A prospective analysis in the candidate countries report on latvia

Latvia, Riga 2003, p.100

112 FACTORS AND IMPACTS IN THE INFORMATION SOCIETY

A PROSPECTIVE ANALYSIS IN THE CANDIDATE COUNTRIES

4027 enterprises and business companies provided continuing vocational training (CVT) in

1999149, and 48.6 thousand persons participated in these courses. Not surprising, the largest

number of such enterprises fall in group with 10-49 employees, while the largest number of

participants – in groups 50-249 and 1000 and more.

Education and science system was substantially reformed in early nineties, and reforms

continue.

In 1990-1994 the education system was revised and transformed in order to adjust it to the

conditions of independent state. The legal background of reforms in education, the law “On

education” was adopted on 10 June 1991. Main activities included: de-politisation of the

content of education, provision of free choice in education, diversification of education

options, decentralisation of management of education. Private education institutions appeared

for the first time.

In 1995 – 2001 the most attention was paid to the perfection of education system and its

legislative background. Education Concept in Latvia was elaborated and approved by the

Cabinet of Ministers on 4 July 1995. In 1998 the Cabinet of Ministers approved “Strategic

program for development of education for 1998 – 2003”. “Amendments to the Education

Law” that were adopted by Latvian Saeima prescribes that the government is responsible for

the state policy and strategy in education, and that the government must submit to Saeima an

education development conception for the next four years. In 1992, the Ministry of Education,

Culture and Science prepared the concept for the development of technological centres in

Latvia and the first two centres were established.

On 2 November 1998 Saeima adopted a law “On higher education”, on 29 October 1998 it

improved the law “On education” and on 10 June 1999 a law “On general education” and a

law “On professional education”. Adoption of “Education Law” in 1998 earmarked the

beginning of even more fundamental reforms in higher education. The law prescribed the

integration of higher education and S&R&D institutions. Consequently almost all science

institutions have integrated into universities and high schools, and many new research

institutions were established in universities.

Recent strategic plans in development of education are set in the National Concept of

Education for 2002-2005 that was elaborated and discussed in the Cabinet of Ministers in

2002. The concept is based on guidelines set by other strategic documents such as the

National Development Plan, the National Employment Plan, the Life-long Learning

Memorandum of the EU, the UNESCO program “Education for all” and other policy

documents in education elaborated up to 2002.

Up to now primary and secondary education was available in Latvian and other languages,

while tertiary only in Latvian and English (the latter one only in foreign based high schools).

The law envisages that beginning with 1 September 2004 secondary education in non-

Latvian schools must be 60% in Latvian and 40% in minorities’ language.

Analytical conclusion:

The education system is still under reforms. Improvements are necessary in financing of

education, as well as in its content. For instance, free choice in selection of subjects in general

education have squeezed out more difficult natural science subjects, and this eliminates

149 The latest available data from the sample survey of enterprises and business companies, published in

Statistical Yearbook of Latvia, 2002.Central statistical Bureau of Latvia, Riga, 2002, p.97

G. Educational Sector

REPORT ON LATVIA 113

possibilities to study engineering sciences at higher education level. On the other side, the

demand for engineers increases in industry.

Reform of the educational system in its initial phase before 1994 resulted in the

democratisation of education; people were provided gradually the opportunity to acquire an

education according to the interests and abilities of the society and the individual.

Between 1995 and 2001 the government focussed mostly on streamlining the system of

education, essentially supplementing the regulatory base. The Law on Higher Education

Establishments, the new Law on Education, Law on General Education, Law on Vocational

Education, etc. were passed.

The objectives of the third phase of development of the education system are identified in the

Concept of the Development of Education for 2002-2005 adopted in Saeima on October 17,

2002. The goal of the concept is to transform the educational system of Latvia into the system

promoting formation of knowledge-based integrated society and increase of competitiveness

of people and the economy of Latvia. The concept foresees the improvement of the quality of

education matching the needs of economy, to ensure access to lifelong learning to all

residents and also to raise cost efficiency of education.

