N°3

Combining Economy, Science and Innovation for a better society

Periodical of the Department of Economy, Science and Innovation | January 2008

Towards
improvement

Flemish government

EWI 3 ENG.indd 1 03-01-2008 13:52:01

 Content
23 Welcome Are we on the right track?
44 Results Civil servants in the private sector: a contradiction in terms?
66 What’s what The age of Schumpeter
88 Let us explain Science policy in Belgium: who does what?
11
11 Foreword Government efficiency: the be-all and end-all?
12
12 Explained Time for slimmer government in Belgium?
18
18 From Europe Belgian STI policy viewed from abroad
20
20 Central theme Efficiency and effectiveness in the public sector:
measure, analyse, improve
23 Central theme e-FRISiency: an asset for Flanders
26
26 Central theme RIA rules
28
29 Interview with It’s all about transparency and costs
32
32 From Flanders Challenging the government… Ten paths to a more
efficient and effective Flemish government
35
35 A number in close-up The ß-index: a layman’s guide
36
36 In the spotlight Attack on a botanic garden
38
38 Policy in practice Earning a doctorate in Flanders
41 Policy Research Centres The Policy Research Centre for R&D Indicators
44 Focus on Can we settle for a bit less?
46
47 Innovation in action Strengthening our innovative environment
49
50 Column Light in the darkness

COLOPHON
EWI-REVIEW: Periodical on Economy, Science & Innovation – Volume 1, No. 3: EWI Review
is a publication of the Flemish government’s Department of Economy, Science
and Innovation (www.ewi-vlaanderen.be/review)
ADDRESS OF THE EDITORIAL OFFICE: Office for Policy Research and Foresight studies, Department of Economy,
Science and Innovation, Koning Albert II-laan 35, box 10, B-1030 Brussels,
Belgium. Tel.: +32 (0)2 553 59 80 - Fax: +32 (0)2 553 60 07 -
www.ewi-vlaanderen.be
PUBLISHED BY: Veerle Lories
EDITORS: Peter Spyns (General Editor), Emmelie Tindemans (Editor-in-Chief), Els Jacobs,
Marjolein De Wit
EDITORIAL BOARD: Pierre Verdoodt (Chair of the Editorial Board), Peter Bakema, Pascale Dengis,
Bart Laethem, Tom Tournicourt, Els Vermander
CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS EDITION: Peter Bakema, Ann Bourdeaud’hui, Pascale Dengis, Bart Dumolyn,
Stijn Eeckhaut, Niko Geerts, Karen Haegemans, Bart Laethem, Veerle Lories,
Kris Maison, Peter Spyns, Tom Vandenbogaerde, Geert Van Grootel,
Pierre Verdoodt, Frank Vereecken, Peter Viaene
GUEST AUTHORS: Marc Callens, Koenraad Debackere, Kristof De Witte, Wim Moesen,
Eric Stroobants, Koen Peeters
LAYOUT AND PRINTING: Delfine Vande Moortele, www.newgoff.be
LIABILITY: EWI Review is published in both Dutch and English. Articles may only be
reproduced with acknowledgement of the source and subject to the approval
of the EWI Department. EWI, the editorial team and other contributors to this
publication accept no liability for any consequences that might arise from the
use of information included in it.

EWI 3 ENG.indd 2 03-01-2008 13:52:30

 > Welcome

Are we on the right track?

The last edition of EWI Review looked at foresight studies and prospective policy. Little did we know that there
would be some major changes in store for EWI itself, with a new (acting) secretary-general and minister now
in place.

In the wake of these events, the issue of the division of tasks between the administration and ministerial offices
has come to the fore. Even a recent OECD study on administration identifies this as a Belgian Achilles’ heel. The
administrative reform - known in Flanders as Beter Bestuurlijk Beleid (Better Administrative Policy) - should
in theory alleviate some of the problem and recent decisions by the Flemish government in response to the
Flemish ombudsman’s report will help to consolidate the trend.

For the central theme of the third EWI Review, we have chosen another topic dealt with by the same OECD
study, namely government efficiency. It too crops up regularly in the media and elicits strong political and public
opinion. Keen to examine the issue from various angles and avoid a one-sided sound-bite approach, we will
examine, amongst other things, the proposals put forward by the Flemish administration itself on this subject
(see p. 32).

EWI too is moving in the right direction. With the new FRIS change programme (see p. 23), we are seeking
to promote efficient decision-making on R&D. We also examine what factors influence the efficiency of the
doctoral process (see p. 38) and look at efficiency monitoring for legislation (see p. 26). This issue also boasts
the usual features, including an explanation of the ß-index (see p. 35) and the division of responsibilities in
the field of science, technology and innovation in Belgium (see p. 8). Finally, we report on the sad story of the
Botanic Garden (see p. 36) - an example of inefficient cooperation between different governments in a federal
state - in the hope that the situation there will finally be resolved.

In short, what we have for you is a varied issue with a topical central theme, which
will hopefully make for exciting reading, and which comes with our very best
wishes for the New Year. Please feel free to send us your reactions at:
www.ewi-vlaanderen.be/reageer.

Peter Spyns
General Editor

EWI 3 ENG.indd 3 03-01-2008 13:52:33

 > Results

Civil servants in
the private sector:
a contradiction in
terms?
DEFINING THE CUTTING EDGE IN REGENERATIVE MEDICINE

EWI 3 ENG.indd 4 03-01-2008 13:52:38

 You’ve been a civil servant for over
15 years, dealing with the theory of
innovation on a daily basis, but have
never spent more than 120 minutes
in a business environment. What do
you do when an exchange programme
comes along? You seize the chance
with both hands, of course! Launched
by the EWI Department in spring 2007,
the programme aims to bring the civil
service and business world closer toge-
ther by allowing staff from each sector
to spend a period of time in the other’s
working environment.
For me, a university spin-off company
was the natural choice. As head of the
Academic Policy Team, I help to deve-
lop the interface policy1 that encoura-
ges universities and university colleges
to set up high-tech spin-offs. With my
background in biomedical sciences, I
was drawn to TiGenix nv. Founded in
2000 as a spin-off of Ghent University
and K.U.Leuven, TiGenix will soon be
marketing its first product, Chondro-
Celect - a permanent repair product for
1 The aim of the interface policy is to ensure (rapid) throughflow to companies of knowledge developed at universities and university colleges. Spin-offs are located
at the interface between research and business. They are a way of translating research findings into practical innovations (= research transfer).
EWI 3 ENG.indd 5
cartilage defects of the knee, offering
a beacon of hope for sportsmen and
women with knee injuries.
TiGenix seemed happy to take part in
the exchange programme and to have
me work for them two days a week
over a four-month period. I was assig-
ned to the Business Development Unit
and from day one there were a number
of projects on the table with which I
was involved. My main task was to col-
lect and process strategic information,
with business plan analyses, market
forecasts, patent applications, strategic
alliances and new technologies the daily
fare. I’ve never spent so much time on
internet research in my life!
What struck me most while I was there
was how companies around the world
contact and interact with one another
on the lookout for deals and alliances.
Activities shift constantly, some starting,
others ending, in the pursuit of revenue
and growth. In this respect, a sector
such as biopharmaceuticals is like a
living organism with its own individual
dynamic. Hence the term ‘business eco-
systems’, which is sometimes used.
By contrast, the timescales involved are
long. The whole process of bringing
new biotherapeutics to market is heavi-
ly regulated. Supervisory bodies such as
the US Food and Drug Administration
and the European Medicines Agency
set the pace. A promising technology
and successful clinical studies are only
the start: cost-effective marketing
involves yet more hard work.
In conclusion, I would say that expe-
riencing policy from the other end,
as it were, is an absolute must for all
policy-makers.
Veerle Lories
Policy Support and
Academic Policy Team
03-01-2008 13:52:40
 > What’s what

The age
of Schumpeter

EWI 3 ENG.indd 6 03-01-2008 13:52:43

 Creative minds of all
countries, unite!
Creative destruction, the idea developed
by economist Joseph Schumpeter in the
first half of the last century, has had a
profound impact on the development
of the world economy over recent deca-
des. And in the future it could shape the
behaviour of homo economicus more
than ever before, especially regarding of
sustainable development.
Creative destruction
Innovation underpins the development
of our capitalist society. By a process
of constant renewal, we create the
economic growth underlying society’s
prosperity.
But as Schumpeter observed in the early
20th century: with innovation comes a
kind of destruction. Antiquated things
make way for newer, better ones. Pro-
gress and prosperity have their price.
How should we approach tomorrow’s
challenges, assuming that our society
remains capitalist? What are the pros
and cons of a philosophy that pushes
our society forward regardless of the
cost? What does it bring us? And what
price are we prepared to pay for crea-
tive destruction in the future?
Theorists and broad-minded economists
may be able to square sustainable deve-
lopment with the logic behind creative
destruction. The concept offers a host
of possibilities for further economic
development in a globalised society. But
there are undoubtedly limitations too.
How can creative destruction be trans-
lated into sustainable development?
What is the outlook for the future?
These things are worth thinking about.
And not just in theory, but - following
Schumpeter’s lead - in practical terms
too.
Sustainable economy
“Successful investing is anticipating
the anticipation of others,” wrote
Keynes, another leading economist of
EWI 3 ENG.indd 7
the last century. Anticipating based on knowledge and innovation can make
the observation of trends and develop- our economy sustainable and efficient:
ments. Taking a step back, gathering these are guarantees for a better future.
knowledge, and then getting down to
business; in short: developing a sustai- “Keep the fire alive, don’t stare at the
nable economy. ashes,” Jean Jaurès said. As a socialist,
he may have been the political antithe-
An example. In recent years, failure to sis of Schumpeter, but he was also a
react promptly to the demand for less man of vision.
polluting products and production pro-
cesses has caused major problems for
big companies. Through the actions of
legislators and consumers, the demand
for ecologically sound products, in the
automotive industry for instance, has
increased sharply. Consequently, com-
panies that use research and innovation
to market new, environmentally friendly
cars are squeezing their non-environ-
mentally conscious competitors, who
will disappear from the market unless
they in turn implement a research and
innovation policy that can stand up to
the competition.
This benefits both consumers and the
environment. Moreover, events in the
automotive industry are being paralleled
in an increasing number of sectors. The Frank Vereecken
whole Western economy is undergoing Office for Policy Research and
a revolution that could have far-rea- Foresight studies
ching, and likely very positive, conse-
quences for our society - assuming that
the rest of the world follows suit.
Creative destruction is the key. Innova-
tion. Technological developments allow
us to address the sustainable develop-
ment challenges facing our society with
increasing efficiency, and Schumpeter’s
philosophy has helped us to realise this
fact in recent years.
Sustainable development is not just a
matter for policy-makers and does not
have to be confined to a Keynesian
top-down approach. Thanks to creative
destruction, the notion of sustainable
economy is gaining a place in our soci-
ety. Growing environmental awareness
in the business community and the rea-
lisation that research and development,
03-01-2008 13:52:47
 > Let us explain

Science policy in Belgium:

who does what?
Belgian Science and Technological Innovation (STI) po-
licy is unparalleled in the European Union, with different
governments responsible for different parts of this broad
policy area. Which policy level should universities apply to
for support for a scientific research project? And where can
companies find help with developing an innovative idea? A
snapshot of a complex landscape...

BELGIUM
Figure 1: federal entities in Belgium (taken from2)
The Federal State

COMMUNITIES
The Flemish Community The French Community The German-speaking Community

REGIONS
The Flemish Region The Brussels-capital Region The Wallon Region

Source: Federal portal www.belgium.fgov.be

8

EWI 3 ENG.indd 8 03-01-2008 13:52:56

 Responsibilities for scientific research
in Belgium have - as a result of succes-
sive state reforms - been systematically
transferred to the federated entities.3
Nowadays, most responsibility for STI
lies with the communities and regions.
This includes scientific research - both
basic and applied - and technological
innovation.
Communities and regions
The communities are responsible for sci-
entific research in the field of education
(including universities and institutes of
higher education), science policy, culture,
media, sport, youth, vocational training
and matters relating to the individual
such as health policy (prevention, care,
health education) or assistance to per-
sons (e.g. family policy, youth support,
care for the elderly, …). This covers both
research on these subjects and research
conducted by organisations in the sector
concerned.
The regions are responsible for research
relating to economic policy (economic
support, industrial policy, innovation),
energy policy (excepting the nuclear fuel
cycle), public works, communication
networks, environment and water policy,
nature conservation, housing, transport,
spatial planning, natural resources, town
and country planning, development aid,
agriculture, foreign trade and investment
and some elements of employment
policy.
Communities and regions are also res-
Figure 2: Distribution of R&D funding in Belgium (2006)
Federal government
French Community + Walloon Region
Flemish government
Brussels-Capital Region
EWI 3 ENG.indd 9
ponsible for their own institutions in the
STI domain, namely scientific institutions
and public research organisations.
Educational institutions are thus mainly
funded via the communities, while
support for company research and
development is a regional responsibility.
That means that the various universi-
ties and institutes of higher education
in the bilingual Brussels-Capital Region
receive support from either the Flemish
or the French Community. By contrast,
technology transfer and research valo-
risation from these institutions to local
companies is regulated and supported by
another authority: the Brussels-Capital
Region.
What about the federal government?
As an exception to the general rule, the
federal government remains responsible
for a number of specific scientific fields
and institutions, such as the National
Botanic Garden4. In addition, it can or-
ganise scientific programmes to finance
community or regional institutions. The
collective research centres are also partly
supported by the federal government.
The federal level has also retained res-
ponsibility for virtually all the framework
conditions applying to STI policy in the
broad sense. This includes matters rela-
ting to standardisation; intellectual pro-
perty rights; accreditation; social security
contributions of researchers operating
in Belgium; certification; labour regulati-
ons for researchers who move between
1%
22%
50%
companies, (public) research institutions
and authorities.
Finally, the federal government can
also offer support to university research
teams in conducting scientific projects,
usually as part of specific programmes.
Policy implications
As a result of all this, Belgium’s vari-
ous governments each develop and
implement their own STI policy. They
do so within their own areas of respon-
sibility, and using their own institutions
and legal rules, independently of the
other institutional players in the field.
For instance, the federal government
and each community government has its
own minister or state secretary responsi-
ble for scientific research. Similarly, each
regional government has a minister or
state secretary responsible for techno-
logical innovation5. Each minister and
government sets its own priorities for its
own STI policy, the budget for which is
submitted to the relevant parliament for
approval. Each government has its own
scientific research advisory body, which
assists the parliament and/or govern-
ment with policy preparation. Each
government also has its own scientific
institutions and/or research organisati-
ons, which may or may not operate in
similar fields.
Cooperation examined critically
The Interministerial Commission for
Science Policy (IMCWB) was set up
27%
03-01-2008 13:52:57
 to promote cooperation between the
various entities in the field of scientific
research. It brings together the federal
government, the communities and the
regions.
At civil service level, the International
Cooperation Commission (CIS) and the
Federal Cooperation Commission (CFS)
were set up in the early 1990s to pro-
vide forums for issues requiring a joint
position, reporting or implementation
at international or national policy level.
Each commission consists of a number
of thematic sub-commissions. One such
is the CIS/COST, which coordinates
Belgian participation in the international
cooperation programme COST6. Note,
however, that this is not an overarching
participation by Belgium as a whole in a
specific COST activity, but rather a form
of participation whereby each govern-
ment decides separately to take part in a
specific COST activity, depending on the
case and the level of potential interest.
In short, the level of coordination,
cooperation and joint priority-setting
among the various institutional entities
is extremely limited, and virtually no at-
tempt is made at policy “orchestration”.
Priorities and instruments are determined
and implemented by a government wit-
hin its field of competencies. The basic
premises and philosophies may vary, and
where there is cooperation it arises from
the need for a common Belgian position
or common Belgian reporting. Conse-
quently it is more of a formal contrivance
than an expression of genuine concerns,
initiatives or pressing issues. That said,
there are similarities between a number
of instruments, measures, programmes
and organisations associated with dif-
ferent governments. Conversely, there
are also measures implemented by one
government which its counterparts have
not (or not yet) developed or for which
there is little interest or need.
Let the figures do the talking
In 2006, the R&D budget for all of
Belgium’s governments combined was
€1,929.9 million. In absolute terms,
“Higher Education” took the biggest
share of this €1.9 billion, with a budget
of almost €460 million, followed by “Ac-
tion programmes and organic systems
for R&D”, which accounted for €321.4
million. This latter figure illustrates the
10
EWI 3 ENG.indd 10
strong variations in policy focus: while French Community: 12.73%, Walloon
Flanders earmarked €62.1 million, the Region: 9.34%, Brussels-Capital Region:
French Community and Walloon Re- 1.12%; German-speaking Community:
gion together set aside €187.3 million. 0%.
Total R&D funding for Belgium in 2006
was divided up between the different
governments as follows (see Figure 2): Niko Geerts
Flemish Community/Flemish Region: Office for Policy Research and
50.25%; federal government: 26.56%; Foresight studies
STI responsibilities in a nutshell
The communities are responsible for:
- scientific research;
- the various funding channels for their universities and institutes of
higher education;
- the international scientific cooperation of their institutions;
- cataloguing and reporting scientific potential;
- raising awareness of and promoting science among the general public;
- research into the ethical issues associated with specific aspects of
science;
- scientific institutions and knowledge organisations at community level;
- international scientific activities.
The regions are responsible for:
- transfer of scientific and technical research;
- basic technological, industrial and economic oriented research;
- encouragement, dissemination, transfer and application of technology
and innovation in the broad sense (including development of
prototypes, new products and production processes);
- the (strategic) research institutions located on their territory, including
research and public service activities.
The federal government is responsible for:
- the scientific research needed to carry out its own responsibilities,
including scientific research conducted in accordance with international
and supranational agreements. This is achieved through targeted
programmes (on space, the information society, sustainable
development, etc.);
- scientific research in a few specifically defined fields, such as research
into nuclear energy and space travel in the context of international
programmes;
- activities in areas falling within the remit of the communities or regions
and which are related to either an international agreement or activities/
programmes that exceed the scope of a single community or region;
- activities requiring homogeneous implementation at national level or
of international importance for the country (in collaboration with the
communities and regions);
- maintaining an up-to-date inventory of national scientific potential;
- popularisation of the areas of science falling within the federal govern-
ment’s remit;
- federal scientific institutions.
2 M. Cincera et al., Belgian Report on Science, Technology and Innovation, Part I, 2001, DWTC,
p. 142
3 More particularly, the communities and regions first acquired a degree of responsibility for
(applied) scientific research under Article 6a of the special law on institutional reform (BWHI)
of 8 August 1980. In 1988, the division of powers was altered (partly due to the transfer of
responsibility for education to the communities). In 1993, this was revised once again under the
Saint Michael agreements.
4 See also p. 36 of this issue
5 For some time now, the same minister has been responsible at both regional and community
level.
6 European Co-operation in the field of Scientific and Technical Research. This is the longest run-
ning joint European R&D programme (launched in 1971).
03-01-2008 13:52:58

