The total government research and development expenditure in Australasia, expressed as a percentage of GDP, has shown a gradual decline from 2.05% in 2013 to 1.79% in 2023. The period from 2013 to 2015 experienced significant drops, with year-on-year variations as high as -5.61%. In the following years, from 2016 to 2023, the rate of decline slowed, indicated by more moderate year-on-year decreases of approximately -0.5%. The compound annual growth rate (CAGR) over the past five years further reinforces this trend, with an average annual decrease of -0.51%.
Looking forward, forecasted data suggests a continued, albeit slightly slower, decline in government R&D expenditure, reaching 1.74% of GDP by 2028. The projected five-year CAGR for this period is -0.42%, representing a forecasted decrease of about -2.06% in total.
Future trends to watch for:
- Potential policy shifts or interventions that could stabilize or reverse the downward trend in R&D expenditure.
- The impact of economic growth or contraction on GDP and subsequent R&D budget allocations.
- Investment focuses in emerging technologies and innovative sectors that may influence government spending priorities.
- Collaborations between government and private sectors which may shift some R&D burden away from public funding.
