Government budget allocations for R&D (GBARD)

Data extracted in July 2024

Planned article update: 31 January 2025

Highlights

In 2023, the provisional total government budget allocations for R&D (GBARD) across the EU stood at €123 684 million, equivalent to 0.73% of GDP.

The provisional government budget allocations for R&D at EU level stood at €275.6 per person in 2023, a 52.3% increase compared with 2013 (€181.0 per person).

Government budget allocations for research and development, 2013 - 2023

Break in time series: Sweden, Greece, Romania.
Definition differs: Austria, Hungary, Japan.
Estimated: EU, Denmark, Estonia, Sweden
Provisional: Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Germany, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Spain, Croatia, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Switzerland, Türkiye, South Korea, United States.
Albania: 2022 data
China excluding Hong Kong
Source: Eurostat (online data code: GBA_NABSFIN07)
OECD Government budget allocations for R&D for data on Japan, China (except Hong Kong), South Korea and the United States

Statistics on Government Budget Allocations for R&D (GBARD) in the European Union provide users with data measuring government support to research and development (R&D) activities, and thereby inform about the priority governments give to different public R&D funding activities.

In the recently put-forward Political Guidelines for the next European Commission 2024-2029, investment in R&D is put 'at the centre of our economy. We will increase our research spending to focus more on strategic priorities [...]. Europe must also be at the cutting edge between emerging science, tech and industry, the nexus that will make this tech revolution faster and more transformative.'

GBARD covers not only government-financed R&D performed in government establishments but also government-financed R&D in the other three national sectors (business enterprise, higher education, private non-profit) as well as to the rest of the world sector. The socioeconomic objective "General advancement of knowledge", regardless of the sources of funds, represents more than 50 % of GBARD. The data are compiled by national authorities using data collected from public budgets. This type of fund-based approach for reporting R&D involves identifying all the budget items that may support R&D activities and measuring or estimating their R&D content.

Research and Development (R&D) is central to many European and national level policies that aim to increase the competitiveness of the EU's economies and the welfare of its citizens and is a cross cutting subject relevant to the political priorities of the European Commission.

Full article

Total GBARD across the EU

In 2023, the total provisional government budget allocations for R&D (GBARD) across the EU stood at €123 684 million (Table 1), equivalent to 0.73% of GDP (Table 2).

Table 1: Government budget allocations for R&D, 2012 & 2022 (€ million)
Source: Eurostat (GBA_NABSFIN07)

Table 2: Government budget allocations for R&D, 2013 & 2023 (% of GDP)
Source: Eurostat (GBA_NABSFIN07)

The provisional government budget allocations for R&D per person at EU level stood at €275.6 in 2023 (Table 3). The highest allocations per person were recorded in Luxembourg (€646.6), followed at a distance by Denmark (€552.4) and Germany (€529.3). On the other hand, the EU countries with the lowest R&D budget allocations per person were Latvia (€62.6), Hungary (€48.1), Bulgaria (€33.1) and Romania (€21.2).

Table 3: Government budget allocations for R&D, 2013 & 2023 (€ per inhabitant)
Source: Eurostat (GBA_NABSFIN07)

Evolution of GBARD in the EU during the 2013 - 2023 decade

GBARD figures for the 2013 - 2023 decade show an increase at EU level from €79 886 million to €123 684 million (Table 1), an increase of 54.8%. GBARD more than tripled in Latvia (from €32.4 million to €118.0 million) and it more than doubled in seven EU countries: Poland (from €1 438.4 million to €3 430.2 million), Malta (from €21.5 million to €50.4 million), Slovenia (from €174.5 million to €400.4 million), Cyprus (from €60.3 million to €138.0 million), Lithuania (from €125.6 million to €278.5 million), Estonia (from €154.0 million to €333.0 million) and Bulgaria (from €102.5 million to €213.4 million). The total allocations further increased by more than 50% in eight more EU countries, with an increase of more than 75% in the Netherlands (+89.7%), Croatia (+86.8%) and Germany (+76.0%). At the other end of the scale, with low GBARD increases during the 2013 - 2023 decade, with less than 20% increase were Portugal (18.9%), Finland (16.5%) and Sweden (12.1%). Hungary recorded a pronounced decrease (-30.4%).

GBARD figures as a percentage of GDP show an increase at EU level for the 2013 - 2023 decade (Figure 1), from 0.69 % of GDP in 2013 to 0.73% of GDP in 2023. The GBARD as a percentage of GDP recorded an increase in 14 EU countries, notably Germany (+0.18 percentage points (pp)), the Netherlands, Slovenia and Latvia (all with +0.15 pp), Cyprus (+0.13 pp), Italy (+0.12 pp) and Greece (+0.10 pp). GBARD as a percentage of GDP recorded a negative growth for the rest of the 13 EU countries during the decade 2013 - 2023, with 2 countries recording a decrease of only 0.1 pp and with Finland (-0.13 pp), Denmark (-0.14 pp), Ireland (-0.19 pp) and Hungary (-0.42 pp) recording the most declines.

Figure 1: Government budget allocations for R&D, 2013 & 2023 (% of GDP)
Source: Eurostat (GBA_NABSFIN07)

As the changes in GBARD expressed as a percentage of the GDP can reflect a change in the GDP, it is useful to look at the changes in the allocations per capita as well. The government budget allocations for R&D per person increased by 52.3% between 2013 and 2023 in the EU, from €181.0 to €275.6 per person. Over the last decade, the largest percentage increases in government budget allocations for R&D per person were recorded in Latvia (+291.3%, from €16.0 in 2013 to €62.6 per person in 2023), Poland (+146.8%, from €37.8 in 2013 to €93.3 per person in 2023), Bulgaria (+133.1%, from €14.2 to €33.1 per person) and Lithuania (+130.5%, from €42.3 to €97.5 per person). It should be noted as well, that changes in GBARD per capita may reflect population changes of the countries as well.