Government
efficiency:
the be-all
and end-all?
Government efficiency is like the Loch
Ness monster: it pops up regularly, ge-
nerates a lot of discussion, there are pro-
posals to study it and even attempts to
‘capture’ it. A popular dictionary defines
efficiency as follows: “achieving the gre-
atest possible effect or result by using or
exploiting a given force, medium or con-
dition, especially the rational application
of economic principles in business”. This
immediately raises the question: what ef-
fect does a government aim to achieve?
After all, governments do not have the
same objectives as companies… We
therefore need a different yardstick for
measuring government efficiency.
One effect often cited as a must for any
government is public satisfaction. Unlike
a company, which can focus on target
groups and submarkets, a government
is supposed to serve all of its citizens.
The objectives of a government are
determined by politicians. If politicians
decide and pass laws to the effect that
an administration must be a mirror of
society and must therefore provide em-
ployment for its less privileged members
(known as ‘social employment’), this
becomes an effect to be achieved. This is
easy enough to measure, and some-
thing at which a civil service can be very
efficient. Obviously, such a goal must
not undermine its ability to meet other
objectives. Policy-makers therefore need
to think carefully about which tasks and
objectives they choose to assign to the
public services. Is it the task of a public
EWI 3 ENG.indd 11
> Central theme: Foreword
body such as the post office to streng- tiatives being taken by the College van
then the social fabric? Should a postman Ambtenaren-Generaal (Board of Senior
be given time to chat with lonesome Civil Officials) in this area (p. 32).
elderly? What about specific community
cohesion schemes such as ‘barbecue
vouchers? Political choices determine
where the money (of which there is
usually a dearth) goes.
How ‘heavy’ a government is depends Veerle Lories
not just on the number of civil servants Acting Secretary-General of
but also on the total amount of charges the EWI Department
and contributions imposed by the
government (known as ‘government
ratio’). The important question is what
the government does with this revenue.
It has been said that “one euro acquired
in tax reduces the private economy
by more than one euro”7, so effective
management and careful use of monies
is key.
Ministerial offices (also called ‘cabinets’)
are another relevant factor, as was very
clearly highlighted in a recent OECD
study8. The principal question is how
large a ministerial cabinet should be,
and how it relates to the administration.
A parliamentary discussion and further
consultation based on mutual respect for
each other’s roles are needed here.
In this issue, we examine government 7 J. Albrecht, Blijft de Andere Overheid volslank in Nederland Gids-
land?, Itinera Institute Nota 2007/9, p. 1 -6.
efficiency from various angles: ways of
8 OECD Reviews of Human Resource Management in Government:
measuring it (p. 20), Belgium’s govern- Belgium: Brussels-Capital Region, Federal Government, Flemish
ment ratio (p. 12), an interview with Elsa Government, French Community and Walloon Region, OECD, Paris,
Pilichowski about the much-discussed 13/07/2007, 134 p.
OECD study (p. 28), and finally the ini-
11
03-01-2008 13:52:58
 > Central theme: Explained

Time for a slimmer

9
government in Belgium?
The early 21st is a time of major global transformations. Globalisation and climate change
are familiar topics; less discussed is the changing size of government. Figure 3 illustrates the
trend towards public sector expansion in the OECD countries, the eurozone and Belgium from
1988. Around 2000 the collective tax burden stagnated and has since even fallen slightly.
Belgium seems to deviate from this average pattern.

12

EWI 3 ENG.indd 12 03-01-2008 13:53:04

 Collective tax in the broad
55
OECD
eurozon
Belgium
50
Tax burden as % of GDP

45

40

35

30
88

89

90

91

92

93

94

95

96

97

98

99

00

01

02

03

04

05

06

07
19

19

19

19

19

19

19

19

19

19

19

19

20

20

20

20

20

20

20

20
Figure 3: Collective tax burden (OECD)

Is there such a thing as an optimal In the absence of a government, achieve higher economic growth, the
government size? Is the current level of lawlessness, insecurity and instability government must diet.
expenditure above or below the norm? prevail. Even a small, weak government
These are the questions we address can raise prosperity significantly by Family size
below. protecting property rights and intro-
ducing public order. Such basic law Optimal government size, i.e. that
How do we measure government size? and order allows the economy to grow which maximises economic growth, is
much faster. Prosperous societies favour not the same for each country. Indeed,
Government ratio is measured using increased government involvement. the optimal tax burden is affected by
a variety of statistics. One standard Citizens demand an effective healthcare a range of factors. Chief among these
concept is the collective tax burden, i.e. system, an advanced education system is public preference. In Scandinavian
total tax receipts for all governments, and a generous pension system. A countries, for example, the average
plus social security contributions. This healthy and well educated population inhabitant favours big government.
means the direct and indirect tax col- allows the economy to grow even Other nations, such as the Mediter-
lected by the federal, regional and faster. Unfortunately, economic theory ranean countries, seem satisfied with a
local governments plus employer and predicts that the collective tax burden less extensive network of government
employee contributions. These contri- imposed by the government will be- services.
butions are expressed as a percentage come too heavy, so that money which
of gross domestic product (GDP). A could be more effectively used in the In this connection, we can observe a
broad definition of the collective tax public sector is siphoned off into the striking correlation between family size
burden also factors in the government’s public coffers. From that point on, high and public preference regarding go-
non-fiscal receipts. Typical examples taxes hold back the growth of GDP. To vernment size. Within a society, citizens
of these are profits and dividends from
public companies, charges (user fees)
for public utilities, access fees, fines,
etc.; these usually account for 3-5% of
GDP.

Assuming that government budgets

are in overall balance, the collective Growth rated
tax burden in the broad sense roughly bbp
reflects the collective expenditure ratio.
However, if the government tolerates
shortfalls, the expenditure ratio will G*
exceed the collective tax burden in the
broad sense.

Is there an optimal size?

That there is an optimal government

size can be seen from the ‘Armey curve’
(Figure 4). This assumes a non-linear G0
relationship between the size of go-
vernment and economic performance.
Tax burden as
T*
% bbp

Figure 4: The Armey curve

13

EWI 3 ENG.indd 13 03-01-2008 13:53:06


70
60
Denmark
Government ratio (1999)
50
Netherlands
40
30
20
10
0
2 2.2
Figure 5: Relationship between family size and government ratio (Eurostat)
are subject to various micro-economic
risks: medical (illness, disability), social
(theft, violence), economic (individual
unemployment, bankruptcy) and life-
cycle (birth, old age) problems. Each
of these risks is offset to a greater or
lesser degree by a family safety net. The
stronger this safety net is, the less the
government is likely to have to intervene
in times of need.
Family size in the OECD countries has
fallen steadily over recent decades. In
1850 the number of children in the aver-
age European family was just under 5,
while by 1999 this had fallen to a mere
2.5. The ‘anorexic family’ was born.
A still largely undocumented empirical
observation is the negative correlation
between family size and the overall size
of the public sector. The negative link
between government expenditure and
family size is illustrated graphically in
Figure 5. Family size is a significant ex-
planatory variable for government size.
Others include: trust in government,
openness and GDP per capita. Family
14
EWI 3 ENG.indd 14
Relationship between family size and government
Belgium
2.4 2.6 2.8
Family size (1999)
size can also be seen as an indicator of
a society’s implicit preference as regards
level of government interference.
To explain this empirical observation, we
need to start by considering the tasks
of government. Firstly, the anorexic
family requires that governments take
on additional tasks. Where once children
and extended family looked after the
youngest and oldest family members,
this is now often done by crèches and
care homes, which are subsidised with
public funds. Similarly, other tasks once
performed by families themselves are
now outsourced to the welfare state.
The public sector has expanded to ac-
commodate these new responsibilities.
Meanwhile, young couples are no longer
worried about their old age: they know
that they will receive specialist support
in the event of unemployment, sickness
and old age. This causality cuts both
ways, of course. Because the public sec-
tor is expanding to offer a large safety
net of specialist care, families can afford
to be smaller. Conversely, because fami-
Old Family ‘Anorexic’ Family
y = -15.735x + 84.691
R2 = 0.3546
Spain
3 3.2 3.4
lies are becoming smaller, they require a
big public sector safety net.
An open economy
There are other factors that affect
optimal government intervention. For
example, there are macro-economic
as well as micro-economic risks. In our
globalised economy, export and import
account for an increasing proportion
of GDP. For Belgium, this trend is very
marked. In an open economy such as
ours, the effectiveness of government
policy seems to be diminishing steadily,
not least because multiplier effects are
flowing abroad. In a groundbreaking
article, Rodrik10 has suggested that coun-
tries with more open economies have
bigger public sectors. Small, extremely
open economies such as Austria, the
Netherlands, Norway and Belgium have
the world’s largest ratios of public expen-
diture to GDP. Figure 6, which analyses
an international sample of 66 countries,
bears out this finding.
03-01-2008 13:53:07

40
35
Government share in GDP
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
0 20 40
Figure 6: Government as buffer in an open economy (Penn World tabel, data 2004)
An explanation for this correlation can
be found in the risk-avoidance behaviour
of society. Citizens demand (and get)
a bigger public sector as compensation
for the greater external risks associated
with an open economy. In the globalised
world economy, the overall volatility of
economic production will be less than
the volatility of production in an indi-
vidual country, due to the law of large
numbers. However, when a country
or region enters the world economy,
the search begins for the comparative
advantages in which the country will
specialise. As a result, the production
structure in an open economy will be
less diverse. Because the rest of the
world cannot offset shocks in a particular
country, a stabler world economy means
nothing to that country’s citizens: all that
matters is the stability of the specialised
domestic production. Higher public ex-
penditure, subsidised by compulsory so-
cial security, can offer a way of stabilising
consumption. In this way, public spen-
ding provides a form of social security
for societies subject to external shocks
Table 1: Optimal government ratio (De Witte and Moesen, 2007, p. 15)
Long-term
collective tax*
(1988-2004)
(1)
Belgium 47.593 %
* collective tax burden in the broad sense
** collective tax burden in the standard sense
EWI 3 ENG.indd 15
Government as buffer against external shocks
Denmark
Spain
60 80 100 120
and mitigates risk. A typical example of
this is unemployment benefit.
GDP per capita
According to prevailing economic litera-
ture on endogenous growth theory, the
third and final adjustment factor is GDP
per capita. It is assumed that countries
with a higher GDP per head of popu-
lation also display greater productive
and allocative efficiency, due to factors
such as a better educated work force,
greater capital intensity and technologi-
cal progress.
In search of optimal government size
To work out the optimal level of govern-
ment intervention, we will compare the
collective tax burden and GDP growth
of 23 similar OECD countries. We have
opted for a long-term perspective (aver-
age values over the period 1988-2004)
to eliminate any short-term fluctuati-
ons. Using statistical analyses, we have
adjusted for differences in preference
Long-term
benchmark Change in
size long-term size
(2) (3) = (2)-(1)
43.660 % -3.933 %
Netherlands Belgium
y = 0,057x + 14,174
R2 = 0,2114
140 160 180 200
Government as percentage
on government intervention (family
size); the need for economic stabilisation
(openness); and the country’s producti-
vity level. According to this benchmark,
the Belgian public sector is structurally,
and over the long term, 3.9% too big
(see Table 1).
There are a few things to note at this
juncture. Our standard is based on the
performance of an economy in terms of
growth, not in terms of the redistribution
of income and wealth, which is nonethe-
less a laudable social objective. Also, we
are working with statistical data on the
collective tax burden in the broad sense
of the term, including non-fiscal receipts.
For some countries, such as Norway, this
figure could be pushed up much higher
due to profits from natural gas and oil
production.
Towards a viable benchmark
By taking things a few steps further,
we can use the above findings to de-
vise a concrete policy for Belgium. For
Collective
tax burden Change in
in 2005** size
(4) (5) = (2)-(4)
46.400 % -2.740 %
15
03-01-2008 13:53:10
 Vocabulary

multiplier effect: refers to the fact that, say, a rise in one of the autonomous components of total demand can
lead to an even greater increase in economic activity.
comparative advantage: this theory (attributed to Ricardo) states that a country must specialise in goods/services
that it can produce more cheaply than other countries.
ceteris paribus: other factors remaining the same or unchanged (often used when studying the effect of one vari-
able while keeping the others unchanged).
endogenous growth: endogenous growth is growth from the inside outside due to technical developments/inno-
vations, etc.
allocative efficiency: related to the allocation of (scarce) products or services among users, the allocation of
available production factors among all institutions and the choice of an optimal set of outputs produced in the
most efficient way for society. Research into allocative efficiency looks at whether scarce resources are being fairly
allocated among institutions that perform public tasks or among citizens who may use the service.

