Decline in public funding of R&D

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8 december 2016 | The recent financial crisis has hit activities in science, technology and innovation very hard, a new report by the OECD shows. “The proportion of public spending that goes to R&D is unlikely to increase, and a decline in the public funding of universities is already noticeable in many countries.”

In the latest OECD Science, Technology and Innovation Outlook a gloomy future for science and innovation is given. According to the OECD it is the first time since they started collecting data, that the R&D spending by government and higher education institutions fell in 2014. “There is emerging evidence of a trade-off in the allocation of public support between firms on the one hand and public research on the other, with a growing share of the total budget going to the business sector.”

While the business sector has taken up its role in funding science, technology and innovation the overall picture for R&D investments is not positive, as government spending in the OECD area has been declining since 2009. According to the OECD the coming years will not likely show any improvement.

The OECD warns for a further decline in government expenditure on science, technology and innovation as competing policy areas such as state pensions, health care will likely take a larger share of the total government budget in the years to come. According to the OECD researchers pursuing a career in science will be affected by this financial cutbacks.