R&D Expenditure as Share of GDP

R&D investment and IP ownership matters for Canada’s sovereignty and economic resilience. Either we conduct the research and own the innovations that boost productivity and produce prosperity, or we are sending our dollars elsewhere and buying cutting-edge technology controlled from other countries. That puts Canada in a structurally subordinate position.

Canada is the only country in the G7 that has seen spending on R&D decline as a share of GDP in the 21st century. Our R&D as a share of GDP is one of the lowest in the G7, ahead of only Italy. R&D is a key component in developing Canada’s value-add economy. Value-add includes the inventions and innovations that support technological advancements across all sectors to move economic activity up the supply chain. Think: new technologies to process critical minerals or connect us in the digital world.

We want to strengthen our sovereignty and grow our economic resilience. That can’t happen if Canada doesn’t invest in developing value-added technologies and innovations across all sectors of the economy. Those technologies start with R&D.