In fixed prices, Israel's expenditure on civilian R&D rose by 7.2% in 2007, over the year before, after rising by 3.3% in 2006 and 4.5% in 2005
The Central Bureau of Statistics reported last week that Israel tops the OECD in terms of civilian R&D expenditure as a proportion of GDP.
In a press release the CBS noted that Israel spent NIS 31.5 billion on civilian R&D expenditure, 4.7% of GDP. The OECD average was 1.7% of GDP; Japan and South Korea each spent 3.2% of GDP on R&D, and the US spent 2.2%.
Israel's civilian R&D expenditure was 4.6% in 2006. In fixed prices, Israel's expenditure on civilian R&D rose by 7.2% in 2007, over the year before, after rising by 3.3% in 2006 and 4.5% in 2005.
In 2006, national expenditure on civilian R&D in Israel, as a percentage of the GDP, was 4.5% -higher than in all developed industrialized countries that are members of the OECD. The share of R&D in the GDP was 3% and more in Sweden (3.6%), Finland (3.4%), Japan and Korea (3.2%);in six countries it was between 2.1% and 2.9%: Austria, Iceland, United States, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland, and in the rest of the countries it ranged from 0.5% to 1.9%
Government ministries’ expenditure on civilian R&D amounted to about NIS 4.0 billion in 2007, including research, commissioning of research from other institutions and transfers for financing of R&D conducted by other sectors, including the General University Fund. The main expenditure of government ministries was by the Ministry of Industry Trade and Labor. In 2007, the expenditure of this ministry constituted 60% of the overall expenditure of government Ministries on R&D (excluding GUF).Expenditure on R&D by the Ministry of Industry Trade and Labor, at current prices, decreased by 11% in 2007, following an increase of 4% in 2006.
Most of the increase in R&D spending was by high-tech and life sciences companies, including biotechnology firms, in which spending in 2007 was 13% higher than in 2006. R&D spending by software services companies rose by 10%, R&D spending by manufacturers rose by 4.3%, and R&D spending in NPOs rose by 4.8%. However, R&D spending in universities fell a further 0.4% in 2007 after falling by 1.4% in 2006.
