Year
1990
Abstract
An initiative has been underway during the past year to review and revise the process for planning and organizing the Department of Safeguards* research and development (R&D) programme. A new approach has been developed and is being implemented, based on defining proposed solutions to the diverse and complex problems facing the Department. This includes obtaining a balance between near and longer term needs over the next ten years. The initial step was to develop a comprehensive list of candidate safeguards problems, and then to systematically review, evaluate and rank the problems, including providing a structure for presentation purposes. Next, the problems were transformed into a list of needs, and these needs were also systematically reviewed, evaluated and ranked. This process resulted in an R&D programme plan which includes about 30 needs organized into six programme areas, and an approach for development in each case. The Department of Safeguards is proceeding in developing the R&D programme on the basis that the resources available in 1990 for use in \"in-house\" R&D activities will continue to be provided in 1991 and 1992, and that the support programmes of Member States and of Euratom would undertake tasks covering at least all high and medium priority needs.