GBARD by socioeconomic objectives (NABS 2007)

GBARD data are broken down by socioeconomic objectives in accordance with the nomenclature for the analysis and comparison of scientific programmes and budgets (NABS 2007). Figure 2 presents the 2023 distribution of GBARD by socioeconomic objective, where the most representative objectives were:

General advancement of knowledge: R&D financed from general university funds (GUF): 35.5%;
General advancement of knowledge: R&D financed from other sources than GUF: 17.3%;
Industrial production and technology: 11.0%;
Health: 6.9%;
Exploration and exploitation of space: 6.0%.

Figure 2: Distribution of government budget allocations for R&D by NABS (%)
Source: Eurostat (GBA_NABSFIN07)

Figure 3 shows a 68% increase in the EU spending per inhabitant in the "Industrial production and technology" socioeconomic objective between 2013 and 2023. The EU countries that spent the most per inhabitant in this objective in 2023 were Belgium, Germany, Austria, Estonia, Luxembourg and Finland (more than double the EU average). Regarding the socioeconomic objective "Health", an increase of +48% in the spending per inhabitant in the period 2013 to 2023 in the EU can be seen in Figure 4. The highest increases were recorded in Malta, Slovenia, Cyprus and Latvia. These countries' large relative increase reflects a small absolute increase of a low absolute 2013 figure. Among the countries where spending per inhabitant is already significantly higher than the EU average, the increase was substantial in the Netherlands (+159%), Italy (+101%), Germany (+87%), Denmark (+62%) and Luxembourg (+41%).

Figure 3: Government budget allocations for R&D - Industrial production and technology (NABS06) (€ per inhabitant)
Source: Eurostat (GBA_NABSFIN07)

Figure 4: Government budget allocations for R&D - Health (NABS07) (€ per inhabitant)
Source: Eurostat (GBA_NABSFIN07)

Source data for tables and graphs

Government budget allocations for R&D (GBARD): graphs and tables

Data sources

Since the beginning of 2021, the collection of R&D statistics is based on Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 1197/2020 of 30 July 2020. Statistics on science, technology and innovation were collected until the end of 2020 based on Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 995/2012 concerning the production and development of Community statistics on science and technology. More information on the changes and new data requirements introduced by the European Business Statistics regulation can be found in the Statistics Explained article on European Business Statistics.

GBARD data are compiled using the methodology laid out in the Guidelines for collecting and reporting data on research and experimental development - Frascati Manual, OECD, 2015: Guidelines for Collecting and Reporting Data on Research and Experimental Development which is the internationally recognised standard methodology for collecting R&D statistics. Eurostat's guidelines on methodology for compiling the GBARD data is the European Business Statistics Methodological Manual for R&D Statistics.

Eurostat's free online reference database contains national data from 1980 onwards, though the data availability differs according to country. European aggregates are available from 2000 onwards. GBARD data are provided to Eurostat directly by the national statistical authorities of Member States of the European Union and the EFTA, candidate and potential candidate countries. Data for Japan, China, the United States and South Korea are extracted from the OECD database.

GBARD covers not only government-financed R&D performed in government establishments but also government-financed R&D in the other three national sectors: business enterprise (BES), private non-profit (PNP), higher education (HES) as well as the rest of the world, including international organisations (§ 12.16, Frascati Manual, OECD 2015). Government budget allocations for R&D (GBARD) are all provisions allocated to R&D in central (federal) government, regional (state) and local (municipal) government. They therefore refer to budget provisions, not to actual expenditure. Local government budget funds may not be included if their contribution is not significant or if the data cannot be collected.

GBARD data cover all public budget spending related to R&D and are linked to policy issues by means of a classification by "objectives" or "goals" (NABS 2007). Programmes are allocated between socioeconomic objectives, on the basis of intentions at the time the funds are committed and not the actual content of the projects concerned.

Context

Statistics on Government Budget Allocations for R&D (GBARD) are an important component of research and development (R&D) statistics within the European Union (EU).

Research and Development (R&D) is central to many European and national level policies that aim to increase the competitiveness of the EU's economies and the welfare of its citizens. R&D was put forward as a driving theme in the Political Guidelines for the current European Commission 2019 to 2024.

One of the key aims of the EU during the last couple of decades has been to encourage increasing levels of research investment, in order to provide a stimulus to the EU's competitiveness. In May 2021, the European Commission adopted a Communication on a global approach to research and innovation - Europe's global approach to cooperation in research and innovation: strategic, open, and reciprocal. This Communication underlines the EU's desire to play a leading role in supporting international research and innovation partnerships, while delivering innovative solutions that support green and digital solutions in line with the sustainable development goals. It engages the EU to promote resilience, prosperity, competitiveness, economic and social well-being.

Direct access to

Main tables

Science, technology and innovation (t_scitech) see:

Government budget allocations for R&D (GBARD) (t_gba)

Share of government budget appropriations or outlays on research and development (tsc00007)

Share of GBAORD allocated to defence and total civil socioeconomic objectives (tsc00008)

Database

Science, technology and innovation (scitech), see:

Government budget allocations for R&D (GBARD) (gba)

GBARD by socioeconomic objectives (NABS 2007) (gba_nabsfin07)

OECD GBARD datatabase

Legislation

Since the beginning of 2021, the collection of R&D statistics is based on Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 1197/2020 of 30 July 2020. Previously, these data were collected under Regulation (EU) No 995/2012 concerning the production and development of Community statistics on science and technology.