"Continuity is needed" - Lukashenko states the need to train young scientists

Representatives of the scientific field must prepare their successors. This was emphasized by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko during a meeting on the development of science and the activities of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, BELTA reports.

"Today, the issue of questions is the natural aging of scientific personnel, especially in fundamental fields. We can increase funding, build new buildings and laboratories, and equip them with the most advanced equipment. But we must constantly remember: who will work there? Young people make up about one-third of our scientific workforce; some say 40%. There is a real gap in scientists in the 40-50 age group. We need continuity," Alexander Lukashenko stated.

According to the President, every doctor and candidate of sciences should have students and followers. From now on, this is not only a measure of the personal success of an accomplished scientist, but also of their professional aptitude, Alexander Lukashenko added. It is also a crucial criterion for obtaining academic titles or being elected as an academician or corresponding member of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus.

"There must be a balance between experience and youth. I ask that this decision be formalized and further monitored. And what do we have? The number of highly qualified researchers is declining, and in some fields, it has already approached the lower limit of acceptable levels. Its further decline could lead to a critical decline in the competence of individual organizations and the scientific field as a whole and become an obstacle to economic modernization," the head of state concluded.