instance, it is inaccurate to compare
the structural benchmark of 43.7%
(column 2) with the actual tax burden
of 47.6% (column 1), since the latter
is the average for the whole period
1988-2004. It makes more sense to use
the collective tax burden from a recent
year, e.g. 2005, as a stepping stone
towards a concrete policy. For Belgium,
the collective tax burden (as broadly
defined) was 49.1%. Compared with
the structural benchmark of 43.7%, this
implies a reduction of 5.4% of GDP.
However, it is questionable whether this
could be achieved in a single legisla-
ture. Let us therefore take a ‘milder’
reference: the collective tax burden in
the standard sense, excluding non-fiscal
receipts. In this scenario, Belgium would
have to reduce its government size by
2.74% of GDP.
What are the policy implications?
Under previous legislatures, the golden
standard in public finances was achie-
ving a balanced budget, rather than
controlling spending. The advantage of
this was a steady fall in interest rates,
generating an ‘interest bonus’ of ap-
proximately 4% of GDP over the period
1999-2007. However, achieving a
technically balanced budget meant fre-
quent recourse to budgetary alchemy,
some of the less flattering examples
of which were: the transfer of pension
funds based on a capitalisation system
from (semi-)public institutions; the sale
of government buildings; and the secu-
ritisation of tax arrears. That said, public
finances were at least prevented from
slumping into substantial deficit, which
was not the case in some EU countries.
Today, it makes sense to agree on an
explicit norm for expenditure in the
next legislature. A year-on-year rise in
spending of 2.58% is both defensible
and feasible, for a number of reasons:
- This percentage is based on an analy-
sis which says that the ‘optimal’ size
of the Belgian government is calcula-
ted from the perspective of econo-
mic growth. Within four years, the
expenditure ratio will have fallen by
2.7%: exactly the level by which the
current expenditure level exceeds the
theoretical norm in a ‘mild’ scenario.
- It will keep the real policy space intact
(the Planning Bureau puts inflation
at an average of 1.9% a year), whilst
also offering some space for additio-
nal policy initiatives (around 1/3 of
the predicted real growth of 2.1% a
year). Obviously, new projects and
activities can also be financed by
reformulating existing expenditure.
- Assuming (i) that a balanced budget
is taken as the basis and (ii) a policy
is pursued in which the overall tax
burden remains constant, the public
finances will display a surplus of
2.7% at the end of the legislature.
If the collective tax burden remains
constant, the progressivity of direct
taxation, in this case income tax, can
be neutralised (known as ‘bracket
creep’). Naturally, internal shifts bet-
ween direct and indirect taxation and
social security contributions will also
remain possible.
Finally, we would like to correct two
misunderstandings.
- A reduction in expenditure ratio is of-
ten associated with a drop in absolute
expenditure. This is incorrect. For the
expenditure ratio to fall, it is enough
for nominal expenditure (the numera-
tor) to rise less quickly than nominal
growth of GDP (the denominator).
- In addition, it is often intuitively
assumed that a fall in the expen-
diture ratio will automatically lead
to a decline in the quality of public
services. This is also erroneous. In the
proposed scenario, an adjustment
has been made for inflation and a
(small) part of real growth transferred
to expenditure. Real policy potential
therefore remains intact, and could
even increase slightly. Moreover,
various studies have shown that Bel-
gium’s government machinery could
make significant efficiency gains. In
other words, it is possible to maintain
the same level of service quality while
reducing nominal public spending.
Wim Moesen and Kristof De Witte
K.U.Leuven, Faculty of Economics
and Applied Economics
Naamsestraat 69, 3000 Leuven
(Wim.Moesen@econ.kuleuven.be)
(edited by Peter Spyns, Office for Po-
licy Research and Foresight studies 11)

16

EWI 3 ENG.indd 16 03-01-2008 13:53:10

 9 The underlying theoretical and empirical model is set out in Kristof De Witte and Wim Moesen, Sizing the Govern-
ment, Department of Economics, K.U.Leuven, June 2007, mimeo, 17 p
10 Dani Rodrik, (1998), Why Do More Open Economies Have Bigger Governments?, Journal of Political Economy,
University of Chicago Press, vol. 106(5), pages 997-1032, October. (http://ideas.repec.org/a/ucp/jpolec/
v106y1998i5p997-1032.html)
11 The original text (in Dutch) can be found at: http://workforall.net/Moesen-optimale-overheids-uitgavenquote.pdf
17

EWI 3 ENG.indd 17 03-01-2008 13:53:15

 > Central theme: From Europe

Belgian STI policy

viewed from
abroad

18

EWI 3 ENG.indd 18 03-01-2008 13:53:17

 Belgium risks missing out on opportunities in the increasingly globalised world
of Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) due to a lack of joint vision and
objectives. This stark warning comes courtesy of the Peer Review12 on STI po-
licy in Belgium.
The Peer Review is part of the Open
Method of Coordination (OMC) of the
EU’s Scientific and Technical Research
Committee (CREST). Under the OMC, the
Member States formulate joint objecti-
ves and activities on STI policy, through
methods such as comparison and mutual
learning. Joint action plans are develo-
ped for meeting these objectives and
there is reporting on policy progress and
outcomes.
Recommendations
Four experts from Spain, Germany, Swit-
zerland and Denmark - the ‘peers’ - exa-
mined the STI system in Belgium, intervie-
wing various stakeholders in the process.
The aim of the exercise was to formulate
recommendations for making policy me-
chanisms in Belgium more efficient, rather
than evaluate the policy mechanisms in
place. The report highlights the need to
focus on human capital (more and better
trained researchers) and to encourage the
transfer of research and technology. Policy
development mechanisms are the other
major area in which attention is required
and challenges need to be addressed. In
a global world, we need to examine how
decisions taken by the different entities
of Belgium’s innovation system hang
together.
The peers believe that Belgium needs
to move the globalisation of STI up the
policy agenda in order to fully exploit the
challenges and opportunities associated
with it. Without wanting to undermine
the institutional structure and the division
of responsibilities for STI13, they sug-
gest that joint objectives should be set at
Belgian level, for which all governments
EWI 3 ENG.indd 19
are responsible. To further optimise the of weaknesses in our current system and
policy mix and bring it into line with the highlights the challenges facing us now
international framework, a common vision and in the future.
should be developed. This could be sup-
ported by knowledge exchange platforms.
Bart Laethem
The peers also recommend devoting Entrepreneurship, Science Popularisation
more attention to the evaluation of policy and International Cooperation Team
mechanisms. This should not be limited
to the traditional ex-post assessments.
Interim evaluations of the policy measures
are needed so that adjustments can be
made in good time. Transparency, interna-
tional openness and mutual learning are
components that could help to strengthen
these evaluations. In addition, we need to
move away from the traditional analysis
of a measure’s direct output - such as the
number of publications in international
journals as the direct result of a research
programme - towards an analysis of ef- The globalised Science, Technology and
fects and long-term impact, such as the Innovation (STI) landscape
influence on Flanders’ economic fabric.
As the boundaries of scientific research shift,
Merit conducting such research is becoming increasingly
complex. Experts from different scientific disciplines
Generally speaking, the merit of this
report is the fact that it makes a number are increasingly having to pool their forces to find
of recommendations that look beyond solutions to problems or challenges. Moreover, they
Belgium’s institutional structure. Howe- are often working on cross-border issues such as cli-
ver, this is also one of its downsides as it
mate and energy. In response to these changes, the
means that some of its recommendations
are practically and legally impossible to research world is increasingly organising itself into
implement, making them nothing more international networks and cooperation groupings.
than a theoretical exercise. The European Union strongly encourages and sup-
ports this through its development of the European
The document will be helpful for further
policy developments at Flemish go- Research Area.
vernment level and also for developing
initiatives with other Belgian governments 12 A peer review is an assessment/evaluation performed by individuals
aimed at fostering mutual cooperation or with the same expertise, background and/or occupation.
even the coordination of policy initiatives 13 See also p. 8 of this issue
and instruments. It identifies a number
19
03-01-2008 13:53:19
 Efficiency and
effectiveness in the
public sector: measure,
analyse, improve

20

EWI 3 ENG.indd 20 03-01-2008 13:53:21

 > Central theme: Government efficiency

Studies are regularly published which examine the Flemish government’s performance from
a national and/or international perspective. A recent example is the OECD report on the
structure and working of Belgium’s governments (OECD, 2007). Compared with Belgium’s
other governments, it rates the Flemish government relatively highly. A study on the global
productivity of European governments (Moesen, 2004) came to the same conclusion. Howe-
ver, compared with Europe’s top performers, there is a 12-15% potential for improvement.

Findings such as these are guaranteed to
create great press and public attention.
A trimming down of the civil service is
often advocated as a response. Sup-
porters point to immediate gains in ef-
ficiency, while opponents fear a decline
in quality. However, the precise meaning
of the term ‘public sector’ is not always
clear. What exactly do ‘efficiency’ and
‘effectiveness’ mean? How can they be
measured? And how can this informa-
tion and further research contribute to
better performance?
Public sector defined
The concept ‘public sector’ is often used
as a blanket term. Kuhry and Van der
Torre (2002) make a distinction between
the public sector in legal, financial and
functional terms.
- In the legal sense, the public sector
comprises the government and orga-
nisations governed by public law.
- The public sector in the financial sense
also includes private organisations
that are mainly financed by the public
means, such as non-profit organisa-
tions in the education and healthcare
sectors.
- Finally, there is the public sector in
the functional sense, the so-called
‘quaternary sector’: all organisations
in the fields of public administration,
social security, law and order, educa-
tion, healthcare and social and cultural
services, regardless of legal status and
financing source.
The distinction between public and
private sector is sometimes vague: is
a non-profit organisation part of the
government or not? How private is an
education system if the bulk of its costs
are borne by the government?
A government operates at three levels:
execution, guidance and condition-sha-
ping (Kuhry and Van der Torre, 2002).
In its executive role, the government is
directly involved in the provision of ser-
vices to the public. Its second role is to
guide, monitor and subsidise executing
agencies. Thirdly, the government also
operates in a condition-shaping capacity.
Efficiency and effectiveness
When considering public sector per-
formance, a distinction is usually made
between resources deployed (input,
means), activities (throughput, proces-
ses), performance (output, products)
and effects (outcome, consequences)
(see Figure 7).
Public sector performance can be related
either to input to achieve the output, or
alternatively to the effects achieved as
a result of the output. The relationship
between input and output indicates the
efficiency. The relationship between out-
put and effects achieved indicates the
effectiveness of the production process.
Efficiency is the measure of resour-
ces used (personnel, capital, material)
to achieve a particular performance
(product, service). An example would
be the number of man hours needed to
maintain 1 km of cycle paths.
Efficiency is a relative concept: a per-
formance is called efficient if it uses few
resources as measured against a certain
benchmark, such as a standard or a simi-
lar organisation. The best organisations
act as a kind of reference: a benchmark
on which less efficient organisations can
judge themselves.
Effectiveness indicates whether or not
a particular output achieves a particu-
lar effect or goal. An example would
be carrying out maintenance work on
cycle paths (output) in order to prevent
accidents (effects). In this context, a
distinction should be made between
direct and indirect effects or objectives.
A direct effect relates to and is measura-
ble against a concrete end product. An
example of a direct objective in the edu-
cation sector would be gaining a school
leaving certificate. Indirect effects refer
to deeper, underlying social objectives.

M A P E
means/ activities performance effects
resources

EFFICIENCY EFFECTIVENESS

Figure 7: The production process at government institutions14

21

EWI 3 ENG.indd 21 03-01-2008 13:53:22

 Examples in the education sector would
be empowering citizens and providing a
well educated workforce.
Measure, analyse, improve
Measuring public sector efficiency is no
easy task, not least because the value
of a performance cannot usually be
expressed in monetary terms, as it can
in the private sector. For that reason, we
generally use what are known as ‘physi-
cal production indicators’. Examples
in an education context would be the
certificates gained, the number of pupils
and the number of lessons given. Howe-
ver, when it comes to purely collective
products such as public administration,
it is not clear what the performance
provision actually entails. This makes it
difficult to construct appropriate produc-
tion indicators. An alternative method is
to calculate the ratio between resources
deployed for public administration and
the total production of the country or
region.
What complicates the measurement
is that performance indictors must be
properly adjusted for quality differen-
ces. Otherwise, a smaller group size in
an educational setting, for example,
would lead to a drop in the perfor-
mance measured, or better educated
teachers to a rise in cost! Often, such an
adjustment is not possible. In this case,
a solution is to include a series of quality
measures alongside the non-adjusted
performance indicators. These quality
measures may be both objective, e.g.
the percentage of buses that run on
time, and subjective, e.g. satisfaction
among bus users.
Although difficult, measuring the ef-
ficiency and effectiveness of specific
public services is important (Israëls e.a.,
2001). In the private sector, market
22
EWI 3 ENG.indd 22
forces work to ensure efficiency gains, ween a) resources and performance and
but in the public sector there is much b) performance and effects. Identifying
less market pressure to achieve optimal best practices and the factors underlying
performance. efficiency differences between govern-
For example, key goals in the public ment institutions can lead to efficiency
sector are often different from those gains in a particular government sector.
in the market sector and the means of
achieving them more tightly regulated. In some cases, the legislature has
A company’s aim is profit; a business already taken action on efficiency and
unit that fails to make enough profit effectiveness issues in individual sectors.
can be closed down. By contrast, public For instance, the Flemish government
bodies often have no choice about sets minimum standards for quality assu-
whether or not to supply particular ser- rance in welfare facilities, covering such
vices; their primary concern is achieving aspects as user focus, social acceptability
specific social and/or statutory goals. and effectiveness and efficiency. Howe-
Whether this entails (excessively) high ver, as yet there is still no legal basis for
costs can seem less important. a systematic and periodic measurement
Moreover, with some public sector and inspection framework for efficiency
products there is no freedom of choice and effectiveness in the public sector.
whatsoever. If you want a new passport,
you have to go to your own municipal
offices, regardless of how cheap or
expensive the passport is or how long it
takes to issue.
Measuring (in)efficiency and Marc Callens
(in)effectiveness can help to build up a Research Centre of
better picture of the relationship bet- the Flemish Government
Sources
• Bouckaert, G. and T. Auwers (1999), Prestaties meten in de overheid,
Bruges: Die Keure.
• Israels, E., A. Matheeuwsen, M. Roelofs and F. Roijackers (2001),
Efficiëntie meten bij de overheid, Openbaar bestuur, 2001-11, pp. 25-28.
• Kuhry, B. and A. van der Torre (2002), De vierde sector, The Hague:
Sociaal-Cultureel Planbureau.
• Moesen (2004), De kwaliteit van de overheid te lande en in euroland,
K.U.Leuven.
• OECD (2007), OECD Reviews of Human Resource Management in
Government: Belgium: Brussels-Capital Region, Federal Government,
Flemish Government, French Community and Walloon Region, OECD,
Paris, 13/07/2007, 134 p.
14 Bouckaert, G. and T. Auwers (1999), Prestaties meten in de overheid, Bruges: Die Keure, p.17
03-01-2008 13:53:24
 > Central theme: Government efficiency

e-FRISiency:
an asset for Flanders
The knowledge economy is one of the cornerstones of our society. Our great economic

prosperity and development is derived for a large part from technical knowledge. Indeed,

technical knowledge is increasingly coming to dominate the three traditional produc-

tion factors of labour, nature and capital. Knowledge unlocks innovation, which in turns

spawns new products or services, thereby enabling further economic growth.

