Investment in science grows again for the first time since 2009
For the first time since 2009, there has been a reversal of the downward trend in national expenditure on research and development.
The provisional data of the National Scientific and Technological Potential Survey (IPCTN) of 2016, carried out by the Directorate General of Education and Science Statistics (DGEEC), show that total expenditure amounted to EUR 2348 million and reached 1.3% of the GDP, compared with 1.2% in 2015.
In Portugal, in 2009 investment in science reached a historical high of 1.6% of the GDP, surpassing Spain, Italy and Greece and equalling the Czech Republic.
There was also an increase in researchers in the active population from 7.4 to 7.9 per 1000 inhabitants, with a total of 40 746 full-time researchers. It is also known that 65% of the researchers carry out their work in the Higher Education sector.
