CANBERRA, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) -- The Australian Academy of Science (AAS) has sounded the alarm over a continued decline in government spending on research and development (R&D).
Australia's R&D investment is again under scrutiny after new government figures have revealed a continued decline in R&D spending and a potential 400 million Australian dollars (257 million U.S. dollars) underspent on the government's Medical Research Future Fund, according to an AAS statement Wednesday.
AAS President Chennupati Jagadish warned that R&D investment is failing to keep pace with inflation, let alone fueling productivity, and "it is hurting Australia."
Jagadish said Australians seek technologies such as artificial intelligence to boost productivity and innovative medicines for better health.
The 2025-26 Science, Research and Innovation Budget Tables, published by the Department of Industry, Science and Resources, revealed that federal R&D investment will stay low at 0.53 percent of gross domestic product, down from 0.54 percent in 2024-25.
Government R&D spending is 1.8 billion Australian dollars (1.16 billion U.S. dollars) below the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) average, with Australian business underinvestment 32.5 billion Australian dollars (about 21 billion U.S. dollars) less than the OECD average, the AAS said. ■
