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Highlights

Research and Development Personnel (R&D) - 1996 to 2005

1. The growth in the number of people engaged in research and development in Canada, such as researchers, technicians and supporting staff, slowed down considerably in 2005. (Table 1-1)
2. A total of 213,930 full-time equivalent researchers, technicians, and other support personnel were engaged in R&D activities in 2005, up 3.8% from the previous year. This was well below the increase of 6.7% in 2003. (Table 3-2)
3. The number of these individuals increased by about 48.8% between 1996 and 2005, largely the result of increased employment of researchers in the business enterprise sector. (Table 1-1 and Table 1-4)
4. Together, the business enterprise and higher education sectors employed 8 of every 10 new researchers in 2005. (Table 4-2)
5. Researchers accounted for 63% of all the personnel engaged in R&D in Canada in 2005. However, only three provinces had higher proportions than the national average: British Columbia, where researchers accounted for 70%, Alberta (66%) and Ontario (64%). (Table 2-1)
6. Between 1996 and 2005, the proportion of personnel engaged in R&D in the business enterprise sector increased from 55% in 1996 to 64% in 2005. (Table 1-1)
7. On the other hand, during the same period, the share in the higher education sector declined from 32% to 27%. This was a reflection of the more robust increase in the number of R&D personnel in the business enterprise sector. (Table 1-1)