That is why encouraging research and development - or R&D for short - is so essential.

measurement against critical perfor- longer always up-to-date. Also, the

Boosting knowledge,
creating prosperity
It also explains one of the planks of the
EU’s 2000 Lisbon Strategy: to ensure
that Europe is the most knowledge
intensive economy in the world by
2010. Encouraging R&D is therefore
high on both the national and inter-
national agenda. But this comes at a
price, of course. In 2005, in Flanders
alone, companies, organisations and
the government invested over €3.6
billion in R&D, 2.1% of gross domestic
product15.
With so much money involved, the
key priority is that it should be used
efficiently. In this context, the efficiency
and effectiveness of the whole R&D
value chain is of relevance: from policy
choices and investment decisions,
through administrative processes and
research to exploitation of results and
mance indicators (CPIs).
IWETO weighed in the balance
An important part of streamlining the
R&D value chain is the management
of research information: on projects,
researchers, research institutions, results
such as publications and patents, exper-
tise, equipment, financing sources and
so on. Having accurate, up-to-date
research information is critical at every
stage of the R&D value chain: when
making policy decisions, planning and
conducting research, implementing and
optimising administrative processes
and measuring and evaluating research
findings.
The Flemish government and Flemish
universities were aware of the impor-
tance of research information as far
back as the early 1980s and set up the
Inventory of Scientific and Technolo-
gical Research in Flanders (IWETO).
A that time, IWETO16 was the first
research information system of its kind.
Today, however, it no longer meets
the standards expected of a modern
research information platform: infor-
mation is gathered retrospectively and
only supplied at intervals, the quality
has declined and the information is no
information gathering process takes a
lot of time and energy, as it is treated
as a separate task at each of institutions
involved in the project, and the scope
of the information collected is limited:
core data such as publications, patents
and doctorates are not included. Lastly,
IWETO does not exchange data with
other information systems.
Flanders Research Information Space
Needing a new system for managing
research information, EWI launched the
Flanders Research Information Space
programme (FRIS)17. The FRIS concept
creates a virtual research information
space covering all Flemish players in the
field of economy, science and innova-
tion. Within the space, research infor-
mation can be stored and exchanged
in a transparent and automated way.
A key feature is that data can be col-
lected at the point of creation: in the
operational processes of data providers.
For example, information on a research
project can be found in the assessment
process for a funding application. Col-
lecting information at the operational
process level offers major advantages.
The data are accurate and up-to-date
because they are being used in an ope-
rational process. Also, it is not necessary

23

EWI 3 ENG.indd 23 03-01-2008 13:53:29

 to establish a parallel data gathering
process, so data providers are spared a
lot of administrative work.
The three key concepts of the FRIS
programme are simplicity, transparency
and openness. The development of
FRIS has three strategic goals:
1. Speeding up the R&D value chain
Using an open architecture creates
opportunities for cross-border coopera-
tion and the development of research
networks. Industrial players will be
able to find partners for innovation
projects more quickly. Using interna-
tional standards enables policy players
to position themselves in relation to
other governments and to compare
themselves with other countries. This
significantly enhances the internatio-
nal profile of research projects and
institutions.
2. Administrative simplification
By creating a highly efficient data
environment, all desired information
is entered once and can be reused
instantly by all competent parties. This
administrative simplification means
that the budget for scientific research
can be put to optimum use. It allows
researchers to focus entirely on their
area of expertise, namely conducting
scientific research. A quick calculation
of the combined wage costs of Flan-
ders’ 20,000 or so researchers shows
that each percentage of their working
time spent on administrative formalities
costs around €9.5 million: public money
that could otherwise have been spent
on research.
The institutions where research is
conducted are also keen to see the
number of research information sur-
veys reduced and the whole process
streamlined. Each year, they must fulfil
various reporting obligations towards
their funders, mostly in connection with
international obligations on research
information (e.g. EuroSTAT18 and the
OECD19). Different surveys often use
different definitions or classifications, so
that existing data cannot be re-used.
3. Measuring for better policy-making
Better consolidation and aggregation
of data will allow the government to
develop more effective policy, evaluate
it more accurately and adjust it more
quickly. Scientific institutions need con-
solidated information in order to make
appropriate research choices and use
their resources efficiently. Transparent
24
EWI 3 ENG.indd 24
data registration should enable citizens
and the government to check where
public R&D money has been spent.
Each of these strategic objectives
contributes to the central objective of
greater research efficiency.
Opportunities
There are a number of opportunities
favouring implementation of the FRIS
programme; indeed, the time is ripe
for such an initiative. The technology
for exchanging data between institu-
tions is available (web services, service
oriented architecture), and all Flemish
universities use the European research
information standard (CERIF, see inset),
which makes it easy to collate data
from various institutions and exchange
data with other CERIF systems.
There are also successful examples of
information systems that operate on
the principle of data exchange between
players: the Crossroads Bank for Social
Security (CBSS), the Flemish Crossroads
Bank for Enterprises (VKBO) and the
Flemish government’s data sharing
platform (Magda). The Education
Department also has a project in the
pipeline to set up a Higher Education
database along the same lines as the
FRIS programme.
As part of the review of annual re-
porting legislation for universities, an
exercise is under way to simplify and
Universities
m art
s FRIS
ta
Da
IWETO
Services
CV
Classifications
Thesauri
Taxonomies
Funding bodies
Figure 8: Schematic representation of the Flemish Research Information Space (FRIS)
streamline the supply of statistical data,
the main aim being to cut down on ad-
ministrative work. The universities also
want to use reporting as a full-blown
policy instrument, which dovetails
perfectly with the principles of the FRIS
programme.
Next steps
The first half of 2008 will see the
launch of a new research portal, whose
first service will be an upgraded version
of IWETO whereby universities supply
CERIF2006-compliant data based on
a fully automated process. This new
procedure will allow universities to
supply data much more frequently than
before, with no extra administrative
work.
This service is only the first part of the
FRIS programme. Over the coming
months and years, the research portal
will roll out a range of new services as
part of the research information space
(see Figure 8). The possibilities are
numerous: a white guide (who does
what?), library of publications by a
particular researcher (digital library), a
service for updating and reusing resear-
chers’ CVs and provision of information
on patents, to name but a few.
Implementing FRIS calls for something
other than a simple project-based
approach. FRIS is not about develo-
OAI
University colleges
OAI
Crossroads Bank
Data Centres
OAI
Research institutions
03-01-2008 13:53:36
 CERIF: the Common European Research Information Format

CERIF was developed to provide a generic vision of an R&D information model. Two key principles underpin the project:
- Information on publicly funded research projects must be made public, in accordance with the principle of open
government.
- It must be possible to exchange information on research projects across national borders, research being a supreme
example of international information.

The model enables the various research information objects - researcher, project, research organisations, publications, finan-
cing, equipment, etc. - to be kept in their full context. Thus, for instance, we can establish the relationship between a project,
its financing source and the generated output. Or answer the question: “Who does what at which institution and where does
the funding come from?”

This information can be used by e.g.:

- researchers (to find partners, identify rivals, establish cooperation networks, etc.);
- research policy staff (to estimate performance and output);
- research managers (to develop a research strategy and establish priorities);
- publishers (to find reviewers and potential authors);
- intermediary organisations (to trace inventions and ideas that could lead to knowledge transfer);
- the media (to communicate R&D results in a socio-economic context);
- the general public.

All information is internationally compatible, regardless of language or characters. The model can easily be expanded. The
CERIF2006 version includes some major improvements, such as the introduction of a semantic layer.

This data model was developed with the support of the European Commission in two phases: from 1987 to 1990 and from
1997 to 1999. The EU recommends, but does not require, that Member States use this standard. Since 2002, follow-up and
management of the CERIF standard have been the responsibility of EUROCRIS (www.eurocris.org), a non-profit organisation
set up to promote current research information systems (CRISs).

ping one application: it is a change

programme, in which the involvement
of Flemish government players is key.
Openness and integration bring change
aplenty in their wake and the success of
FRIS will depend entirely on cooperati-
on between the players concerned. We
would therefore urge all stakeholders to
contribute to this ambitious programme
and play their part in making this fresh
[‘fris’ = ‘fresh’ in Dutch] new approach
a success.

Geert Van Grootel, Kris Maison

and Pascale Dengis
Statistics and Indicators Team

15 Totale O&O intensiteit in Vlaanderen 1993-2005: 3% nota. Policy Research Centre for R&D Indicators, 19 March 2007.
16 www.ewi-vlaanderen.be/iweto
17 www.ewi-vlaanderen.be/fris
18 ec.europa.eu/eurostat
19 www.oecd.org 25

EWI 3 ENG.indd 25 03-01-2008 13:53:38

 RIA rules
Policy-makers’ essential aim in developing any regulation is to have a positive impact on

society. A regulatory impact assessment or RIA charts the possible effects of a planned

policy measure, in a structured way. By describing the intended objective of the policy

measure along with the anticipated positive and negative effects compared with alterna-

tives, an RIA allows us to assess the necessity and effectiveness of a given regulation.

26

EWI 3 ENG.indd 26 03-01-2008 13:53:40

 > Central theme: Government efficiency
The ultimate aim of RIAs is better regula-
tion. In the past, too many government
decisions and regulations evolved in
an unstructured way. Nowadays, there
is a growing realisation of the need to
strike a careful balance between the
likely benefits of the regulation and the
costs for those involved (administration,
companies, citizens and so on). An RIA
helps to highlight relevant factors and
moves the government in the direction
of a balanced and considered solution.
The RIA is thus a powerful instrument,
providing a rational and analytical basis
for decisions along with transparency in
the regulatory process.
Where does RIA come from?
RIA is by no means a Flemish invention.
It is generally accepted that high-quality
regulation plays an important role in a
region’s economic performance. Hence
Europe’s commitment to ‘better regula-
tion’ in the 2005 Lisbon Strategy, one of
the planks of which is the Impact Assess-
ment. The OECD also emphasised the
importance of RIA in its 1997 Report on
Regulatory Reform. Regulatory impact
analysis of some kind therefore exists
in most Western countries. Belgium’s
federal government has the Kafka test,
for instance.
In Flanders, the Regulatory Management
Unit (formerly the Regulatory Manage-
ment Knowledge Cell) was tasked back
EWI 3 ENG.indd 27
in 2001 with developing a system of
regulatory impact assessment. In the
end, the Flemish government decided
to introduce the RIA from 1 January
2005. Since then, the Flemish RIA has
undergone a range of changes. Follo-
wing an evaluation in 2005, a distinc-
tion was introduced between light and
heavy RIAs, with the emphasis now on
proportionality, i.e. taking into consi-
deration the relative importance of the
regulation concerned. In 2007, with a
view to fewer but better RIAs, the scope
of application was changed so that RIAs
are no longer used for certain types of
regulation.
Obstacles and opportunities
However, there is still ample scope for
improvement in the way that RIAs are
used in Flanders. A frequent criticism is
that RIAs are difficult to reconcile with
the way Flemish regulation is developed.
Usually, there is consultation at political
level to decide what form the regulation
will take. The RIA only takes place at
a later stage, when the essence of the
regulation is already fixed. However, an
RIA is by nature an ex-ante assessment,
an ongoing process that must occur
before and during the drafting process.
Currently, too many RIAs are still perfor-
med ex post, simply to confirm already
drafted regulation, making them little
more than an administrative formality.
This said, one positive thing to note
at the EWI Department is that the
requirement to compile an RIA me-
ans that more account is taken of the
administrative burdens that regulation
will cause, this being one of the aspects
on which RIAs must report. In practice,
this obligatory assessment encourages
regulators to think from the outset about
ways of reducing or indeed eliminating
administrative burdens. The guarantee
scheme for inconvenience during public
works is a good example of this. As a
result of the RIA, a new draft regulation
was formulated involving much less
administrative work.
The RIA will be re-evaluated at the end
of 2007, although the Flemish govern-
ment has said that it intends to continue
the system in 2008. At present, the im-
pact of RIA may not be being fully felt.
However, it is expected to gain ground
slowly but surely and so bring about a
fundamental shift in attitudes regarding
the drafting of regulation, including in
the administration.
Tom Vandenbogaerde and
Ann Bourdeaud’hui
EWI Legal Department
27
03-01-2008 13:53:50
 It’s all about
transparency and costs
an interview with Elsa Pilichowski

Elsa Pilichowski studied at the Institut d’Etudes Politiques in Paris and the School of
Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University in the United States. After
graduating, she worked on various government projects at the World Bank.
She is currently an administrator at the Governance and Territorial Development Direc-
torate of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, having worked
for the OECD for the past seven years. Her responsibilities include work on public
employment and human resource management (HRM) in government. In this capacity,
she has published numerous OECD documents on public employment and public orga-
nisation structures.
Having - together with a colleague - coordinated the OECD review of the Belgian
governments’ HRM policies, she was an ideal choice as guest speaker at the Flemish
government’s Middle Management Congress in Ostend in October 2007. EWI Review
managed to catch up with her during a gap in her busy schedule.
28