Data of Population Census 2000 show that compared to 1989 the share of persons with higher

education (aged 15 and older) has gone up till 13.9% or by 2.4 percentage points compared to

1989, the share of persons with secondary education grew up to 51.2% (by 2.3 percentage

points). The number of people with elementary education and lower has dropped from 16.2%

till 8.4%.

The number of students in educational establishments since 1993/1994 was gradually going

up until the year 2001, yet starting with 2002 began to decline because of the demographic

crisis. Now it equals to 506 thousand (511 thousand in 2001). The biggest decline of the

number of pupils (9%) is observed in the elementary (1-4) grades of the general full-time

education schools. The number of students in higher educational establishments continues to

grow. At the beginning of the academic year 2002/2003 the number of students in higher

educational establishments of Latvia continued going up and reached 119 thousand – by 2.6

times exceeding the respective figure of 1990/1991. The number of university students in

Latvia is among the highest between the EU accession countries.

Educational system (because of insufficient financing) still does not provide teaching staff

with adequate remuneration, which hampers the attraction of well-educated teachers to

schools (and especially to rural schools), introduction of new programs, subjects and methods

of teaching. There is a shortage of resources for maintenance of educational infrastructure.

Creation of the general information system of education in Latvia proceeds at a rather slow

pace. It is necessary to use the existing financial resources more efficiently.

Main achievements, as it is concluded in the National Concept of Education for 2002-2005,

are:

• The education system is organised according to the education program principle,

education programs responds to the needs of society and labour market.

• The education quality monitoring system provides international recognition of diplomas

issued in Latvia.

114 FACTORS AND IMPACTS IN THE INFORMATION SOCIETY

A PROSPECTIVE ANALYSIS IN THE CANDIDATE COUNTRIES

• Financing according to expenditure normative that provides differentiation of funding

regarding different education spheres and programs has been started.

• Systematic investment in education infrastructure and optimisation of the network of

educational institutions provides at least some economy in spending.

• Wage reform in education has been started with the purpose to increase wages in

education.

• Implementation of minorities’ education programs has been started, that simultaneously

provides the observation of minorities interests, social integration and also the

improvement of official (Latvian) language skills.

• Normative for professional education in arts, culture and sports have been produced.

• Regional levelling of funding for “interests education” (special training outside official

training in fields of interests, like technical, art, music, dance classes etc.) that eliminates

differences in accessibility of such education.

• Creation of study credit system, that improves the accessibility of high education for

economically less provided people and increase students’ interest in the quality of

education.

• Participation of international comparative research in education provides a better insight

into local problems and solutions, as well as helps to learn trends, quality requirements

and problems in education at the world scale.

• A unified system of reporting of credit-points in academic study programs is

implemented, which is necessary for international recognition of Latvia’s higher education

study programs.

• Accreditation of high schools and study programs in high schools that corresponds to the

international criteria is implemented.

• The state requirements (study standards) in academic education and high professional

education are adopted and consequently unified requirements to study programs in all

high schools are implemented,

• A system of academic and professional degrees that is comparable with the European

education space is established, that facilitates mobility of Latvian students in European

context and foreigners’ studies in Latvia.

In accordance with the Education Development Concept, within the next four years the

government plans to achieve three goals:

• to improve quality of education at all levels and forms of education,

• to improve accessibility of education,

• to increase effectiveness of education costs at all levels and forms of education.

In the general education the main problems are:

• theoretical knowledge prevail, graduates fail to apply knowledge in practice,

• education does not provide skills in independent and creative thinking, decision-making,

• professional training of teachers is not satisfactory, teachers are not able to provide

advanced knowledge,

• there are methodical problems in teaching: application of specific methods, such as games

is not sufficiently professional and therefore does not provide expected result,

• the interrelation between science, education and economy is weak, employers do not

participate at early stage of education,

• professional orientation in general education is not sufficient,

G. Educational Sector

REPORT ON LATVIA 115

• free choice of subjects in early age or in beginning of secondary stage of education leads

to the situation that graduates are not prepared to study exact sciences.

