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Transfer of Research Results into Practice in Czechoslovak Agriculture ALOIS Czechoslovak Ministry of Agriculture and Food In the further development of the national economyâincluding the sector of agriculture and foodâit is no longer possible to rely on extensive development of natural resources within the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. Intensification is therefore the only feasible course in implementing long-term development programs. Such intensifica- tion has become necessary because of the increasing population; the need to use some farm land for mining, road building, and other non- agricultural purposes; and the expected expansion of protected water source areas and areas protected for cultural reasons. Scientific and technological development and the increased utilization of research results are now considered the principal basis for intensification and for increasing the effectiveness of food production in Czechoslovakia. Therefore, in the last decade opportunities offered by science have commanded great attention among the central, regional, and district authorities responsible for the management of agriculture and food production, producers of farm machines, designers and planners, and farmers themselves. Within the management of agricultural pro- duction, accelerated and effective implementation of farming prac- tices which reflect the results of science and technology is being purposefully planned and directed. This effort enjoys broad support and provides moral and material motivation. The introduction of the results of science into practice is called "transfer". This refers to the transformation processes during which knowledge of an intangible nature changes into a new means of pro- duction or into applications-oriented information, methodological 112
113 instructions, processes, and standards. In the area of food pro- duction these transformation processes and agricultural production techniques are of a multidisciplinary nature. They are dominated by the biological character of the production process with its vari- ability, dependence on external conditions, and disharmony between the production technology and the working process. Agriculture also depends on other branches of the national economy for the supply of almost 60 percent of the necessary means of production, e.g., ma- chines, chemicals, biochemical preparations and materials, building materials, and power. The optimization, rationalization, and effectiveness of transfer- ring research results into practice has commanded the attention of the central authorities in Czechoslovakia as well as of the organiza- tions responsible for agriculture and food. This interest is both the- oretical, (e.g., theory of management, information theory, systems analysis and synthesis, psychology, and sociology) and practical at all levels of management. Of course, no matter how sophisticated a system may be, it cannot work effectively if it is not supported by the initiative and activities of its users (i.e., agricultural enterprises), and by the interest of agricultural workers and their acceptance of new findings and new approaches. With regard to food production in Czechoslovakia, the main instrument for the purposeful transfer of the findings of science to practice is the Unified Plan of Development of Science and Technol- ogy in the Agroindustrial Complex for the Period of the 8th Five-Year Plan, which is derived from the Long-Term Program of Development of the Sectors Responsible for the Nutrition of the Population. It includes scientific programs and tasks of basic and applied research, activities involving international scientific and technological cooper- ation, the creative initiative of the workers, and a number of other components of scientific and technological development. The Unified Plan is left open to accommodate advances in knowl- edge. A chapter called "System of Planned Realization of the Results of Science and Technology in Agricultural Practice and Food Produc- tion" is an important part of the Unified Plan. This system includes the following factors which support rapid and effective utilization of new findings, adequately transformed, into practice. ⢠The so-called "primary realization" is used for broad implemen- tation of new findings of a material and non-material nature. With support from the state budget or from the agricultural sector, primary realization is aimed at testing the suitability and
114 effectiveness of new solutions in order to eliminate risks which would otherwise be borne by the agricultural enterprises. For the period 1986-1990 the Unified Plan includes 79 such pilot operations and 72 prototypes. ⢠Findings obtained from other countries undergo a similar testing procedure before they can be used in Czechoslovakia. ⢠Great emphasis is placed on designing and engineering because of the importance of novel technical products, building projects, software, and the like for the introduction of new scientific and technological results into agricultural practice. ⢠Long-term programs of scientific and technological development have been prepared at the regional and district levels for the management of agriculture and of "Science and Technology De- velopment Funds" which can be used by agricultural enterprises on the basis of their profits to implement these programs. ⢠Responsibility and coordination within each agricultural sector have been entrusted to organizations called "production and economic units," which are in the form of trusts. For instance, the Oseva Praha Corporation is responsible for the production of seeds and planting material for crops and the State Animal Breeding Enterprises produces farm animal reproductive mate- rial. ⢠The central authorities coordinate findings of science and tech- nology for implementation. Other findings become the subject of supplier/purchaser relations. ⢠Support is given to contract-based relations between scientific institutions and agricultural enterprises in reaching solutions in important fields of scientific and technical development. One of many examples is the cooperation between the South Bohemian Biological Center of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences and the Chelfiice cooperative farm in research, development, and production of bioinsecticides. ⢠Accelerated implementation of the results of science and technol- ogy in agricultural practice is also encouraged through the ma- terial interest of the workers in terms of premiums and through other incentives. Special attention is paid to other resources and means which can influence the effectiveness of scientific and technical development in agricultural production. These include, in particular, the initiative of the workers; the educational system; scientific propaganda and a system of scientific and technical information; and the involvement
115 of selected advanced enterprises in the transfers. We believe that the utilization of these approaches significantly supports and accelerates scientific and technical development and the effective introduction of the results of research into practice. The creative initiative and inventiveness of the workers are fully supported by the central authorities. We insist that agricultural en- terprises support these activities. To solve particular agricultural problems, thematic tasks are announced every year. Under current law, enterprises must render financial and technical assistance to inventors and improvisers. A great deal of work on solving partial problems is also done by groups called "complex rational brigades." The results of the creative initiative of the workers are periodically presented to the public at national and regional exhibitions aimed at encouraging their widest utilization. In many cases these exhibitions help to find potential producers. For example, agricultural work- ers usually produce such novelties within their ancillary production programs. The educational system and its effectiveness in encouraging sci- entific and technical development are secured by a network of special apprentice schools which prepare qualified workers, secondary agri- cultural schools which produce technicians and technologists, and agricultural and veterinary universities whose graduates are agricul- tural engineers and veterinary surgeons. Agriculture also employs graduates of non-agricultural universities. New findings of science and technology can be gained by all persons working in agriculture through various training courses and post-graduate studies orga- nized by the Institutes of Education and Training of the Ministries of Agriculture and Food of the Czech and Slovak Socialist Republics. Experience has shown that the professional preparation of the work- ers is one of the basic prerequisites for effective introduction of the results of scientific and technical development. Systematic scientific and technical propaganda is being devel- oped for dissemination to the broad public and for winning the pub- lic's support for scientific and technical development. For instance, lectures of the School of Progressive Experience are regularly shown on television. There are also the publicist programs of Agricultural Year, Agricultural Magazine, and others. Publishing organizations offer a wide spectrum of agricultural books and periodicals. Great attention is paid to the development of the system of scientific and technical information, including international cooperation in this field. A network of agricultural information centers is in place, and
116 an experimental terminal network reaching out to some of the larger agricultural enterprises is being tested. Within the last decade a number of agricultural enterprises, both cooperatives and state farms, have reached the top standard of man- agement with outstanding results of the implementation of the results of science and technology in practice. These advanced agricultural enterprises serve as examples of prompt transfer of science to prac- tice. They serve as models of effective introduction of progressive technological systems and engineering services into wide application. At present, there are 198 "model" enterprises, including 136 coop- erative, 45 state-operated, and 17 joint agricultural enterprises in both the Czech and Slovak Socialist Republics. Training centers for technicians and technologists at these agricultural enterprises are in the process of being established. All of these efforts will be further developed in order to accelerate the transfer of science to practice in Czechoslovakia, and new sources of acceleration will also be sought.
