RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT IN THE EUROPEAN UNION: AN ANALYSIS OF TWO DECADES

Abstract

Innovative activities are vital for countries' economic growth and competitiveness in the same way research and development (R&D) is vital for innovation. Expenditure on R&D is an apt indicator to assess countries' R&D input. This article statistically reviews the European Union's gross domestic expenditure on research and development (GERD) and its components for 2000-2020 to uncover trends and patterns. Business enterprise, higher education and government components of GERD are selected as indicators to assess the sectoral trends in R&D. Furthermore, to give more insight, conceptualised income groups are used to identify any pattern between countries' R&D expenditures and income levels. The United States, Korea and China are chosen as benchmarks for R&D based on their income level. Additionally, based on the EU27 countries' historical progress and final figures, R&D leaders and laggers are appointed.

Keywords

• research and development expenditure
• r&d
• gerd
• income groups
• the european union
• economic growth