EWI 3 ENG.indd 28 03-01-2008 13:53:56

 > Interview with
What is the role of the OECD?
Elsa Pilichowski: “The OECD is an
international organisation, set up in the
early 1960s. It currently has 30 member
countries, and a number of others are
involved as observers. The OECD sup-
ports sustainable economic growth,
encourages employment, works to raise
living standards and safeguard financial
stability and contributes to the economic
growth of non-member countries and
the growth of world trade. The organi-
sation is committed to democracy and
the market economy.
To meet its objectives, the OECD col-
lects large amounts of data, examines
trends, analyses and forecasts economic
developments, researches social changes
and emerging patterns in areas such as
trade, the environment, agriculture and
tax systems – as well as the topic we are
discussing today: public governance.
Besides these core tasks, which are
dictated by the 30 member countries,
the OECD also engages in intensive
dialogues with many of the world’s
economies.”
International democratic think-tank
geared to the market economy
How does your department fit into this?
Elsa Pilichowski: “My department is
responsible for monitoring trends and
developments in public governance
and management. It focuses on public
budgeting, regulatory reform, ethics
and integrity, e-government and public
service personnel policy.
Like many other OECD departments,
in addition to cross-border analyses
we also conduct peer reviews. These
are discussions and assessments by a
team consisting not only of OECD staff
but also ‘peers’: i.e. experts from other
countries, usually senior civil servants,
who operate in the same field. They
are appointed by their own country,
and their task is to examine the country
under review on the basis of their own
expertise and professional experience.
All OECD countries have the chance
to take part in this process. The aim of
a peer review is not only to help the
country think about its own policy and
systems; the exchange of experiences
with other OECD countries on specific
subjects is also important.”
Belgium: an example for other OECD
member countries
What was the aim of the study on
Belgium?
Elsa Pilichowski: “The OECD Reviews
of Human Resource Management in
Government: Belgium: Brussels-Capital
EWI 3 ENG.indd 29
Region, Federal Government, Flemish
Government, French Community and
Walloon Region20 - to give it its official
title - is one of our peer reviews, the first
of its kind on personnel management in
government. The OECD is very grateful
to Belgium’s governments for their
willingness to take part in this difficult
exercise. In doing so, Belgium has set an
example for other OECD member states,
especially as the issue is very sensitive in
many other countries.
Our aim with this new type of review is
to investigate whether governments are
managing the size, skills and competen-
cies of their workforce in a sustainable
manner and whether HRM systems
are performance oriented. With federal
countries such as Belgium, we examine
the relationship between HR rules
across governments and within each
individual government. Finally, we exa-
mine whether the values promoted by
governments are consistent with their
HRM principles and practices.”
What methodology was used? What
makes this study different from others,
such as those conducted by the Euro-
pean Central Bank and the World Bank?
Looking at the numbers it was
not possible to say definitely:
“there are far too many civil ser-
vants in Belgium”.
Elsa Pilichowski: “The unique feature
of the OECD study is its ‘peer’ aspect.
It builds, primarily, on the work of the
OECD Public Employment and Manage-
ment and Public Governance working
parties over the past 20 years. Both
these groups, which are made up of civil
servants from OECD countries, were
able to comment several times on the
interim findings before the study was
completed. Also, five OECD countries
took part in the full review: senior civil
servants from Canada, Ireland, the
Netherlands, France and New Zealand
worked for weeks on the project. A
former senior civil servant from Sweden
was also involved as a consultant. Du-
ring the exercise, the whole team came
to Belgium several times on mission,
where they held lengthy interviews with
civil servants from all the country’s go-
vernments. They combined these frank
discussions with literature and extremely
extensive documentation supplied by all
Belgian governments.”
A Belgian professor has said that the
most recent consolidated figures on our
civil service staff date from 2001. Are
the figures still accurate?
Elsa Pilichowski: “I have not heard that
statement. We examined the figures
in great detail (they are included in
Annex 1 of the report), and if the data
supplied were inaccurate we could fall
back on our analysis of the compensa-
tion costs of employees of government
departments. These were based on the
national accounts, which do contain
accurate data. Also, we used a variety of
sources and I can assure you that they
were quite consistent. We therefore
have every confidence that our figures
are correct.
That said, I have seen misinterpretations
relating to the figures in press articles on
the OECD study. The figures are compli-
cated and complicated to compare. For
example, looking at the numbers it is
not possible to say definitely: “there are
far too many civil servants in Belgium”.
It’s far more complicated that that.”
And are the figures for all OECD coun-
tries comparable and reliable?
Elsa Pilichowski: “This was the first time
the OECD had used the findings of its
new government employment metho-
dology in a report. This methodology
compares personnel in similar organisati-
ons and sectors across OECD countries,
with the aim of assessing how may staff
are employed in government-funded
services, regardless of whether these
services are provided by public or private
organisations. Admittedly, the methodo-
logy is complex and the OECD has not
yet developed an easy way of unlocking
the data. Nonetheless, the individual
figures only make sense as part of a
broader analysis of the cost of providing
public services.
To give a straight answer to your
question: despite a number of technical
difficulties - as recorded in the footnotes
to the report’s annexes - we believe that
29
03-01-2008 13:53:58
 we have accurate and comparable data
across the different countries. However,
those data only make sense if they are
understood in the right way and viewed
as a whole.”
HR policy: similar difficulties across
Belgium’s governments
How different is Flanders’ profile from
that of Belgium’s other governments?
Are we doing better? And what are the
specific weaknesses?
8% more civil servants over the
past ten years is partly a result
of the federalisation process
Elsa Pilichowski: “The study is not
about whether governments provide
better services at lower cost. We were
just looking at where governments stand
in terms of the way they operate the
machinery of government services. In
that respect it doesn’t make sense to
talk about better or worse.
What we can say is that Flanders has
worked hard to change its service
culture and organisation. The traditional
career path in government is chan-
ging. There is increasing emphasis on
performance and competency manage-
ment. The story of HRM in Belgian
government is one of transition from a
centralised, rigid and highly regulated
HRM system to one that is making a
number of attempts to decentralise deci-
sion-making. In this transition, Flanders
is leading the way. However, in recent
years the federal government has also
undergone some major reforms. The
other governments too are currently in
the process of reform.
The reviewers were also struck by the
similarities between Belgium’s govern-
ments in terms of HRM and in particular
the difficulties they are having to deal
with. They are problems largely specific
to Belgium as a whole: the long-term
increase in staff numbers and compen-
sation costs; blurred political administra-
tive boundaries and the large number
of political appointees; inconsistencies
30
EWI 3 ENG.indd 30
between regulation and actual practi-
ces on the use of employment formats
- in particular the use of contractual
staff; and the overregulation of HRM
systems.”
Some people conclude from the study
that Belgium’s administrations should
reduce the number of civil servants,
with the surplus entering the private
sector.
Elsa Pilichowski: “Hopefully that is not
the only conclusion they take away from
the review. Other conclusions are just as
important, if not more so, for the func-
tioning of Belgium’s governments.
There is indeed a problem with the size
of the workforce, but that has more to
do with its development over time than
with the number of staff. The long-term
increase was something that particularly
struck the research team. Over the past
ten years, the workforce has grown
by 8%, especially in the communities
and regions, with no corresponding
reduction in the federal government.
We could not see any real justification
for the increase, which seemed to be
partly a result of the federalisation
process. More civil servants have been
taken on, mostly to perform administra-
tive tasks. All countries that undergo
institutional changes are likely to have to
pay for it. However, those costs should
be temporary and should decrease later
on. This is the message that the review
team wanted to convey as regards the
number of civil servants.”
Outsourcing services based on a clear
strategy
At the same time, the government
should be relying more on private
companies to perform tasks that it is
currently performing itself.
Elsa Pilichowski: “Belgium has a low
level of outsourcing of services by the
government to companies. In other
countries, most outsourcing is for low
skilled positions such as canteen and
cleaning personnel. In this connection, it
is important to consider the number of
civil servants due to retire over the next
few years. Although we do not have all
the necessary data, the number seems
to be higher than in the private sector,
as is the case in most OECD countries.
It is therefore an ideal time to think
about not replacing staff that leave and
outsourcing low skilled services.”
Will this really be a better use of tax-
payers’ money? After all, the private
sector is there to make a profit for itself,
and will not necessarily act in the best
interests of all?
Elsa Pilichowski: “Certain conditions do
have to be met if a country is to benefit
from outsourcing: internal capacities
must be built to manage contracts with
private contractors. Outsourcing services
must be based on a clear strategy.
In all OECD countries - and Belgium is
no exception - low skilled workers are
paid better by the government than by
private companies. Outsourcing low skil-
led jobs therefore has a disproportionate
effect on the payroll.”
Education, for example, is financed
largely by the state and is of a very
high quality. Can private schools offer
the same level of quality for the same
number of people?
Elsa Pilichowski: “In this exercise,
when we talk about outsourcing we are
referring to services (usually low skilled)
supplied to government, not services
provided to citizens. The issue of private
schools and hospitals is a very complex
one, and is not covered by the study.”
Is it then reasonable to say that staff
made redundant by the government will
be able find jobs in the private sector?
Elsa Pilichowski: “The question of
whether staff made redundant will find
jobs in the private sector is a different
issue altogether. Some of them probably
won’t.”
Social employment: difficult to combine
with modern HR policy
Are you pleased at the debate currently
raging in Belgium?
Elsa Pilichowski: “It is interesting to see
03-01-2008 13:54:00
 that the Belgian governments have re-
flected on a number of issues. They told
us that at least some of the conclusions
have been taken into account in the mo-
dernisation plans21.
The fact that the broad debate seemed
to focus on the number of civil servants
is slightly disappointing. A number of
other issues are equally important, if not
more so: the politicisation of public ser-
vices; inconsistent use of the contractual
staff system; overregulation; inconsistent
values promoted in documents and
practices.”
The unions, amongst others, see it as
the job of government to offer employ-
ment to the ‘weaker members of soci-
ety’, known as social employment. Is
this a defensible and acceptable policy?
Elsa Pilichowski: “Social employment is
a respectable policy choice for govern-
ments on condition that it is implemen-
ted in a wholly transparent way. And
the associated costs must be clear to
policy-makers.
However, social employment is difficult
to combine with modern HR policy
instruments, which are geared towards
measuring individual and collective
performance. Setting up parallel systems
- one for social employment and one
based on performance - is more expen-
sive. It also sends out confused mes-
sages to staff and undermines the use of
modern HR policy instruments.”
A public manager has warned that in a
few years’ time the administration will
not be able to recruit the personnel it
wants, partly due to the wave of impen-
ding retirements. He argues in favour of
a personnel policy based on skills rather
than on qualifications as is currently the
case.
Elsa Pilichowski: “Although more
complicated, a skills-based system is
more suited to a modern HR policy. In
our knowledge economies, knowledge
is created and destroyed faster than in
the past. Governments need to adapt
to this reality. Internal training policy in
a knowledge economy is irreconcilable
with a qualification-based policy.
This does not mean that a lifetime career
in public services is no longer possible.
Even in OECD countries with the most
flexible systems, such a career is still
possible. What it does mean is that
new blood can be attracted at all levels,
bringing new skills into the organisation.
EWI 3 ENG.indd 31
Under this logic, staff need to become
more mobile than is currently the case.
So something that Belgium really does
need to address is the fact that, as a
result of the federalisation process, a ca-
reer in government is limited to a small
entity with a limited mix of people.”
Belgium: unique in terms of the number
of employees in ministerial cabinets
Other people think the study recom-
mends limiting the number of staff
employed in ministerial cabinets, as
happens in other countries. Is that
possible in Belgium and/or Flanders?
Given that cabinet downsizing was one
of the objectives of the recent reform of
Flemish administration?
Elsa Pilichowski: “Once again, it’s all
about transparency and costs. The
situation in Belgium is unique in terms
of the total number of people working
in ministerial cabinets compared with
the relatively small size of governments.
Before you can reduce the number of
political appointees, you need to un-
derstand the causes of this situation. It
is partly a historical thing, but there are
other reasons too. Administrations are
not responding sufficiently to changes
in policy, and the HRM systems are not
flexible enough. Finally, there is the high
level of regulation of HRM systems. It
takes a lot of motivated individuals to
implement a new policy. In that sense,
the cabinets are a means of encouraging
highly dedicated and competent staff.
Naturally, there are also less acceptable
aspects of politicisation but it is difficult
to measure the extent of these.
A system with a large number of politi-
cal appointees would be acceptable if it
were transparent, if staff in cabinet were
fully accountable for the outputs and
outcomes of their work, if the division
of responsibilities between cabinet staff
and senior management were clear, and
if the system was accepted as such by
policy-makers and citizens. However,
that doesn’t seem to be the case in
Belgium. Nevertheless, it is impossible to
cut back the number of cabinet employ-
ees without greater flexibility of HRM
systems, a greater transfer of powers
to public managers and investments in
leadership.”
How would the OECD structure the Fle-
mish administration based on the recom-
mendations for governments in Belgium?
Elsa Pilichowski: “There is no single
recipe for public management. Before
reform can happen, Flemish policy-ma-
kers must answer a number of structural
questions. What is the role and place
of a government in providing services?
What values does the government want
to promote? What level of politicisation
is necessary to ensure that services are
provided appropriately? How much does
the government want to move towards
a system of ‘the right person in the right
place’? Needless to say, here too there
are no right or wrong answers. Each
change produces positive and negative
effects. It is important to build up the
necessary capacity and to anticipate the
changes that reforms will bring.”
Need for bold and consistent strategies
Finally: what was the thrust of your
message at the Flemish middle manage-
ment conference? “You are well paid,
but your career is badly managed”?
Elsa Pilichowski: “That’s definitely part
of the story, but the core message is
about consistency. Some valuable re-
forms have undoubtedly taken place in
Flanders. However, a number of things
are far from perfect: the rising number
of civil servants, the level of politicisati-
on, the regulatory burden, inconsistency
of values, for example as regards the
function and growth potential of con-
tractual staff, and so on. The govern-
ment needs to take stock of where it is
today and develop bold strategies on
where it wants to head in a consistent
way, across all HRM systems.
Pierre Verdoodt and Peter Spyns
Office for Policy Research and
Foresight studies
20 See http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/1/48/39375676.pdf for a summary
and recommendations.
21 See also p. 32 of this issue
31
03-01-2008 13:54:03
 Challenging the government…
Ten paths to a more efficient
and effective Flemish
government
Are Belgium’s governments, and the Flemish government in particular, making the best possible use
of their resources? Are they taking too much from society?... These questions are as relevant now as
they ever have been.

32

EWI 3 ENG.indd 32 03-01-2008 13:54:03


Planned administrative reforms in the
Netherlands and France have sparked
suggestions about slimming down
government in Belgium too. With
government and public administration
considered unwieldy and inefficient,
controlling and reducing government
personnel in Belgium could possibly
generate substantial savings and im-
prove the efficiency and effectiveness of
government performance.
An oversized government that performs
only mediocrely
In this discussion, reference is often
made to international studies and other
sources showing that Belgium has a
relatively high number of public sector
employees, with over 17% of the
country’s active population working for
the government. Obviously, this covers
not only traditional general govern-
ment services but also local authorities,
education and so on. It is a high figure;
however, countries such as Norway,
Sweden and France score even higher
and much also depends on the tasks
performed by government. In fact, the
number of public sector employees is
actually increasing.
However, Belgium’s governments
would appear to be performing only
mediocrely: a 2004 World Bank study
on government effectiveness ranked
Belgium in a modest 8th position out of
25 EU countries.
OECD recommendations for a modern
HR policy
The OECD recently conducted an exten-
sive review of the working of Belgium’s
governments in the field of human
resources management (HRM)22. The
report contains a raft of recommenda-
tions for the Flemish government23 and
suggests reigning in the numbers and
cost of government staff.
But the report’s recommendations go
much further, encompassing a broad
range of measures and proposals. These
relate not only to personnel policy
and HRM but also to the relationship
and collaboration between the various
government players, the need to work
together more at administrative level
to tackle compartmentalisation and the
EWI 3 ENG.indd 33
> Central theme: From Flanders
need to clarify the division of tasks and
responsibilities between cabinets and
management.
The report is more balanced than is of-
ten suggested. It says that in many areas
the Flemish government is on the right
track: in the OECD’s view, the Flemish
government has, with the Better Admi-
nistrative Policy (BBB) scheme, pushed
through a consistent set of management
reforms which have already been largely
completed and implemented.
It is important to build on these streng-
ths, as there is obviously still scope for
improvement.
The Flemish government takes up the
challenge
The Board of Senior Officials (College
van Ambtenaren-Generaal or CAG) ana-
lysed the report in detail and formulated
a response to the OECD’s recommenda-
tions. Moreover, top-level civil servants
demonstrated their commitment by
drawing up a list of ten ‘paths’ with
proposals for improving the efficiency
and effectiveness of the Flemish public
sector (see CAG memo entitled De
overheid uitgedaagd…. 10 sporen naar
een efficiëntere en effectievere Vlaamse
overhead). The solution-oriented
proposals draw on a range of sources
including input from management com-
mittees in the various policy areas, col-
lected statistical data, concept papers on
measuring efficiency and effectiveness
in a government context and scientific
research. The whole package was sent
to the Flemish ministers on 5 October.
When evaluating public sector per-
formance, we must analyse not only
resources used but also process, product
and effect24. The relationship between
the resources used and the performance
given tells us about efficiency; the relati-
onship between the performance given
and the objectives achieved tells us
about the effectiveness of the produc-
tion process. Therefore, working with a
quantitatively strong public sector is not
necessarily a bad thing.
The CAG does not therefore favour
linear measures for cutting back staff
numbers, such as not replacing one in
three departing staff members. Rather
than taking a purely quantitative or
budgetary approach, the CAG advoca-
tes measures that are tailored to the size
of the entities or the policy fields and
domains concerned.
To enable a constructive debate on staff
numbers, cost, effectiveness and effi-
ciency, thorough documentation is vital,
including all necessary data such as the
number of full-time equivalents (FTEs),
operating costs and forecasts. This ap-
plies not just to the administration, but
also to the Flemish Parliament, the Fle-
mish government, the provinces and the
municipalities. The Board has gathered a
first set of statistics to this end.
Personnel data must always be exa-
mined in the light of the following
factors:
- the ever increasing extent of govern-
ment tasks and responsibilities;
- the complexity of regulation;
- the complicated institutional structure;
- the social role of the government in
terms of providing employment for its
citizens.
Ten organisation-wide proposals
A government’s performance cannot be
measured on the basis of economic cost
alone. The capacity and quality of go-
vernment are certainly just as relevant,
as the policy programme Flanders in
Action25 makes clear. For this reason, the
CAG has formulated ten organisation-
wide proposals, geared mainly to the
33
03-01-2008 13:54:05
 long term and aimed at taking full ad-
vantage of entities’ individual dynamics
and capacity for responsibility.
The proposals are varied and include:
- the urgent introduction of a manage-
ment information system for the use
of management, government and the
public. This would ensure the Flemish
government has accurate and clear
figures on personnel at all times, al-
lowing it to benchmark and adjust as
necessary;
- wholesale implementation of the
Better Administrative Policy (BBB)
scheme. The Flemish government
must build on its work with BBB. The
core BBB principles of relevance for
Flemish government capacity must be
implemented more extensively.
Examples include:
• developing a documented internal
monitoring system by late 2008;
• more and better cooperation within
and across policy domains;
22 See also p. 28 of this issue
23 Public Employment and Management Working Party. OECD Review of Government Human Resource Management in Belgium (Brussels-Capital Region, Federal
Government, Flemish Government, French Community, Walloon Region), 13/07/2007,134 pp. (final version).
24 See also p. 20 of this issue
25 http://www3.vlaanderen.be/vlaanderen-in-actie/actieplan.htm
34
EWI 3 ENG.indd 34
• clarifying the division of tasks and government structure, its capacity and
responsibilities between cabinets quality. The CAG urges the Flemish
and management; government, Flemish Parliament, muni-
• benchmarking on staff deployment, cipalities and provinces to get involved
in particular for ancillary services. in this exercise. After all, efficient and
- an innovative ICT policy; effective government is a sound invest-
- optimising internal organisation, inclu- ment for taxpayers’ money, makes for
ding a reduction of internal admini- satisfied customers (citizens, companies,
strative burdens; organisations) and…keeps civil servants
- simplifying HRM policy, filling in va- motivated.
cancies and working on staff deploy-
ment.
The Board has forwarded its proposals Eric Stroobants
to politicians and asked them to discuss Chairman of the Board of
about them. The aim is then to draft an Senior Officials
operational plan setting out practical
actions and allowing scope for efficiency
and effectiveness measures specific to
particular policy domains.
The CAG is keen to discharge its res-
ponsibility to the full in this debate and
hopes with this initiative to have made a
constructive and thoughtful contribution
to the further strengthening of Flanders’
03-01-2008 13:54:06
 > A number in close-up

The ß-index:
a layman’s guide
When I see a beta, I instinctively think of the writings of Homer, Herodotus and Euripides. That’s
what a classical education does for you! Odysseus comes to mind too, and not entirely inappropri-
ately: he is probably the closest link with science and innovation policy associated with this letter
of the Greek alphabet since, in addition to his main job as a Greek hero, he is also the patron of
the Flemish programme aimed at attracting scientists back to the region.

