R&D expenditure (% of GDP) — all countries

R&D expenditure (% of GDP) — Western Asia

R&D expenditure (% of GDP) in Western Asia in 2021 — 1.57%. Since 2014, the indicator has risen by 0.47 pp.

2021 1.57% −0.04 pp vs 2020
World rank
Period maximum 1.6%2020
Period minimum 1.09%2014

Trend over time

2014–2021 · % of GDP

R&D expenditure (% of GDP) — Western Asia, 2014–202111.21.41.61.8201420152016201720182019202020212014: 1.09%2015: 1.2%2016: 1.41%2018: 1.52%2020: 1.6%2021: 1.57%
Change over the period: +0.47 pp Annual average: 0.07 pp

Comparison, 2021

How the value compares with the world and the groups this territory belongs to: Western Asia

Western Asia 1.57%
World 2.52%
R&D expenditure (% of GDP) — Western Asia, by year Western Asia All countries CSV XLSX
Year % Change, pp
2021 1.57 −0.04 pp
2020 1.6
2018 1.52
2016 1.41 +0.21 pp
2015 1.2 +0.1 pp
2014 1.09

About the indicator

Gross domestic expenditure on research and development (R&D) as a percentage of GDP — all current and capital spending by business, government, universities and nonprofit organizations on basic and applied research. The threshold of 3% of GDP is the target adopted in the EU; the leaders (Israel, South Korea) exceed 4.5%.

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), license CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO.