Turkey has recently made significant progress in research and development (R&D) and innovation. According to statements by Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır, the country’s annual R&D expenditures have reached $16 billion, up from $1.2 billion. The share of national income allocated to R&D has increased from 0.5% to 1.4%. This ratio puts Turkey on par with countries like Italy and Spain.

Turkey at the top with R&D investments

Minister Kacır shared this information at the opening of the TURKPATENT ISIF’25 – 10th International Invention Fair, held as part of TEKNOFEST. In his speech, he noted that human resources in R&D have also increased significantly.

The number of R&D employees, previously 29,000, has risen to over 290,000. A similar growth has also been experienced in technoparks. The number of technoparks increased from 2 to 113, while the number of innovation-focused companies in these parks rose from 56 to 11,500.

A significant improvement was also made in intellectual property capacity. Turkey’s registered intellectual property rose from 93,000 to 2 million. Annual patent applications rose from 414 to over 10,000. Minister Kacır emphasized that these steps are the most crucial survival factor in Turkey’s journey to becoming a country capable of meeting its needs in strategic areas with its own resources.

So, what are your thoughts on this? Do you closely follow our country’s R&D activities? You can easily share your thoughts with us in the comments section below.