For international economists and OECD
officials, however, the letter ß has very
different connotations. The ß-index is a
measure of tax incentives for research
and development and is gaining ground
in OECD and other international stu-
dies26. The ß-index is therefore also used
as the twelfth follow-up parameter of
the Flanders Innovation Pact. ß indicates
what pre-tax income a research invest-
ment of 1 US dollar must generate to
cover the cost of the investment and the
income tax to be paid. In other words:
the amount that a research investment of
1 US dollar must generate (before tax) in
order not to make a loss after payment
of tax. ß is calculated using a number of
parameters, such as the general corpo-
rate tax rate, tax exemptions, tax credits
and depreciation of companies’ R&D
expenditure.
ß-weighed in the balance
A brief illustration: in 2006, ß was 0.91
for Belgium’s large companies and 1.01
for its SMEs. In order not to make a
loss, an investment of 1 dollar by a large
company had to generate 0.91 in pre-
tax income; the same investment by an
SME had to generate 1.01. Tax reliefs
(indicated by 1-ß) for large companies
covered not only the cost of tax but also
part of the original investment cost. SMEs
enjoyed less relief. The lower the ß, the
greater the incentive for the company to
undertake research and development.
This index should therefore tell us the
value of the tax reliefs. But this is where
things get complicated: the ß-index has
a number of limitations. One of these is
the fact that it only takes into account
tax exemptions and credits resulting in a
reduction in income tax. The wage cost
of R&D personnel is not factored in. In
Belgium, however, this factor occupies
a prominent place in fiscal measures.
Indeed, the tax-free innovation bonus,
tax deductibility for risk capital and
increased investment deduction for R&D
investments and patents are not the only
tax incentives for R&D. Belgian firms and
scientific institutions also enjoy partial
exemption from the payment of withhol-
ding tax for researchers, tax exemption
for additional scientific research staff and
a special tax system for foreign manageri-
al staff temporarily employed in Belgium.
If these are not factored into the index,
we do not obtain a complete picture: the
figures underestimate the actual value of
the tax reliefs.
Useful as a guide
Clearly, the index does have some value
as a guide. For example, the above-men-
tioned figures for 2006 show that Belgian
tax incentives are more generous for large
companies than for SMEs. In a country
where SMEs are extremely important to
economic development, this is a notable
finding. That said, tax incentives do not
necessarily lead to a high level of research
and development: in Spain and Portugal,
two countries with a low R&D intensity53,
1- is very high, whereas in Sweden and
Finland, two R&D front-runners, the
opposite is the case. Fiscal measures are
just one aspect of an R&D policy mix that
fosters business R&D. Also important are
subsidies, rules on intellectual property
rights, the financing of public research
institutions and measures promoting
cooperation with the private sector. The
role and impact of tax incentives in this
tangled web is difficult to measure.
The minister responsible for science and
innovation policy has asked the Fle-
mish Science Policy Council (VRWB) to
conduct a study into the impact of fiscal
measures and develop a new metho-
dology for monitoring this. The study is
being supported by a focus and steering
group, in which the EWI Department is
represented. Give the complexity of the
subject matter, this attempt to understand
the effect of tax incentives is definitely
time well spent.
Karen Haegemans
Policy Support and
Academic Policy Team
26 J. Warda, Measuring the Value of R&D Tax Treatment in OECD
Countries, OECD STI-Review 27, 2001, p. 192.
Sources
• J. Warda, Measuring the Value of R&D Tax Tre-
atment in OECD Countries, OECD STI-Review
27, 2001, 180-207.
• Innovatief België. Fiscale maatregelen en innova-
tiepremies voor de bedrijven, Federal Science
Policy Brochure, 2006.
• J. Fiers, Fiscale stimuli voor onderzoek en ontwik-
keling in België, Federal Planning Bureau Working
Paper 6-06, 2006.
• Begroting Wetenschap & Innovatie 2007, VRWB,
Advies 113.

35

EWI 3 ENG.indd 35 03-01-2008 13:54:12

 > In the spotlight

Attack on
a botanic garden
Speaking before the parliamentary commission of 9 May 2000, Jaak Gabriëls noted that
previous state reforms had seen a gap of up to eight years between the theoretical deci-
sion to defederalise and implementation on the ground. He might have added that the
institutions duet to be defederalised bear the brunt of this delay27.

Figure 9: Balat Greenhouse

36

EWI 3 ENG.indd 36 03-01-2008 13:54:14

 The National Botanic Garden is one of
those institutions and a crown jewel of
our heritage – literally, as well as figu-
ratively, as the estate belonged to the
Royal Family between 1879 and 1938.
The last remaining vestige of those
original sites is the Kruidtuin/Botanique
in Brussels.
Its scientific value is what gives the Bo-
tanic Garden its worldwide reputation.
With a herbarium housing 3.5 million
specimens, including the world’s biggest
rose herbarium, 18,000 plant species
cultivated, 48 greenhouses, a gene
bank, seed bank and wild areas contai-
ning rare local plants, the Meise Botanic
Garden was - before the federalisation
saga got under way - one of the top 20
botanical gardens in the world.
The work of Meise’s researchers, who
come from Belgium and abroad, focuses
on plant systematics and related fields.
For historical reasons, the collections
from Central Africa and Europe are of
particular importance, although plants
from the rest of the world are amply
represented.
Figure 10: Giant water lily inside a greenhouse
Alongside its plant collections, the Bota-
nic Garden has one of Europe’s leading
botanical libraries. If you’re looking
for information on topics such as plant
systematics, plant distribution, the relati-
onship of plants with their surroundings
or the history of botany, the Botanic
Garden is the place for you.
The library is only one of the treasures
open to the public at Meise. The estate
houses a diverse range of historical
heritage, from Bouchout Castle and the
Vlaamse Hoeve farmhouse to the Castle
Garden and the Balat Greenhouse (see
Figure 9). For the general public, the
Botanic Garden is above all a great re-
creational resource: a unique 90 hectare
estate within a stone’s throw of Brussels.
Seeing photos of its neglected state is
therefore a painful experience for many
lovers of the Botanic Garden. The ‘black
EWI 3 ENG.indd 37
page’ on the Meise website makes this have still not resulted in any definite
only too clear28. arrangements. The official reason is that
the French Community still has questi-
What went wrong? ons about the status of French-speaking
staff and the inventory of certain plants
Under the Lambermont state reform, in a number of herbaria.
the Meise Botanic Garden was transfer-
red from federal to Flemish level. Even And so, seven years after negotiations
at the time, demands for a cooperation on the fifth state reform, the Meise
agreement between the communities Botanic Garden remains embroiled in
generated a lot of heated discussion. inter-community wrangling over a sixth
state reform... A Belgian joke? Or plain
The French speaking part of Belgium still sabotage?
feels as if they were unfairly robbed of
the Botanic Garden, while the Flemish
see it as an indisputable part of a done-
and-dusted Lambermont agreement.
The ambiguity persists to this day. As a
result, since the mid-1990s the Regie
der Gebouwen/Régie des Bâtiments
(Buildings Agency) has only paid for Stijn Eeckhaut
maintenance work where there is a Policy Support and
proven safety risk, explains the Botanic Academic Policy Team
Garden’s Director, Jan Rammeloo.
The situation has not improved over the
years. Whereas initially the Buildings 27 Onrust in wetenschappelijke instelling van
Agency financed vital repairs, in 2004 Meise over regionalisering, De Standaard,
it began prefinancing for the Flemish 10/05/2000, p.3
government. Now it is the Flemish 28 www.br.fgov.be > Nationale Plantentuin van
België > doorklikken naar “De zwarte bladzijde
government itself that provides the van de Plantentuin”
funds. However, the National Botanic
Garden remains a federal institution
until a cooperation agreement between
the French and Flemish communities has
been signed. Extract from “the black page of the National Bota-
nic Garden of Belgium”:
The Vlaamse Hoeve is a historic building near the main
entrance. Part of it is so dilapidated and infested by
fungi and mould that it could be opened as a living
museum for fungi and mould in buildings (see Figure
12). The only thing that the worst affected wing has
been used for in the last few decades is to shoot part
of a film in collaboration with Janssen Pharmaceutica’s
material protection department. It was also used as a
teaching aid during the visit of a Chinese delegation
organised by Janssen Pharmaceutica. The participants
Figure 11: Wild area with local rare plants were heritage officers responsible for treating mould
on China’s unique terracotta army.
Meanwhile, the negotiations over an
agreement, or rather the details of
an agreement, drag on. From March
2001, a draft agreement awaited the
signatures of the two minister-presi-
dents. In 2003, Patrick Dewael and
Hervé Hasquin signed the text of the
cooperation agreement on behalf of the
two communities. However, when the
explanatory notes were being drawn
up, a number of contentious points
arose which stopped the procedure in
its tracks.
In 2005, fresh talks began between the
then Flemish minister-president Yves Figure 12: Mouldy mouldy on the wall …
Leterme and Marie Arena, minister-pre-
sident of the French Community. These
37
03-01-2008 13:54:17
 Earning
a doctorate
in Flanders
The pinnacle of academic studies, doctorates - the opportunity for young researchers to show that
they can make an original and independent contribution to science - are an important indicator
of the quality of university education and research. The demand for highly trained researchers in
Flanders’ knowledge economy is expected to rise over the coming years. Interest in the subject of
doctorates is also increasing, in proportion with the need for highly trained research personnel.
Contradictory reports appear in print. On the one hand, entrepreneurs complain of a shortage of
highly trained personnel in science, technology and innovation. On the other hand, doctors - the
very epitome of high level training - are often associated with a lack of job opportunities and even
unemployment, accused of lacking experience of the real world, being over-specialised and unsui-
ted to the big bad world outside the university gates.

Faced with this perception, we need to
take a look at the figures. How efficient
is the doctoral process in Flanders? The
key indicators for efficiency are: comple-
tion rate and job opportunities.
Who pays for a doctorate?
The main options for funding a docto-
rate in Flanders are the PhD grant of the
Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO-
aspirantschap), the post-graduate grant
of the Institute for the Promotion of
Innovation by Science and Technology
in Flanders (specialisatiebeurs), the BOF
grant (BOF-beurs) and the assistantship
(assistentenmandaat). In addition, some
doctoral students work on research pro-
jects carrying out a specific research task
which can be supplemented with their
doctoral research. For those with a pro-
moter but no funding, another option is
obviously to cover their own costs.
The Flemish government, represented
by the EWI Department, funds the
IWT grant and the FWO grant via the
agencies IWT and FWO. While FWO
doctoral students concentrate on basic
research, IWT fellows usually work on
a more applied project. Graduates from
the various universities compete for
these two types of position. Currently,
190 aspirant positions and 200 IWT spe-
cialisation fellowships are awarded each
year. This difference is notable since IWT
fellowships are only open to candidates
from a limited number of exact and
applied science fields, whereas the FWO
covers the whole academic spectrum. As
a result, researchers from the exact and
applied disciplines have more options
when applying for a doctoral fellowship
than those working in the humanities,
for example.
Another Flemish government funding
channel for basic research is the Special
Research Fund (Bijzonder Onder-
zoeksfonds or BOF). Every university is
responsible for managing its own BOF
funds. Competition for BOF grants is
limited to proposals within a given uni-
versity (intra-university competition).
There are therefore various doctoral
schemes in Flanders, each with its own
selection criteria, employment condi-
tions and procedures. Every academic
research project starts with a search
for the right funding channel. At first
glance, the existence of so many dif-
ferent schemes would not seem the
most efficient way of awarding doctoral
fellowships. However, it does have
a major advantage: each fellowship
scheme has its own characteristics and
suits a particular type of researcher. The
plethora of schemes means that a very
diverse range of researchers are catered

