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Science and technology (S&T) activities are a major driver of productivity and economic growth. The OECD provides methodological guidelines, databases, indicators and policy-relevant analysis in this area, focusing mainly on R&D, patents, human resources and innovation.

• S&T statistics and publications  
• Science, technology and industry working papers  

Latest news

Main Science and Technology Indicators (MSTI) 2012/2 update
18 January 2013
MSTI is a timely set of indicators on S&T including resources devoted to R&D. The latest OECD estimates on gross expenditures on R&D (GERD) indicate that the modest recovery initiated in 2010 continued into 2011. For the whole OECD area, total R&D expenditures grew in real terms by 1.3% in 2010, mainly driven by the higher education and government sectors, while business R&D only increased by 0.5%.

Biotechnology in 12 indicators
21 December 2012
This new update of OECD's key biotechnology indicators brings together the latest available economic and activity data on biotechnology and innovation, collected by OECD member and non-member countries. It builds on the extensive work of the OECD and national experts to improve the comparability of biotechnology statistics.

Modes of public funding of research and development: Towards internationally comparable indicators
24 May 2012
This paper presents the results of the data collection across 18 participating countries, demonstrating that it is possible to produce new policy relevant indicators on public funding of R&D in addition to those envisaged in the OECD Frascati Manual. The initial findings of the data collection highlight interesting differences across countries in terms of their approaches to funding R&D. But before conclusions can be drawn on the effectiveness of the different country funding profiles, further work is needed in order to increase the reliability and comparability of the different indicators.

Frascati Manual: new annex available on measuring research and development (R&D) in developing countries
29 February 2012
Despite the OECD Frascati Manual's widespread use, significant usage gaps remain, especially in Africa, Central and South Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. There is widespread interest in the nature and role of R&D in developing economies, raising questions on how it should be measured within the guidelines set out in the Frascati Manual. A new annex provides an initial attempt to address some of the most salient issues.

OECD Patent Database update
20 October 2011
The OECD patent database covers pre-defined sets of indicators as well as raw datasets that are made available to researchers upon request. The data was updated in July 2011 and mainly derives from EPO's Worldwide Patent Statistics Database (PATSTAT, April 2011).

Science and technology: falling patent quality hits innovation, says OECD
20 September 2011
The quality of patent filings has fallen dramatically over the past two decades. The rush to protect even minor improvements is overburdening patent offices and reduces the potential for breakthrough inventions, according to the OECD Science, Technology and Industry Scoreboard 2011.

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Science and technology statistics

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