According to the latest National Survey of Research and Experimental Development, South Africa’s Gross Expenditure on R&D (GERD) in 2015–16 was ZAR 32.3 billion ($2.3 billion), a 10.2% jump. However, the rate of GERD growth declined 38.3% to 5.0%, due to limited R&D funding sources in government and the business sector. As a percentage of GDP, GERD in 2015–16 increased three basis points to 0.80%, a 1.3% rise.

All sectors increased expenditures on R&D, except the business sector. While business expenditures on R&D generally grew 3.9% to ZAR 13.8 million ($974 thousand) in 2015/16, in constant 2010 Rand values, R&D expenditures fell 1.0% to ZAR 10.4 million ($736.7 thousand). Approximately 20 State-Owned Enterprises (SOE) reported in-house R&D expenditures of ZAR 2.0 billion ($141 million), or 6% of GERD, which is a significant decline of 74.6% from peak SOE R&D expenditures in 2008–09, when SOE accounted for 16% of GERD.

Government expenditures on R&D increased 6.3% to ZAR 2.0 million ($141.9 thousand), while R&D spending in science councils and higher education jumped 14.7% and 17.9% to ZAR 5.7 million ($404.7 thousand) and ZAR 9.9 million ($696.3 thousand) respectively. The nonprofit sector’s expenditures on R&D rose to ZAR 891.1 ($62.3 thousand), a 14.4% increase.

Source: South African National Survey of Research and Experimental Development