38

EWI 3 ENG.indd 38 03-01-2008 13:54:22


for. Diversity as the basis for creativity
and innovation, one might say.
Do all doctoral students become doc-
tors?
What is the doctoral completion rate?
The Flemish Science Policy Council
(VRWB) has published a study entitled
Doctoreren aan Vlaamse universitei-
ten29, which compares the number of
people who actually earn doctorates
with the number who embark on them.
The most important findings are:
• The higher the (under)graduate
marks, the greater the chance of com-
pleting the doctorate and the shorter
the time taken30.
• A full-time position is the best gua-
rantee of completing the doctorate:
the completion rate rises in proportion
to the number of hours spent on the
doctorate per week31. 34% of the
research intake earned a doctorate in
the review period. This percentage
rises to 67% for researchers working
full-time over 4-6 years32.
• The completion rate varies sharply
according to faculty and scientific
field33 (see Figure 13). The completion
rate in the humanities is significantly
lower than in the natural and applied
sciences.
The question is how to interpret these
differences34. Completion procedures;
membership or otherwise of a research
group; support offered; requirements
imposed; the approach to literature;
added value on the labour market: all
these factors vary considerably from
one discipline to another. The ability to
put the doctorate to good use on the
labour market undoubtedly contribu-
tes to the greater level of motivation
seen in a number of disciplines.
• There is a hierarchy of completion ac-
cording to funding scheme. Those on
FWO grants (77.5%) and IWT grants
(76.7%) are most likely to complete
Educational sciences
Law
Arts
Biomedical sciences
Chemistry
Figure 13: Completion rate by discipline
EWI 3 ENG.indd 39
> Policy in practice
their doctorate, followed by those
with project grants (BOF, IWT and
FWO) (42.7%), assistants (31,3%)
and other grant holders (26.6%)35.
• This hierarchy is exactly mirrored in
the speed of completion, with FWO
fellows taking the least time and as-
sistants the most36. The average length
of a doctorate is 5.4 years. 25% of
researchers complete their doctorate in
4.2 years, 50% in 5.2 years and 75%
in 6.4 years37.
FWO, IWT or assistant?
These differences in completion rate
between the various fellowships/grants
are striking, with university assistants
and BOF grant holders in particular
scoring far too low. Which begs the
question – why?
Job hopping - or rather fellowship
(s)hopping - may offer one explanation.
In researchers’ eyes, there is an informal
hierarchy of fellowships. Some positions
are abandoned prematurely by suc-
cessful candidates in favour of a more
prestigious and/or financially attractive
doctoral fellowship.
A second explanation may be that this
group is more encumbered with other
tasks besides research work38, although
this is partially offset by the longer dura-
tion of their fellowship.
A third possible explanation for the low
score may be the fact that the individu-
als in questions are motivated less by
research and more by teaching. It would
seem that, for assistants, academic
ambition is much less of a reason for
beginning a doctorate (see Figure 14)39.
Given that they tend to be the ones
most assigned to teaching duties, this
may not be such a bad thing. However,
we should not lose sight of the fact
that their primary task is to complete a
doctorate. At least half of their time is to
be spent on research.
Completion rate by discipline
8%
14%
26%
52%
0 20 40
A fourth explanation may be the selec-
tion procedure. If completion rates are
to rise, it is vital that assistants - just like
FWO and IWT fellows - be selected on
the basis of academic excellence. Tea-
ching and personal skills may be more
important in assistants than in fellows,
whose positions are geared exclusively
towards research, but these should not
be a substitute for a lack of academic
motivation.
And after university?
The employment opportunities of doc-
tors also vary. The VRWB study Perspec-
tieven uitgestroomde wetenschappers
op de arbeidsmarkt40 (Labour market
prospects for ex-university researchers)
examined the careers of different ex-
university researchers41.
Inexperience of the world appears not
to be a major problem. In general,
young researchers seem to find good
jobs relatively easily, even if they have
not completed their doctorate. The great
majority of ex-university researchers in
the period 1990-2000 found work im-
mediately after leaving university; only
a fifth experienced temporary invo-
luntary unemployment. Of the latter
group, over half found a job within six
months of leaving university. Some had
a tougher time of it, namely biologists
and chemists, historians, art historians,
theologians and philosophers42.
This VRWB study also shows that docto-
rates in the natural and applied sciences
and medicine in particular bring social
benefits (in terms of income, additional
benefits, access to managerial roles,
etc.), whereas this is hardly true of the
cultural and behavioural sciences43.
Employers’ perceptions are coloured
by prejudices and by the higher labour
costs of candidates with a PhD. Those
with a humanities doctorate suffer from
the fact that the business world is una-
71%
60 80 100
39
03-01-2008 13:54:25
 % reason for startin
% neutral
% not reason for start
Other statutes
Other project
Paid assistant
FWO/IWT/BOF
Basic research project
0% 20% 40%
Figure 14: Academic ambition among doctoral students
Percentage of doctorate holders as a proportion of the reference population – international comparison
2000-2001 2001-2002
FL 0.8 0.9
BE 1 1.1
NL 1.3 1.3
FR 1.4 1.4
SW 2.7 2.8
OECD 1.1 1.2
International figures show that it is important to monitor trends closely and if necessary offer better
support to our doctoral students and make doctorates more attractive. The number of people earning
doctorates in Flanders is relatively low in comparison with other OECD countries, although the
percentage of people with doctorates did rise between 2000 and 2003. This is encouraging, but the
OECD average is higher and saw an identical increase47.
ware of or undervalues their potential.
Obviously, the value of a doctorate is
not solely determined by the labour
market. A doctorate is also a way of
conducting research in relative freedom
and of realising one’s potential. That
said, to avoid major disappointment
when leaving university, young people
must start their doctorate for the right
reasons and realise that a purely acade-
mic career for all doctors is not realistic.
One result of the lack of labour market
prospects may be that, as a UGent and
K.U.Leuven questionnaire highlights,
doctoral students in the humanities see
an academic career as an important
reason for starting a doctorate44, more
so than those in other disciplines. The
ambition or otherwise to have an aca-
demic career, the scientific field and the
perceived future prospects offered by
a doctorate would appear to be tightly
bound up with one another. However,
most of them will end up pursuing ca-
reers in the private sector. Transparency
and career guidance can from the outset
play an important role in how doctoral
students see themselves and their future
career.
For these reasons, there is a need in
the academic world - and not only in
the humanities, but in all disciplines
- to hone those skills that the private
sector expects of its employees45. It is
clear that universities are committed
to supporting their young researchers.
Long-standing PhD courses offered by
40
EWI 3 ENG.indd 40
60% 80% 100%
2002-2003 2005
1 -
1 1.2
1.3 1.5
1.2 -
2.8 2.2
1.3 1.3
Flemish universities are being adapted
to new challenges and reorganised into
doctorate schools and support projects
geared, amongst other things, to equip-
ping doctoral students with a broader
range of skills.
No generalisations
The efficiency of the Flemish doctoral
system can be assessed in three areas:
funding schemes, completion rate and
job opportunities. The existence of
different types of funding arrangement
- FWO PhD grant, IWT PhD grant, BOF
grant and assistantship - has obvious
advantages: individual selection criteria,
different target groups, choice for stu-
dents, and so on. It is like different com-
panies producing very similar products.
Other European countries too have
different schemes running side by side.
Each has its own level of efficiency in
terms of completion rate, and students’
success at completing their projects
varies according to discipline and type of
position. Job opportunities also vary, not
so much according to the type of posi-
tion but more according to the discipline
to which the doctorate relates.
Let us be clear: the most important
thing here is to avoid generalisation.
Each doctor is individual and unique.
Chances of success during and after the
doctorate vary from candidate to can-
didate, the main criteria being the type
of doctorate, the funding source and,
above all, the discipline. All these vari-
ous factors affect not only the comple-
tion rate but also the economic viability
of doctorate-holders.
Finally, a word for those eagle-eyed
readers among you. You will have
noticed that the figures we are using are
(by necessity) somewhat old. To remedy
this problem, the Policy Research Centre
for R&D Indicators46 has recently started
work on an integrated database system
for doctoral output in Flanders. This will
allow us to follow the latest develop-
ments much more closely.
Peter Bakema and Karen Haegemans
Policy Support and Academic Policy
Team
29 M.S. Visser and H.F. Moed, Doctoreren aan Vlaamse uni-
versiteiten (1991-2002). I. Kwantitatieve analyse. Brussels:
VRWB, 2006 (Study Series No. 15). Also available electroni-
cally on the VRWB website: www.vrwb.be.
30 Doctoreren aan Vlaamse universiteiten. Kwantitatieve
analyse, p. 86, 94.
31 Doctoreren aan Vlaamse universiteiten. Kwantitatieve
analyse, p. 84, 92.
32 Doctoreren aan Vlaamse universiteiten. Kwantitatieve
analyse, p. 145-146.
33 Doctoreren aan Vlaamse universiteiten. Kwantitatieve
analyse, p. 87-89.
34 Doctoreren in Vlaanderen, p. 66; Doctoreren aan Vlaamse
universiteiten. Synthesenota en aanbevelingen, p. 28.
35 Doctoreren aan Vlaamse universiteiten. Kwantitatieve
analyse, p. 63, 69, 129.
36 Doctoreren aan Vlaamse universiteiten. Kwantitatieve
analyse, p. 115.
37 Doctoreren aan Vlaamse universiteiten. Kwantitatieve
analyse, p. 56-58.
38 A. Verlinden, N. Rons, K. Vercoutere and E. Spruyt, Doctore-
ren aan Vlaamse universiteiten (1991-2002). II. Synthesenota
en aanbevelingen. Brussels: VRWB, 2006 (Study Series No.
15), p. 55; A. Verlinden, J. Billiet, H. Pyck et al., Doctoreren in
Vlaanderen. Verslag van de survey aan de Universiteit Gent
en de Katholieke Universiteit Leuven. Ghent-Leuven, 2005,
p. 35-38. Also available online at http://www.kuleuven.
be/doctoreren/presentaties/doctoreren_survey.pdf.
39 Doctoreren in Vlaanderen, p. 20-21 + table 7.
40 R. S’Jegers, J. Braeckman, L. Smit and T. Speelman, Perspec-
tieven uitgestroomde wetenschappers op de arbeidsmarkt.
Brussel: VRWB, 2002 (Study Series No. 6). Also available
electronically on the VRWB website: www.vrwb.be.
41 i.e. researchers who have worked in a position of some kind
at a university, whether or not with the intention of comple-
ting a doctorate.
42 Perspectieven uitgestroomde wetenschappers, p. 62-64.
43 Perspectieven uitgestroomde wetenschappers, p. 77-78, 83.
44 Doctoreren in Vlaanderen, p. 26-27 + figure 2.
45 Perspectieven uitgestroomde wetenschappers, p. 84.
46 See also p. 41
47 Vlaamse onderwijsindicatoren in internationaal perspectief.
2003/2004/2005 editions, table OUT3.1. OECD - Education
at a glance, 2003-2006
03-01-2008 13:54:26
 > Policy Research Centres

The Policy Research

Centre for R&D Indicators
The mission of the Policy Research Centre for R&D Indicators (Steunpunt O&O-Indicatoren) is
to develop and maintain a consistent and coherent system of Research, Development and Inno-
vation (RD&I) databases and related policy indicators. The indicator system is designed to enable
the Flemish government to map and monitor RD&I efforts in the Flemish Region as part of its
science and innovation policy. The Policy Research Centre provides the Flemish government with
up-to-date and relevant statistical data on the region’s R&D and innovation performance. It also
conducts scientific research into new indicators and carries out comparative studies on the effects
of R&D policy measures and contingent policy instruments. The Policy Research Centre (PRC) also
undertakes ad-hoc assignments and projects at the request of the Flemish government.

To carry out its mission and assignments,
the PRC is developing a portfolio of
relevant research activities and has already
built up an integrated and structured set
of databases. These contain data derived
from its own, original data collection
together with information from existing
databases, acquired under licence agree-
ments and adapted and refined according
to the Flemish research context.
Database structure
The original or primary data collections
cover two major research fields. Firstly,
there are the biennial RD&I surveys, in
which Flemish companies are asked about
their research activities (via the OECD
R&D survey) and their innovation efforts
via the Community Innovation Surveys
(CISs). This research is implemented in
accordance with international agreements.
Secondly, efforts to compile and update
a database on doctoral researchers48 (and
their career characteristics) in Flanders are
ongoing. The database also documents
the intersectoral and international mobility
of researchers, this being a closely related
issue.
Alongside this, the PRC has developed -
based on databases acquired under licence
(secondary databases) - a consistent time
series of indicators based on bibliometric
and technometric data dating back to
the early 1980s. The bibliometric data
structures have been developed under a
comprehensive licence agreement with
the Institute for Scientific Information
(ISI-Thomson) and include the complete
primary data structure of the Web of
Science (WoS). The PRC has integrated
the primary data structure from the WoS
into a database for indicator development
serving both research and policy objecti-
ves. The technometric data structures are
developed and operated under licence
agreements with the suppliers of the large
patent databases - the European Patent
Office (EPO), US Patent & Trademark
Office (USPTO) and World Intellectual
Property Organisation (WIPO). They
have been processed and integrated into
a patent database focusing on Flemish
inventors and applicants.
Supporting policy studies and decisions
Using the data sources it has compiled,
the PRC can support the Flemish go-
vernment by providing relevant data in
a number of regular assignments, policy
studies and policy decisions. For example,
publication and citation data for Flemish
universities have been calculated annually
over a 10-year period (after validation by
the universities) based on the bibliometric
databases in the Science Citation Index
Expanded part of the Web of Science.
They are used for the annual allocation of
research budgets to the Flemish universi-
ties based on the Special Research Fund
(BOF) key49. Data from the patent databa-
ses also provide the input for the annual
calculation of the Industrial Research Fund
(IOF) key50.
In addition to this, the above data struc-

41

EWI 3 ENG.indd 41 03-01-2008 13:54:27

 Name: Policy Research Centre for R&D Indicators (Steun-
punt O&O-Indicatoren)
Promoter-coordinator: Prof. dr. Koenraad Debackere
Consortium members:
- K.U.Leuven
- Ghent University
- University of Antwerp
- Vrije Universiteit Brussel
- Hasselt University
Address: Dekenstraat 2, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium
tel.: +32 (0) 16 32 57 29
fax: +32 (0) 16 32 57 99
Website: http://www.steunpuntooi.be
Minister responsible: Flemish Minister for Economy, Enter-
prise, Science, Innovation and Foreign Trade
Budget: 1.726.000 euro

42

EWI 3 ENG.indd 42 03-01-2008 13:54:27

 tures help the Flemish government to
resolve important policy issues and in its
evaluations of the actors in the Flemish re-
search landscape. Examples include studies
on the bibliometric and technometric input
of strategic research centres like IMEC
and the VIB and bibliometric analysis of
the projects and post-doctoral researchers
supported by the Research Foundation
- Flanders (FWO)51. Other areas of interest
are research into doctoral efficiency52,
researcher mobility (between institutions
and countries) and the effect of gender on
research activity. Naturally, the compiled
databases also enable international com-
parisons on these topics.
Innovation studies and indicators
However, the PRC’s assignments for the
Flemish government do not relate to the
academic research landscape alone. The
government also has important questions
and assignments in the field of innovation
studies and indicators, one example being
the biennial calculation of Flanders’ status
in relation to the 3% R&D objective53
using the OECD R&D survey. This gives
the Flemish government an up-to-date
picture of R&D expenditure in the private
and public sector in Flanders, both in
absolute terms and as a percentage of the
region’s GDP. The relevant international
comparisons and benchmarks are perfor-
med in connection to these norms and
standards. The innovation performance of
Flemish companies, as derived from regu-
lar Eurostat CIS surveys, is another area of for anyone wanting to look into or find
study. Flanders’ various innovation actors out more about the Flemish innovation
make extensive use of the survey results landscape.
when mapping and examining the innova-
tion activities of companies and sectors.
Of course, the PRC does more than simply
report data and indicators. It carries out
studies to map and accurately estimate the
additionality effects of the Flemish govern-
ment’s R&D efforts. This reassures the
government that the resources it invests in
company research are resulting in signifi-
cant, intramural54 R&D expenditures at the
companies receiving its support. The PRC
also maps and monitors the distribution of
RD&I financial resources and expenditures
between the different actors in the Flemish
innovation system.
Flemish STI Indicator Book
Thus, the Policy Research Centre for R&D
Indicators provides the Flemish govern-
ment with a unique and integrated array
of data sets and statistical instruments that
allow to map and monitor the activities
and results of the Flemish research and
innovation system. Every two years, the
most significant data, indicators and study
findings are combined and reviewed in a Koenraad Debackere
publication known as the Flemish Indicator Coordinator of the Policy Research Centre
Book for Science, Technology and In- for R&D Indicators (K.U.Leuven)
novation (STI). The latest edition appeared Edited by Peter Viaene
in late 2007, updating previous editions Office for Policy Research and
from 2003 and 2005. It is a handy guide Foresight studies

Vocabulary

Indicators are variables that can be used to give an aggregated view of RD&I activities. Examples of indicators are Flan-
ders’ R&D intensity (the so-called ‘3% objective’53), the publication activity of Flemish universities and the internatio-
nal impact of research publications by Flemish universities.

By bibliometrics we mean the measurement and characterisation of publication output by researchers, research groups
and research institutions. This is done using publication databases, the most well-known and used of which is the
Web of Science, provided by ISI-Thomson in Philadelphia. These databases catalogue and index scientific articles
published in peer-reviewed journals dating back to the 1980’s.

By technometrics we mean the measurement and characterisation of technological progress by analysing the patent
output of inventors, organisations, regions and countries. This is done using patent databases such as those created
and published by national and international patent offices, of which the most well-known are the WIPO (World
International Property Organisation), EPO (European Patent Office), USPTO (US Patent and TradeMark Office) and
JPO (Japan Patent Office).

48 See also p. 38 of this issue.

49 Every university has a Special Research Fund (BOF) to finance basic groundbreaking research. The BOF is the funding channel that allows universities
to develop their own research policy and to support research over the longer term. Proposals (projects and positions) are submitted by members of the
university’s own academic staff. The BOF key is the key used to distribute this funding between the various universities.
50 Established in 2004, the Industrial Research Fund (IOF) provides the Flemish universities with the funding they need to develop their own policies on stra-
tegic basic research leading to exploitation and research valorisation activities. Here too, a distribution key with various parameters and weightings is used
to allocate the funding between the universities.
51 FWO-Vlaanderen implements government policy on fundamental research. It is a government agency that distributes funding between universities and
research institutions.
52 Doctoral efficiency considers factors such as the duration of the doctoral process and the development from junior to senior level – see also p. 38 of this
issue.
53 See also EWI Review 1 (1): 14-17 and EWI Review 2 (1): 32-37.
54 Intramural expenditure is the total R&D spending within an institution, irrespective of funding source and including current expenditures and investments. 43

EWI 3 ENG.indd 43 03-01-2008 13:54:29

 > Focus

Can we
settle
for a bit
less?
The long-term development of our society depends largely on how effectively the eco-
nomy, science and innovation respond to the challenges of the future. Sustainable de-
velopment may be a fashionable phenomenon, but it is and will remain an extremely
important issue. The idea ‘think globally, act locally’ is becoming ever more relevant in all
areas of life.

When we in Flanders consider our long-
term future, we have to realise that eve-
ry form of economic development - on
which the prosperity, and above all the
well-being, of our society, is based - will
be subject to a number of increasingly
weighty restrictions. The idea of ‘limits
to growth’ first emerged in the 1970s,
but at the start of the 21st century it is
more relevant than ever. The earth has
a dwindling supply of resources to sup-
port economic growth, all the more so
as its population expands.
On the other hand, recent years have
witnessed major progress in scientific re-
search. The technological developments
of the past few decades mean than our
society is able to respond more effecti-
vely to the challenges of the future. In
other words, tomorrow’s world will be
a different place, but no less attractive
for that.
Though we cannot fully control our
future, we can help to shape it. By using
economic development to react to the
opportunities, as well as the increa-
sing restrictions, of our world, we can
ensure that tomorrow’s society will be
better than today’s. In essence, we must
achieve qualitative improvements over
the long term by reckoning with quanti-
tative restrictions in the short term.
Through innovation and research
- based on the knowledge that the
reserves available to man are limited,
but that increasing technological deve-
lopments are a potential solution to this
- the business world can make a major
contribution to healthy, sustainable
growth that will benefit all of society.
The economy and sustainable develop-
ment
The government plays an important
role in developing sustainable economic
policy. Sustainable development is no
longer confined to the environment
or to purely ecological issues. Ageing
population in Europe and exponential
population growth in other parts of
the world will create new challenges
in the coming decades. The ‘footprint’
of this mass of humanity is too big
to be measured solely in terms of the
environment.
In other words: sustainable develop-
ment is now a matter for every indivi-
dual and hence for every type of policy.
From combating poverty, through tack-
ling the greenhouse effect to care for
the elderly, from infrastructure projects
to educational reform: all aspects of our
society need to be called into question,
if not in the short term then in the me-
dium to long term.
However, this plethora of issues cannot
be dealt with at a stroke. Cooperation
between all partners - government,
academics and business - is required
to ensure effective action, without
obviating the need for every individual
to take responsibility for his or her

44

EWI 3 ENG.indd 44 03-01-2008 13:54:31

 personal footprint. The same applies to
the economy, science and innovation,
where mutual cooperation can lead
to real, positive results. Putting good
ideas into practice, translating science
into innovation and thereby giving the
economy the means to develop in a
sustainable way.
To look far into the distance, you often
need to stand on tiptoe. The smaller the
footprint, the sharper the vision. Future-
oriented thinking often equates to very
simple gestures.
Building a sustainable economy
Away from the hype that has develo-
ped around sustainable development
in recent years, there is room for a visi-
onary policy. This is not simply a moral
necessity. It is also a challenge offering
new growth perspectives, which the
EWI 3 ENG.indd 45
economy can exploit in order to benefit paying the price (probably for the first
the whole of society over the long term. time in history).
Positive and sustainable entrepreneur-
ship is an idea that is increasingly perco-
lating to the top of the business world.
Not only does it immediately enhance
the image of the initiator, but it also As leading mid-20th century economist
drives up efficiency and guarantees it Joseph Schumpeter55 once said: in a
in the long run. Here too, the same old capitalist society it is not only impor-
principle applies: research and innova- tant to have good ideas; what also
tion lead on to success. Those who react matters is having the right idea at the
most efficiently to the challenges of the
right time. Sustainable development is
future win hands down.
a good idea, and the time is now ripe
It sounds counterintuitive but the fact to put it into practice.
that there are ‘limits to growth’ does
not have to dampen economic deve-
lopment. Quite the opposite. A better
understanding of the opportunities
offered by the future can spur on eco- Frank Vereecken
nomic growth, without our society or Office for Policy Research and
the planet on which we live ultimately Foresight studies
45
55 See also p. 6 of this issue.
03-01-2008 13:54:33
 > Innovation in action

Strengthening our
innovative
environment
Government efficiency is a hot topic, as this issue
of EWI Review makes clear. Civil servants are hard
at work on it. Business leaders talk of unwieldy
government machinery that could be much more
efficient. Administrative simplification; improving
customer satisfaction; the one-stop shop for busi-
nesses; mobility schemes; innovations at every turn.
However, it isn’t quite as simple as it seems at first
glance.