Analytical conclusion

The main problem in academic and professional education is that the number of graduates is

important, but specialists are not flexible at the labour market, and their profession and/or

skills are not corresponding to the demand of the economy. Business, on the contrary, reports

lack of skilled specialists, and growing lack of engineers and other technical specialists. There

are attempts to improve inter-relation among education, R&D and business by creating

innovation institutions.

G.3. Domestic and international mobility of scientific personnel

Information in this chapter is borrowed from a research “Baltic R&D systems in transition”

(Dagyte, Kristapsons, Martinson, 2000).150

As it is concluded in the mentioned research, “a considerable part of researchers in the Baltic

States changed their field of activities or emigrated at the beginning of nineties”. The process

is characterised in Table G2.

Country Left the

country

Another

institution

in the

home

NGO Private

inst. in

home

Public

and

Unemployed Other Unknown

Estonia 14.5 18.9 12.9 27.0 19.6 0.9 6.0 21.1

Latvia 2.1 8.4 0.6 0.7 25.5 5.3 57.4 22.4

Lithuania 13.4 16.3 2.7 3.9 16.3 3.3 22.9 21.1

Source: Kristapsons J., Martinson H., Dagyte I. Baltic R&D systems in transition. Experiences and future

prospects. Riga, 2002, p.86

Researchers note that little information is available through aggregate statistics on the external

and internal brain drain. In 1996, researchers of the Institute of Economics, Latvian Academy

of Sciences (Parsla Eglite, Inna Zarina) carried out a survey on the brain drain. The president

of Latvian Academy of Sciences, Janis Stradins has said in his papers, that in 1992, about

500-700 post doctoral scholars went abroad, but “if we include in those who left for Russia

and Israel, then total number exceeds 3000-5000” (Stradins, 1999).

In Latvia the internal brain drain (to commercial and governmental structures) has dominated

over the external brain drain (Eglite, 1996). Emigration was mostly to countries of the

Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The number of long-term business visits in

Western countries grew significantly in the beginning of 1990’s. The dominating destinations

for Latvian researchers were U.S.A. (29%), Sweden (20%), and Germany (19%).

150 Kristapsons J., Martinson H., Dagyte I. Baltic R&D systems in transition. Expperiences and future prospects.

Riga, 2002, p.85-86

116 FACTORS AND IMPACTS IN THE INFORMATION SOCIETY

A PROSPECTIVE ANALYSIS IN THE CANDIDATE COUNTRIES

Unfortunately, more information is not available, migration of the research personal and

technical personal after these investigations (period after 1996) has not been observed. It is

known from discussions at the Academy of Science, that many of emigrants that left country

in the beginning of nineties would like to return, but financial conditions of Latvian science

do not allow them to continue their work at home. Even more, many of graduates cannot find

appropriate scientific occupation in Latvia after postgraduate studies abroad and so they rather

stay abroad.

G.4. Tertiary sector and research performance in IST related

subjects

IST related subjects are treated specially in one research institution – Institute of Electronics

and Computer Technique of the Latvian Academy of Sciences. The institute has achieved

some results in information proceeding.

Other research institutes participate in the development of IS in an indirect way – by

providing R&D basis. All institutes explore the same conditions; no preferences are given to

any particular institute. The basic legislation includes the law “On Scientific Activities” and

several Regulations of the Cabinet of Ministers: On state ordered research projects, Statutes of

State Commission of scientific qualification, On state research programmes, On the

arrangements and criteria for awarding of scientific degrees, On the Latvian Council of

Science, On state scientists emeritus.

