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EURAXESS
NEWS30 Mar 2020News

HUNGARY - Country Profile

hungary

Country Outline

  • GDP: 131,935 mil. euros (Eurostat 2018)
  • GDP per Capita: 13,500 euros (Eurostat 2018)
  • Areas of marked S&T specialisations: health research, automotive industry, biotechnology, advanced materials, laser science, ICT, energy technologies, brain research, material sciences, natural sciences

Contact Information

  • Organistion: Embassy of Hungary
  • Name / Position: Lee Youngjoo Shawn / Consultant
  • Phone no. / e-mail: (+82) 2-792-2105 / YShawnLee@mfa.gov.hu

Hungary was the first country from the Eastern Bloc that established diplomatic relations with the Republic of Korea, and shortly afterwards the two governments signed a bilateral Science and Technology cooperation agreement.

In 2014 the National Assembly adopted the Act LXXVI of 2014 on scientific research, development and innovation (RDI Act) that created the National Research, Development and Innovation Office (NRDI Office). The NRDI Office develops Hungary’s national strategy for scientific research, development and innovation and manages the National Research, Development and Innovation Fund as the research funding agency of Hungary.

The main focuses of science and technology in Hungary are digitalization, ICT, industry 4.0, electric and autonomous vehicles, smart cities, start-ups, laser research, water research, biotechnology, life sciences and agricultural sciences.

1. Policies and Strategies in Science, Technology and Innovation

The Hungarian Government adopted the National Research and Development and Innovation (2013-2020) Strategy (RDI strategy) – Investment in the Future in July 2013.

The RDI strategy sets the goal of renewing and strengthening the innovation system as a whole by strengthening the knowledge bases, knowledge diffusion and knowledge utilization. A policy mix serves the purpose of advancing the objectives of the strategy: 

  • The direct instruments (more than 2 billion EUR is dedicated to R&D&I in the Economic Development and Innovation Operative Programme 2014-2020)
  • The indirect instruments (tax allowances in particular for the intramural R&D activity) and the demand-side instruments.

The systematic interventions are directed to support the completion of the national innovation system through encouraging inter-sectorial relationships, networking or developing policy management, official acts or services.

The goal of the strategy is expressed by quantified objectives complying with the undertakings of the National Reform Programme submitted to the European Commission in 2011 and elaborated in relation to the Europe 2020 strategy:

Hungary will increase its gross domestic expenditure on R&D to 1.8% by 2020 and to 3% by 2030. As a complementary objective, the business enterprise expenditure on R&D will rise to 1.2% by 2020. Additional quantified objectives based on the main components of the strategy complement the overall vision.

 - During the seven years of the strategy in Hungary, by 2020:
+30 larger research and technological development groups will join the “world’s elite”;
+30 R&D research centres of large global companies will be established/strengthened;
+ 30 R&D intensive macro-regional medium-sized enterprises will produce and provide services;
+ 300 RDI and growth oriented small enterprises (“gazelles”) will find their place in the global market
+ 1000 innovative start-ups will get the funding required for starting their activities;

Many innovative supplier companies with national decision making centres will provide services to the multinational companies that have already been established or will be established in Hungary.

(The "+" marking in the objectives listed above indicates the new, additional capacities to be introduced in the national innovation system compared with the current status.)

2. National STI Programmes and Initiatives

International Cooperation Programmes/Initiatives

Programme Title

Contents

ELI-ALPS

https://www.eli-alps.hu/

Extreme Light Infrastructure (ELI) project is an integral part of the European plan to build the next generation of large research facilities identified and selected by the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures. The main objective of ELI Attosecond Light Pulse Source (ELI-ALPS) is the establishment of a unique attosecond facility which provides ultrashort light pulses between THz (1012 Hz) and X-ray (1018-1019 Hz) frequency range with high repetition rate for developers and end-users.

Stipendium Hungaricum scholarship

http://studyinhungary.hu/study-in-hungary/menu/stipendium-hungaricumscholarship-programme

The Stipendium Hungaricum scholarship was established to provide support for foreign students studying in Hungarian higher education institutions. Based on the Eastern Opening, the program primarily finances the studies of students from Far East countries, Central Asian countries, Arabic countries and from the Western Balkans.

National Smart Specialisation Strategy (S3)

https://nkfih.gov.hu/english2017/strategicdocuments/national-smart

In order to achieve the objectives aimed at enhancing the researchdevelopment and innovation performance of Hungary undertaken in the National Reform Programme related to the Europe 2020 Strategy, the Government has negotiated and adopted the National Smart Specialisation Strategy (S3).