Flanders DC wanted to find out whether
innovation training can really make a
difference. It began its experiment by
organising a competition under the slogan
“Don’t invest in innovation”, aimed at
civil servants with an innovative idea. The
prize was an innovation management
course at the prestigious Vlerick Leuven
Ghent Management School56, giving the
winner the know-how needed to put their
idea into practice. The competition was
won by Eric Kenis of the Flanders Traffic
Control Centre57. Following his master
class in innovation and entrepreneurship,
we asked him how it all went and about
the differences between innovation in
companies and government departments.
Eric’s project
“I had the idea of creating a traffic infor-
mation system that gives drivers tailored
and up-to-date traffic information and
speed advice while also directing vehicles
away from road closures and congestion
– something known as vehicle telematics
in the trade. It was a highly ambitious and
complex project, involving lots of different
parties, and was therefore best tackled at
a higher level than Flanders,” Eric Kenis
explains.
To implement an idea like this, you need
to know the best approach to adopt. Was
an innovation course useful in this res-
pect? Eric Kenis: “A course doesn’t give
you the solution on a plate, but it was an
incredible experience. Everyone tends to
overestimate their own ideas; the profes-
sors give you tools that allow you to gain
a better understanding of your project
and therefore make better judgements.”
Mobility is an issue for everyone, whether
they like it or not. “ Which means that
everyone has an opinion on it, some of
them quite pronounced,” Eric goes on.
“Those opinions are not always based on
a solid foundation of knowledge. If traf-
fic was easy to manage and control, we
wouldn’t have the problems we do now.
There isn’t a single quick-fix solution.
Traffic is an inexact science that operates
according to an interactive process. Every
innovation or adjustment can gene-
rate unexpected effects. Obviously, that
doesn’t mean that we should sit back and
do nothing...”
Innovation = idea + entrepreneurship +
management
Innovation starts with an idea. But it
doesn’t end there, as Eric Kenis explains:
“You need to know how to sell that idea.
You need to be able to convince people.
In the initial phase that’s probably the
most important thing. And to do so takes
a healthy dose of entrepreneurship.”
The trickiest parts include convincing
investors and drawing up the financial
plan. Patents are also tough. “But even if
something is patented, that doesn’t mean
that you can’t do anything with it. You
can find solutions that work for everyone.
That’s all part of entrepreneurship,” he
says.

46

EWI 3 ENG.indd 46 03-01-2008 13:54:34

 Eric Kenis
At a later stage, what you really need to
develop your idea is management skills
so that you can administer resources and
people. In other words, you need to start
as a good entrepreneur and finish as a
good manager.
Does the government need innovation?
The big difference between governments
and companies is their objectives. Com-
panies are out to make a profit. When
launching new products or services, they
ensure that the different links in the chain
work together as efficiently as possible
in order to maximise profit and keep the
initiative going. “In government, things
are different,” Eric Kenis says. “Profit for
a government is user friendliness, quality
service and customer appreciation. That
type of profit is much harder to measure,
certainly in financial terms.”
In very many cases, it is not government’s
job to be radically innovative. “Innovation
for innovation’s sake, as sometimes hap-
EWI 3 ENG.indd 47
pens with consumer products, is wrong.
Changing laws and regulations every five
minutes creates confusion. Government
innovations must be approached carefully,
but also efficiently.”
99% of innovation is about improving
efficiency
Innovation doesn’t have to be radical.
Indeed, there are different degrees of
innovation. In 99% of cases, innovating
means continually improving existing
processes. The objectives can vary, from
boosting efficiency to improving user
friendliness or auditability. Examining the
use of techniques or processes from other
fields can also be part of this.
“Civil servants need to be constantly
aware of the impact that innovation
has. For precisely this reason, the Traffic
Control Centre regularly performs ex-
ante impact analyses, for example when
imposing a speed restriction during smog
alerts. Reducing speed not only lowers
exhaust emissions but also cuts the likeli-
hood of accidents. On the other hand, it
can sometimes adversely affect individual
traffic flow.”
This brings us to strategy, a cornerstone of
the Vlerick course. Says Eric Kenis: “Deve-
loping a strategy means making choices.
You have to think well ahead and be awa-
re that you’ll have to make sacrifices in
other areas. In a traffic scheme, choosing
to focus on environment and safety might
have implications in terms of congestion.
These are the kinds of things you need to
weigh up in your strategy. In government,
the collective good will always take prece-
dence over the individual.”
So, how is Eric’s project faring today?
“We’ll still working on it. Some pieces of
the jigsaw are being filled in at Flemish
level, through participation in research
projects and work on a Flemish speed
database, amongst other things. There
are lots of stakeholders involved, all of
whom need to invest a lot in the project.
47
03-01-2008 13:54:47
 It doesn’t seem to be quite the right time
yet as all the links in the chain need to
be able and willing to contribute. Also,
although a telematics project will mean
more efficient traffic flow, it won’t be a
panacea. A fundamental imbalance can’t
be solved with monitoring and steering
alone; spreading or reducing transport
demand is also necessary.”
Eric is now on secondment to the EU. “I
am working on a European action plan
for telematics and related services which
should be ready by mid-2008.”
Ripe for change: our ‘lawn culture’ and
framework conditions
example, are more open to new techno-
logy. The Flemish are not particularly keen
to see others succeed, instead practising
a ‘lawn culture’ where anyone growing
above a certain level gets their head mown
off. We often look askance at success
and are too intolerant of people making
mistakes. Yet to err is human, and we can
often learn a lot from our mistakes. Failed
entrepreneurs in Flanders have an incredi-
bly tough time getting back on their feet
whereas in the US they are much sought
after by companies, who realise that they
have accumulated more experience in a
short space of time than somebody who
has worked for ten years in a risk-free
environment.
innovation stems from ideas. They are
the seed of all innovation. Organisations
therefore gain from having an organisatio-
nal culture that encourages people to share
ideas. Also, it is important for everyone to
be imbued with the vision and strategy.
The government is quite top-down in this
respect. That’s not a problem in itself, but a
vision has to be accessible to all. Every link
in the chain counts, whether in traffic or in
government administration.”

Flanders is distinctly reluctant to embrace Where can the government do better?

innovation, according to a number of “We can do more to create an innovative Koen Peeters
studies. The Scandinavian cultures, for environment,” Eric Kenis believes. “Real Flanders District of Creativity vzw

Flanders DC in a nutshell

As the Flemish body responsible for entrepreneurial creativity, Flanders District of Creativity (Flanders DC in
short) sits at the crossroads of economy, science and innovation, where creativity rules supreme. Entrepre-
neurial creativity is about developing and realising new ideas. And not just any ideas: ideas that will create
more jobs and well-being in our region through strong, highly competitive businesses.
Flanders DC was set up by the Flemish government in 2004 as a non-profit organisation (vzw) responsi-
ble for fostering entrepreneurial creativity among all relevant stakeholders: companies, policy-makers, the
education sector and the general public. With this in mind, Flanders DC developed “GPS for Enterprises”, a
simple but effective brainstorming method; it was also behind the “You are Flanders’ Future” campaign. The
Flanders DC Knowledge Centre at the Vlerick Leuven Ghent Management School studies various aspects of
entrepreneurial creativity and disseminates this knowledge among stakeholders. The Flemish government
has a representative on Flanders DC’s Board of Directors.

For more information, visit the creativity portal at www.flandersdc.be

56 http://www.vlerick.be/en/home.html
57 http://www.verkeerscentrum.be/verkeersinfo/startpagina

48

EWI 3 ENG.indd 48 03-01-2008 13:54:48

 > Column

Light in the
darkness
EOS Magazine devoted the front page of its Sep-
tember issue to the results of a knowledge test
entitled “Belgians and science”. The main conclu-
sions58 of the popular science monthly were: Young
people score particularly badly; Homeopathy enjoys
a strong following; There is a digital divide between
the generations. Queue another round of the age-
old educational debate: knowledge vs skills…

The results made front-page news and
triggered reactions from various minis-
ters. But how surprised should we really
be? How little do our young people
really know? And as for the revelations
that lots of people believe in homeopa-
thy and there is a digital divide between
the generations, one suspects not many
of us will be falling off our chairs in
amazement…
Questions and answers
The magazine asked a series of questions
to 713 Belgians, the usual ‘representa-
tive sample’ of the population (“Why
do they never ask me anything?” I can’t
help thinking). It breaks down the results
into age categories, and reaches the
startling conclusion that 18-24 year olds
score less well than their older compa-
triots.
What were the questions? As EOS ex-
plains in its introduction, they were not
chosen at random but were taken from
the Eurobarometer59. Similar questions
are used in the United States in National
Science Foundation surveys. However,
no list of 28 questions is enough to
determine a person’s ‘general know-
ledge’, and it could be argued that not
all questions are equally important.
One of the most surprising - and for
some rather disturbing - results of the
knowledge survey was that 33% of
young people between the ages of 18
and 24 said that it was not true that
the Earth revolves around the sun. Only
12% of the 65-75 year olds answered
this question incorrectly. 20% of people
do not know, or do not believe, that
man is descended from apes. On this
question, EOS reports no significant dif-
ference between age groups. Meanw-
hile, 64% of Belgians are unaware that
the national grid supplies alternating
current. Now you may disagree, but
personally I have less of a problem with
this. Similarly, I do not consider the fact
that 59% of Belgians are unaware that
computers count using the binary system
to be evidence of the digital divide. How
many experienced drivers could correctly
explain how the petrol engine works?
In this connection, it is noticeable that
the youngest generation (18-24) scores
lower on ICT-related questions than
those aged 25-34. Young people can
surf the web and install programs but
don’t know what a byte is. Or a CPU.
But then, do they really need to?
Sense and nonsense
The survey measures factual knowledge
in a limited number of areas. It does not
tell us a lot about young people’s general
development as many areas of know-
ledge were totally unrepresented in the
survey. Hence, research of this kind tells
us little about the knowledge acquired at
school or about educational standards.
The results are too specific for that and
there is too little assessment of intellec-
tual capacity.

49

EWI 3 ENG.indd 49 03-01-2008 13:54:49

 It does not measure individuals’ talent
for analytical thought and totally ignores
their capacity for finding original solu-
tions to problems: in other words, their
creativity and inventiveness (precisely
the abilities required by scientists).
Various international studies suggest that
the population’s IQ has risen in recent
years. As usual, there is disagreement
on the nurture v. nature question: is the
improvement a result of better education
or better nutrition? Now there are a lot
of IQ tests, but they all have one thing in
common: they measure analytic or pro-
blem-solving ability rather than acquired
knowledge. Despite all the alarming
reports of declining standards among
young people, there is no evidence to
suggest that today’s youngsters are less
intelligent than in the past.
It is overstepping the mark to assert,
on the strength of the EOS survey, that
young people’s knowledge has de-
clined. Factual knowledge depends on a
number of factors: information present
and available, social pressure, age, intel-
ligence as well, of course, as interest and
attitude. There are ‘fact people’ and quiz
champions, but there are other people
who don’t feel that having a lot of
factual knowledge is important. The link
with intelligence is that intelligent people
assimilate knowledge more easily and
generally have a better memory because
they are better at establishing links. Ho-
wever, there are also plenty of examples
that contradict this, from ‘idiots savants’
to people with a very high IQ who lack
learning or cultivation.
Thanks to the enormous increase in
available knowledge and greater oppor-
tunities for accessing it, people’s general,
overall factual knowledge is unlikely to
be less than that of previous genera-
tions. On the contrary. Young people
nowadays probably know a lot more
than their counterparts 30 years ago, alt-
hough it is very likely that the ‘greatest
common divisor’ in knowledge terms
has reduced. This may indeed be related
to the increasing focus on skills and the
relative lack of interest in today’s edu-
cation system for cramming facts. Or to
put it another way: young people know
50
EWI 3 ENG.indd 50
a great deal about all sorts of different ledge survey like that conducted by EOS
things, but the body of general factual until the cows come home. Ultimately,
knowledge - divided by everybody - may however, most people will agree that
well be shrinking. certain basic knowledge about the planet
on which we live is more important than
Light in the darkness knowing what a byte is or understanding
the difference between alternating and
So is there nothing at all amiss? Well, direct current. Perhaps it is also important
yes, perhaps there is. I sometimes feel to know something about the universe,
that superstition is on the rise. The our solar system, the planet on which we
increased scope for self-expression in live and Darwin’s theory of evolution, as
today’s society makes it seem as though this will arm us against fanaticism and
everything now is an opinion, a point superstition. That is why it is so impor-
of view; the weight and authority of tant that the Flemish government keeps
science is being called into doubt and up its efforts to popularise science, as
increasing numbers of ‘views’ are on embodied in the Science Information and
display - a sort of ‘postmodern shopping Innovation Action Plan60. Because this
mall’, you might say. I recently had an may encourage people to pursue a career
age-old argument with a good friend of in science. Because interest in science
mine who refused to believe that, after boosts inventiveness and because the
throwing tails 100 times, you still have knowledge society is Flanders’ future. But
a 50% chance of throwing tails on the above all because an informed indivi-
101st throw. “That’s your opinion,” he dual thinks more critically. And because
snarled. But, of course, not everything is science brings light in the darkness.
a matter of opinion.
Perhaps the main purpose of a survey
like this is to act as a signal. The wide-
spread surprise, even indignation, at the
fact that a significant minority of people
do not possess certain elements of basic
general knowledge shows that we all
consider knowledge important. But why?
Factual knowledge is clearly a precondi-
tion for thought. Perhaps we think - or Bart Dumolyn
hope - that accurate knowledge leads to Entrepreneurship, Science Popularisation
rational behaviour or enables us to hold and International Cooperation Team
our own in a hostile world. After all, man (with thanks to Peter Bakema for fruitful
is by nature a weak animal who has only discussions)
survived thanks to his brains.
I have expressed the hypothesis that,
although the overall amount of factual
knowledge possessed by young people
has not declined, the ‘greatest com-
mon divisor’ in knowledge terms has
apparently shrunk. This may be related
to the shift from a knowledge-based to
a skills-based emphasis in schools. But
are there things that everybody in our
society simply ought to know? And if so,
who decides what those things are? And
why should that be necessary?
There are indeed things that it is im-
portant for everyone to know. We can
discuss the arbitrary nature of a know-
58 http://adam.cascade.be/eos/NieuwtjesPopup.aspx?id=451182
59 See http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/eb/eb67/eb67_en.htm
60 Find out more about the Science Information and Innovation Action Plan at www.ewi-vlaanderen.be
03-01-2008 13:54:50
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EWI 3 ENG.indd 52 03-01-2008 13:54:59