania in the new conditions (the collapse of the structures of the hypercentralized management system, accelerated economic decline, the drastic reduction of funds allocated for research, etc.);
- the direct participation of the institutes of scientific research, engineering and technological development, in the preparation and realization of programs and actions for the reform of the Romanian economy;
- the restructuring and launch of the reform of the S+T system, in the difficult conditions of the impact – positive and negative – of the measures and actions promoted in the general process of restructuring and reform of the Romanian economy.
At the initiative and pressure of the scientific community (the Romanian Academy and representatives of scientific research, technological development and design institutes – later reunited in the Employers’ Union of Research, Development and Design Institutes, and in the Federation of Research and Design Workers’ Unions) were adopted a series of legislative regulations, in the initiation, elaboration – within a long and difficult process of negotiation with the Government and the Ministries involved – and the adoption of which I participated directly.
The first step was the elimination of the centralist governing bodies from the old S+T system (including the Central Institutes for scientific research, engineering and technological development.
The second step was to “break” the deadlock existing in the hypercentralized, administrative, command system, by decentralizing some attributions and obtaining autonomy for the internal organization of research and development institutes.
Through HG 458/1990 and HG 562/1990 , the institutes acquired new rights, non-existent in the old system, regarding the establishment of the internal organizational structure, the scheme and the number of staff.
The third step was to ensure the financing of the research-development activity under the new conditions, with a reduction of approx. 20 times the funds for research provided for in the State Budget, at the level of the financing possibilities existing then, only for the institutes of the Romanian Academy.
There was the question of the survival of the institutes of scientific research, engineering, technological development and design, which at that time represented approx. 85% of the potential of research and technological development activity in Romania.
In this extreme situation, on the initiative and based on the solutions and measures developed and presented by the Joint Employers-Union group, GD 1284/1990 was adopted , which provided for the establishment of a tax of 1% on the turnover of economic agents with state capital , as a source of funding for the special fund (budget) for the priority financing of research-development programs of national, departmental, sectoral, intersectoral, multidisciplinary interest, or of particular importance for the achievement of the reform in Romania.
In order to elaborate the proposals and recommendations submitted to the Government for approval, regarding the Research-Development Programs and the distribution of the special fund on Research-Development Programs and themes, the Consultative College for Applied Research and Technological Development was established (HG 66/1991) .
During this period, HG 100/1991 was also adopted , by which a mixed status (institute + organization system specific to commercial companies) is granted to some research and development units.
The fourth step was the establishment – at the proposal and request of the joint Employer-Union group – of the Ministry of Research and Technology (HG 809/1992) , as a government body with main responsibilities in the development and application of the Government’s strategy and policy for the restructuring, reform and modernization of the system S+T from Romania.