Investment in Research and Development (R&D) grew for the ninth consecutive year in Spain in 2023, according to an analysis by the Cotec Foundation based on the latest data published by the INE. Moreover, it did so with the largest increase in absolute terms since these data started to be collected in 2000.  The figure recorded was actually 3.054 billion higher than in 2022, which is an increase of 15.8%. This is almost 2.5 times faster than in Europe, which grew by 6.5% on average, according to Eurostat data.

The total figure for R&D investment in Spain was 22.379 billion euros, which is also the highest on record. It was also the second highest year of growth, up from 15.9% in 2006. Thanks to this milestone, R&D also increased its weight in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by eight hundredths, from 1.41% in 2022 to 1.49% in 2023.

Convergence with the European Union
The weight of R&D in Gross Domestic Product is set to be at 2.12%  by 2027, according to the Spanish Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy, and to advance towards convergence with the European Union. To achieve this, investment must continue to grow by at least 14.6% over the next four years, according to Cotec, to reach 38.593 billion euros in 2027. And Cotec warns that this will require the support of  both national and European funds, and from both public and private bodies, to replace the Next Generation EU funds from the summer of 2026.

For the time being, in 2023, both the public sector – which increased its investment for the seventh consecutive year – and the business sector – which increased it for the ninth year in a row – are contributing to strengthening R&D in Spain. Furthermore, they did so at the same pace, with an increase of 16% in both sectors. The public sector actually recorded 9.701 billion euros in investments last year and its weight in Gross Domestic Product, 0.65%, is now close to the 0.67% reached in 2010, albeit with an increase of 2.647 billion euros.

Record business investment
The business sector, for its part, which includes both public and private companies, as well as private non-profit institutions (NPIs), achieved a record investment of 12.678 billion euros in 2023. This does in fact far exceed the previous record set in 2008. Since then, business investment has grown by EUR 4.582 billion, 57% more than before the financial crisis. Its weight in Gross Domestic Product, 0.85%, is also well above the 0.74% it had back in 2008.

Looking more closely at business investment in R&D, the services sector invested 6.727 billion euros compared to the 5.676 billion euros invested in industry. A feature of the former were professional, scientific and technical activities (3.747 billion euros), R&D services (2.450 billion euros) and information and communications (1.930 billion euros). The second category is dominated by motor vehicle manufacturing (1.510 billion euros), pharmaceuticals (885 million euros) and other transport equipment (812 million euros).

Job creation
Another positive development has been job creation in R&D activities, benefiting around 19,000 people in 2023. The total figure now stands at 282,415 employees, with similar contributions from the public and private sectors: while the former added 9,724 people to reach a total of 146,713, the latter added 9,284 to reach 135,702. The best employment figures in history were recorded in both cases, although the private sector maintains a significant gender gap (68% men vs 32% women) compared to the near parity of the public sector (51% men vs 49% women).

^{Photo: Cotec Foundation}