- Norway’s total expenditure on research and development (R&D) comprised 1.75 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2003.The OECD average was 2.24 per cent.
- A relatively high percentage of research is financed with public money. In 2003, the figure was 42 per cent, while the OECD average was 30 per cent.
- Norway spent 0.14 per cent of GDP on research cooperation with other countries in 2002.
- In 2003, the Norwegian research sector employed a total of 51 000 people. The number of people taking part in R&D activities in industry has risen sharply in recent years. Since 1970, the percentage of individuals participating in R&D in relation to the overall workforce has more than doubled.
- Women comprised 29 per cent of the total research sector workforce in 2003, and in 2005 women were awarded 40 per cent of doctoral degrees. This represents an increase of 7 per cent since 1970.
Approximately 27 per cent of all Norwegian research is being conducted in universities and university colleges. They have a particular responsibility for pure research and researcher education, and have also recently been given greater responsibility for commercialising the results of staff inventions. Norway has 13 research parks, which are closely linked to universities, university colleges and independent research centres. The research parks are important bridge-builders between research institutions and the business sector.
Norway has many research institutes, both public and private. This sector accounts for close to 23 per cent of overall R&D expenditure.
Political focus on R&D
There is broad political consensus in Norway regarding the need to invest more of Norway’s economic and human resources in R&D. A target has been set to raise total R&D expenditure in Norway to 3 per cent of GDP by 2010. Public expenditure is to be raised to 1 per cent of GDP, while the target for the business sector and international and other sources is 2 per cent of GDP.
Public research expenditure
42 per cent of Norway’s total research expenditure is publicly financed. The Government and the Storting set the framework for public research allocations and formulate the main goals and priorities for research policy. The Research Council of Norway is the primary actor on research strategy in Norway. Approximately 27 per cent of public research allocations are channelled through the Research Council.
The National Fund for Research and Innovation is a means of increasing financing for R&D. It was introduced in 1999 as a means of ensuring more stable, long-term public financing for Norwegian research. In 2005, the fund capital comprised NOK 36 billion.
Private research efforts
Nearly half (47 per cent) of research efforts are carried out by the private sector. Norwegian trade and industry continues to consist primarily of raw material-based industries, such as oil and gas production. Both nationally and abroad, such industries have traditionally used relatively few resources on R&D. Moreover, Norway has a high proportion of small and medium-sized enterprises, which have limited resources to invest in R&D. The Norwegian business sector’s total investment in R&D is therefore less than that of many other OECD countries. However, Norwegian companies rank among the most research-intensive in the paper, light metals, textiles, electronic equipment, office machinery and computer industries.
There is broad political agreement that public funds should be used to increase the Norwegian business sector’s research efforts. A tax deduction scheme (SkatteFUNN), for up to 20 per cent of companies’ R&D expenditure, was introduced in 2002. The scheme is administered by the Research Council of Norway, in cooperation with Innovation Norway.
By the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research