Cyprus lowest in European R&D funding

Cyprus spent a miserable 0.33% of of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on research and development (R&D) in 2002, falling far short of the average 2% for all 25 European Union member states.

The European Commission said in Brussels that the figure was an increase compared to previous years but still short of U.S. and Japanese figures.

R&D expenditure in the U.S. represented 2.76% of GDP and in Japan 3.12% of GDP during the same period, the Commission said.

The Commission said funding for R&D was highest in the Nordic countries. In 2003, the highest R&D intensity was registered in Sweden (4.27% of GDP), Finland (3.51%), followed by Denmark (2.60%), Germany (2.50% and Belgium (2.33%).

The lowest levels were found in Cyprus (0.33%), Latvia (0.39%), Slovakia (0.57%) and Poland (0.59%).

E.U. leaders agreed in Lisbon four years ago to spend 3% of GDP on R&D by 2010, with at least two thirds of the total expenditure financed by the business sector.

European business financed 55% of the total R&D spending in the E.U., while the shares of the business sector in the U.S. and Japan were 67% and 74% respectively.