The draft law was developed by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine in cooperation with working groups of the National Council of Ukraine on Science and Technology Development. Its purpose is to improve the current legislation concerning the functioning of research infrastructure entities and the development of scientific activity by young researchers, as well as to align Ukrainian legislation with that of the European Union.

Key changes proposed by the draft law include:

• Introduction of the following terms: “research infrastructure,” “open science,” “open access,” “optimized research data (FAIR data),” “National Electronic Research Information System,” “postdoctoral researcher,” and “FAIR principles”;
  
• First-time use of the term “scientific supervisor of a scientific (scientific-technical) project” and definition of their responsibilities;
  
• Launch of competitive programs for the selection of postdoctoral researchers to conduct scientific research;
  
• Establishment of a Register of Research Infrastructure, along with the conditions for its formation and operation;
  
• Definition of the specific features of organizing the activities of local, distributed, and virtual (digital) research infrastructures;
  
• Possibility of creating national research infrastructure consortia as a special type of distributed infrastructure association;
  
• Expansion of scientists’ rights to access research infrastructure and open scientific data, as well as their responsibility for the completeness and accuracy of published research results;
  
• Clarification of the role and powers of Councils of Young Scientists and expanded opportunities for grant support from the National Research Foundation of Ukraine for doctoral, postgraduate, adjunct, internship, and residency training programs;
  
• Update of the procedure for forming the state order for priority scientific-technical (experimental) developments and scientific-technical products;
  
• Expansion of the goals and directions of state policy in the field of scientific and scientific-technical activity through the implementation of open science principles.
  

According to Denys Kurbatov, Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine, the implementation of the draft law will enable effective cooperation among research institutions, higher education institutions, and other entities engaged in scientific and scientific-technical activities. It will also ensure open access to research infrastructure and research results, and provide additional support for the scientific activities of young researchers.

During the revision of the draft law, the positions of key stakeholders were taken into account, including leading research institutions, universities, academies, Councils of Young Scientists, as well as the recommendations of the European Commission provided within the framework of the negotiation process on Chapter 25 “Science and Research.”

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