 

3. Joint Activities with Korea

Activities with the RoK in 2019-2020

Programme Title

Contents

KSP (Knowledge Sharing Program) Hungary

Korea’s Knowledge Sharing Program (KSP) is a policy research and consultation program which utilizes Korea’s knowledge and experiences to assist the development of partner countries. Based on a MoU signed by the two governments the KSP with Hungary started in 2013 in the following fields: crisis management; industrialisation and export promotion; knowledge-based economy; economic development strategy; and human resources development.

http://www.ksp.go.kr/english/pageView/info-eng?nationCd=HU

KSP (Knowledge Sharing Program) V4

A new form of co-operation between the Visegrad Group countries (V4 countries: Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia) was launched in 2016. The program aims to make the economies of the participating countries more innovative by exchanging scientific and technological experience.

http://www.ksp.go.kr/english/pageView/info-eng?nationCd=G2

Call for research and development projects in Hungarian – Korean cooperation

Joint call of the National Research, Development and Innovation Office and the National Research Foundation of Korea aiming to support research development projects in Hungarian–Korean cooperation which result in new or further developed, market-oriented products and services.

https://nkfih.gov.hu/english-2017/nrdi-fund/hungarian-koreancooperation-2018/2018-2117-tet-kr 

Joint research Lab Program

Based on a MoU signed by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (MTA) and the National Research Council of Science and Technology (NST). The purpose is to expand scientific and technological research cooperation between MTA and NST in all fields of sciences and encourage direct contacts and cooperation between research teams and individual scientific researchers.

 

4. Science, Technology and Innovation Cooperation Partners

Organisation Name

Detailed information

National Research,Development and Innovation Office (NKFIH)

https://nkfih.gov.hu/about-theoffice

  •    Organisation type: Research funding organisation
  •    Major research product: It funds research projects in all branches.
  •    Current cooperation status with Korea: joint call with NRF
  •    Contact point: nkfihivatal@nkfih.gov.hu

Hungarian Academy of Sciences (MTA)

https://mta.hu/english

  •    Organisation type: Academy of sciences
  •    Major research areas: research in all branches.
  •    Current cooperation status with Korea: MoU with NST
  •    Contact point: info@titkarsag.mta.hu

ELI-ALPS Research Institute

https://www.eli-alps.hu

  •    Organisation type: Laser research facility
  •    Major research: Valence and core electron science, 4D attosecond imagining, THz radiation based research, biological and medical application, nanomaterials
  •    Contact point: info@eli-alps.hu

Institute for Computer Science and Control (SZTAKI)

https://www.sztaki.hu/en

  •    Organisation type: Research Organisation
  •    Major research areas: Computer science, engineering, information technology, intelligent systems, process control, vehicles and transportation systems, production informatics and logistics, energy and sustainable development, security and surveillance, networks, networking systems and services, distributed computing
  •    Contact point: contact@sztaki.mta.hu

Institute of Experimental Medicine (KOKI)

http://koki.hu/english

  •    Organisation type: Research Organisation
  •    Major research areas: Molecular pharmacology, neuropharmacology, neurobiology, neuroendocrinology, molecular cell metabolism, cerebral cortex research, thalamus research, neurophysiology
  •    Contact point: info@koki.mta.hu

Wigner Research Centre for Physics

https://wigner.mta.hu/en

  •    Organisation type: Research Organisation
  •    Major research areas: Particle and nuclear physics, solid state physics, optics
  •    Contact point: titkarsag@wigner.mta.hu

Research Centre for Natural Sciences (MTA TTK)

http://www.ttk.mta.hu/en

  •    Organisation type: Research Organisation
  •    Major research areas: Materials and environmental chemistry, enzymology, cognitive neuroscience and psychology, organic chemistry
  •    Current cooperation status with Korea: Joint research Lab Program
  •    Contact point: ttk@ttk.mta.hu

Centre for Energy Research (MTA EK)

https://www.energia.mta.hu/en

  •    Organisation type: Research Organisation
  •    Major research areas: Atomic energy research, energy security and environmental safety, materials science
  •    Current cooperation status with Korea: Joint research Lab Program
  •    Contact point: info@energia.mta.hu

Universities in Hungary

 


Edited and published by the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Korea: https://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/japan/68361/new-publication-2019-science-technology-and-innovation-europe_en

Hungary