A federally appointed science advisory council says Canada is a mediocre performer and a laggard in converting science advances into innovative products.
“Canada continues to tread water as a mid-level performer,” the Science, Technology and Innovation Council said in a May 21 report.
The council said Canada should “aim higher and aspire to global leadership” in scientific achievement and adaptation to market needs.
The council, comprising research and business leaders and created by the federal government in 2007, said Canada is not investing enough in basic research and not concentrating enough on translating scientific discoveries into commercial products.
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The report did not highlight agriculture.
It offered a broader critique of Canada’s lukewarm performance in turning research and academic strength into innovation that would bolster the Canadian economy.
“In order for Canada to create jobs and opportunity in a competitive world, we must aim higher,” council chair Howard Alper said in a statement when releasing the report.
“We cannot be satisfied with the status quo or incremental progress.”
A key complaint from the council was the lack of private corporate investment in Canada’s research and development sector.
It also said more money should be invested in science and technology-oriented education and science sector personnel.
“Canadian business investment in research and development has continuously declined over the past decade,” council member Sophie Forest said in the statement.
“In 2011, Canada ranked 25th out of 41 economies.”
The council, which the government created to monitor Canada’s science and innovation performance, said Ottawa’s direct funding for research and development last year was $5.8 billion, with most of the money going to universities and a declining amount allocated to federal research.
The report said direct federal re-search funding to private companies last year was slightly more than $400 million. It has been stable in recent years but has declined from its 1992 peak of $533 million.
Gary Goodyear, minister of state for science and technology, told a news conference that the report points out problems but also suggests the government’s emphasis on connecting research with market and product development is the way to go.
“The STIC report does point to, in my feeling quite strongly, to the government being on the right path,” he said. “It mentions that in this economic time and the knowledge-based economy of the world that we do need in fact to focus more on translating our discoveries into social and economic well-being.”
