914 



29 



Preliminary Findings 



1. UNESCO provides significant support to research, training, and 

 international cooperation in the natural sciences. Beyond the subven- 

 tion to ICSU, of importance to all countries, this program provides 

 valuable advanced training through regional and international projects 

 directed toward the needs of developing countries. 



2. UNESCO provides a critical intergovernmental link to these 

 developing countries. But these UNESCO-sponsored projects also depend 

 on substantive contributions from the advanced countries primarily 

 through the nongovernmental scientific organizations, particularly ICSU 

 and its bodies. U.S. support of UNESCO-related scientific projects 

 could be provided to nongovernmental organizations through ICSU. U.S. 

 scientists would probably be able to maintain their current level of 

 participation in these programs through the nongovernmental organiza- 

 tions. 



3. These international cooperative activities could be comple- 

 mented through grants to U.S. universities and professional groups. 



4. It is important to establish and support an oversight capa- 

 bility within a body sensitive to U.S. interests, such as NSF and/or 

 NRC. Certain aspects of these programs are relevant to the interests 

 of the Agency for International Development (AID) . Administrative 

 overhead costs will be significant. 



5. The overall record of VI. 1 activities is reasonably good; the 

 program has been of service to UNESCO Member States and to NGOs. With 

 improved management, even further contributions can be foreseen and 

 therefore this area is a candidate for increased funding. 



Research, Training, and International Cooperation 

 in Technology and the Engineering Sciences (VI. 2) 



Assessment/Potential Impacts 



This program area is directed toward the improvement of insti- 

 tutional infrastructures in developing countries in the fields of 

 engineering sciences and technology with particular emphasis given 

 to meteorology, materials testing, quality control, data processing, 

 standardization, and technical information services. The major thrust 

 of the program is training, the development of engineering curricula 

 through a variety of activities in the advanced countries, regional 

 cooperation, and strengthening of national research and training 

 infrastructures. The current annual UNESCO budget for program costs 

 (projects and staff) plus overhead is approximately $4.6 million — 

 the U.S. share is $1.2 million. Considering program costs only 

 ($2.8 million), the U.S. share is about $700,000 per year. Other 

 "outside" sources of support in this area, primarily UNDP and 



