Provincial report on S&T and R&D data marred by lack of participation

Ontario appears to have the highest expenditures on scientific activities but Quebec has rocketed into the top spot for R&D outlays. In 2003-04, Ontario accounted for $717.4 million in scientific activity, including $472.9 million on R&D, of which $229.2 million was devoted to basic research. Quebec registered $559.5 million in R&D expenditures, a 35.5% increase over the previous year.

The findings are contained in a major Statistics Canada working paper on provincial S&T activities. But Ontario’s claim to the number one provincial spender on scientific activities could be illusory. Quebec conducts its own survey but only compiles data for R&D and not scientific activity. Given its large lead in R&D spending over Ontario, it could well have higher overall expenditures on scientific activity.

PARTIAL DATA

The absence of detailed data for many provinces is due to the fact that only four provinces –— Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta and British Columbia — contract with StatsCan to compile their data, down from a high of nine provinces in past years. There are no data for the Atlantic provinces and Saskatchewan stopped contracting a survey after 2001-02. For its national R&D statistics, StatsCan estimates provinces for which there is no survey.

Surveys conducted for the four provinces that contract surveys from StatsCan show that Ontario spent an estimated $267.5 million on basic research in 2003-04, or 37.3% of its total outlays on scientific activity, up from $255.9 million (38.3%) in 2002-03. That is followed by public health with $167.2 million (22.9%) and the environment at $68.7 million (9.6%).

Of the data available, Alberta is next with $313.5 million in expenditures on scientific activities in 2003-04, with the largest single share going to public health ($74.5 million). That’s down from the previous year when the total was $333.4 million and public health accounted for $109.6 million. Basic research is next at $64.3 million (20.5%), followed by agriculture production and technology at $47.6 million (15.2%) and energy at $35.2 million (11.2%).

British Columbia ranks third in the data, with $233.8 million in 2003-04, down from a high of $338.5 million in 2000-01. Basic research accounts for $87.8 million or 37.6% of expenditures, followed by infrastructure at $59.7 million (25.5%) and health at $31.6 million (13.5%). BC’s scientific expenditures dropped sharply from the previous year, when they were $297.7 million and basic research accounted for $109.0 million.

Manitoba spent $80.0 million on scientific activity in 2003-04, with the largest single amount going to social development ($18.7 million),.followed by telecommunications ($11.2 million) and public health ($10.0 million). Spending on scientific activity has risen consistently in recent years from $52.1 million in 2000-01.

Alberta is the largest intramural spender of R&D in Canada with $101.1 million in 2003-04, easily outstripping Ontario ($75.9 million) and Quebec ($50.5 million).

In the same year, Quebec ranked number one in terms of R&D payments to business enterprises in natural sciences and engineering ($65.6 million), followed by Ontario ($14.6 million), Alberta ($8.3 million), BC ($6.4 million), Saskatchewan ($6.2 million) and Manitoba ($335,000).

The majority of extramural expenditures by the five major provincial governments were made to the higher education sector (72%).

Quebec and Ontario are neck and neck in terms of R&D payments to the higher education sector for science and engineering. Quebec paid $267.3 million in 2003-04 compared to $265.3 million by Ontario. Alberta ranked third with payments of $116.3 million, followed by BC ($57.0 million), Saskatchewan ($38.6 million), and Manitoba ($11.4 million).

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