The Saeima adopted the law “On Scientific Activity” on 10 November 1992, it was amended

in 1996 and 1998. The law changed status of research institutes from units subordinated to the

Academy of Science to independent research units. Latvian Saeima adopted the “National

Concept of Higher Education and Research Development” in spring 1998. This was a

summary of strategic statements based on the forecast of national development and financial

estimates with a view to ensure up to 2010 a constantly growing role of research in the society

and national economy (National Concept). The Concept recommended increasing funding of

research from the state budget to at least 0.8% of the GDP by 2001, but this was not

implemented. The Concept also sets the priorities of research development. These are

information technology, material sciences, forestry and timber technology, organic synthesis,

biotechnology, biomedicine and pharmacy, and Lettonics (national humanities sciences). The

Ministry of Education and Science has also identified the priority research directions in cooperation

with the European Commission: information technology and telematics, life

sciences and biotechnology (biomedicine, drug design and biotechnology), new materials and

technologies, ecology and environment protection.

The Concept envisaged the development of state research centres in perspective research

areas that may be established on the basis of current research institutes (single or by merging

several institutes). The maintenance of infrastructure in such centers had to be insured by the

state. With this perspective 11 academic institutes founded the first state research center – the

Center of Material Science. Expected financial system however was never implemented, as

the state was neither able nor willing to provide for stable financing of research infrastructure

units.

In order to improve the quality of higher education a new position – namely a State professor

position. The “Scientist’s Code of Ethics” was adopted by the LAS Senate on November 4,

1997 and by LCS on November 11, 1997.

G. Educational Sector

REPORT ON LATVIA 117

Graph G5:

Institutions of Latvia engaged in reserch and development

(at end of the year)

266

273

105

89

92

18 49 23

2

2

1

2

17

30

40

47

43

42

40

37

36

26

23

23

174

2

0 100 200 300

2000

1998

1996

1994

Total Higher education sector Government sector

Business enterprises sector Private sector

Several other conceptual documents were discussed, but not adopted. In the meantime

situation in science deteriorates very fast. Total number of research units in Latvia increases.

43% of the total number are academic research units, 33% are established within business

sector. In 2003, the number of institutions engaged in research and development increased to

315, of which 53 were in higher education sector, 34 in government sector, 225 (by 51 more)

in business enterprise sector and 3 private. Total number of R&D personal (full-time

equivalent employment) was 3451 persons (less than in 2001), of which 2226 (less than in

2001) were in higher education sector, 549 (less than in 2001) – in government sector, 675

(less than in 2001) in business enterprise sector and 1 in private sector. This is official

statistics, but figures seem unrealistic.

At the same time, number of researchers declines year by year (Table G3).

1990 1993 2000 2001 2002

Total 18970 3999 3814 3497 3451

higher education sector 1528 994 2156 2242 2226

government sector 662 571 549

business enterprise sector 995 683 675

private non-profit sector 1 1 1

self-dependent R&D

institutions

9649 2451

design institutions 3898 225

Estimation based on full-time–equivalent employment

Source: Statistical Yearbook of Latvia 2003. central Statistical Bureau of Latvia, Riga, 2003, p.96

118 FACTORS AND IMPACTS IN THE INFORMATION SOCIETY

A PROSPECTIVE ANALYSIS IN THE CANDIDATE COUNTRIES

Of 44 research institutes in Latvia, 9 are established by the state or are private. 8 institutes are

research institutes of the University of Latvia (LU), 1 belongs to Latvian Agriculture

University (LAU) and 26 to Riga Technical University (RTU).

Characteristic feature of Latvian science is the co-existence of basic and applied research in

the research institutes. This phenomenon is pre-determinate due to financial conditions –

applied research has consumer financing while basic research does not have. Research

institutes try to attract applied research and to share financing with the basic research (on

behalf of researchers salaries), and also they try to develop services for charge (testing and

control laboratories) to get money for academic research.

The knowledge transfer from the research institutes to enterprises is very limited. The process

is not organised and facilitating structures do not exist. Still several models can be identified,

how enterprises and institutes find each other:

1) on the basis of former contacts and information about specialisation and product of

research institutes,

2) on the basis of former own experience or information about other’s experience,

3) from information in general mass media,

4) with help of phone book and seeking for contacts on the basis of name and

eventual specialisation of institutes or enterprises.

Participation in the teaching process is also used for introduction and dissemination of

research results and creation of innovative education. On the other hand, institutes provide

enterprises with control and certification facilities. Institutes operating in exact sciences are

more active in these fields. For instance, the Institute of Wood Chemicals hosts a group of

professors – specialists in innovation and marketing, provides lecturers for Universities, hosts

laboratory that provides certification and quality control of exported timber, provides study

practice for university students.

Regional innovation structures do not exist in Latvia, as there is no operating innovation

system at the national level. The first attempt to establish a regional innovation system was in

seaport Ventspils, where local authority tried to create innovation promotion system

consisting of innovation fund, high school with research units, industrial park and innovative

business entities. The attempt was not successful.

Relationships between Latvia and trans-national and EU are formed in several ways:

• through international co-operation in research programs – Latvia participates in EU 5th

and 6th Framework Programme and some other research programs,

• through international co-operation at the level of higher education,

• through the market.

The first two knowledge distributing organisations – Riga Technological Centre and Salaspils

Technological Park were founded in 1992, on the basis of the concept for the development of

technological centres in Latvia. The first technological park, established in Salaspils

(academic town in 23 km distance from Riga) on the basis of academic institutes was not a

successful story (mainly because of poor management). An example of successful

development is Latvian Technological Center (LTC) in Riga. Founders of the LTC are

Municipality of Riga, Latvian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Physical Energetics,

Association of Latvian Scientific and Technical Societies. LTC operates according to the

principles of business incubators, and at present it supports more than 30 tenant firms or new

small enterprises. The main fields of their activities are: electrical engineering and

telecommunications, biotechnology, equipment for medicine and biology, remedies for

G. Educational Sector

REPORT ON LATVIA 119

veterinary etc., multimedia systems, computer networks, software, environmental protection,

technology for industrial waste utilisation, new material technology, laser technology etc.

LTC manages 2000 square meter business space and provide for appropriate infrastructure.

From April 1995 the Bureau for Information and Consulting (BIC) provide services on

business planning, marketing, international co-operation, quality assurance, regional market

research etc. On the basis of LTC another innovation institution - FEMIRC-Latvia was

established with financial support of the EC DG XIII (INCO-COPERNICUS program).

FEMIRC-Latvia was the centre for European integration of research, technologies and

development. The mission of the Centre was to promote economic development in Latvia by

integration EU and Latvia’s research and industrial potential. The Centre worked in close cooperation

with the Latvian government. In 2000, FEMIRC project was closed, but on its basis

a new project – IRC LATVIJA began. IRC LATVIA is an innovation-facilitating centre.

Since 1 August 1999 Latvia is a full right member of the EU 5th (now 6th) Framework

Program, and a special contact office carries out management of this program in Latvia.

LTP - Latvian Technological Park was established with incentive of Riga Technical

University. Business innovation centre (BIC) is a structural unit of LTP. BIC delivers

consulting and information services to business and scientists from universities.

The role of the academia in development of ICT and innovation is rather important. Latvian

Academy of Sciences still is the main co-ordinator of science activities in Latvia. Together

with the Science Council (what is about the same as it consists of academicians) it is also a

main initiator and lobbying institution for innovation and science related activities, including

creation of IS.

Academia, as well as Universities take an active part in dissemination of innovation ideas via:

• cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Science (expertises, advisory),

• co-operation with universities and high schools,

• co-operation with business enterprises (awards for outstanding researchers initiated by

Academia and financed by business enterprises),

• Academic meetings in business enterprises and local governments.

It is questionable if the existence of universities or other type of higher education and research

organisations attract foreign companies to establish their centres around them. We did not find

such examples, however the attempt to improve academic environment is there. Academia, as

well as national universities and high schools are not subjects for FDI, but there are some high

schools that are established or supported by foreign governments – Stockholm School of

Economics and the School of Law (Sweden), Business College (Canada), and 2-3 more.

Foreign governments or institutions establish education institutions and support their

operation for some years, and after that forward them under the responsibility of Latvian

education system.