Singapore commits S$19b for new research, innovation and enterprise plan

THE government is committing S$19 billion for its new Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) 2020 plan, which is 18 per cent higher than the S$16.1 billion set aside for the previous five-year plan.

Announcing this on Friday after chairing the annual RIE Council meeting, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said the government was sustaining its spending in this area at about one per cent of GDP.

This proportion, he added, is more than what the UK spends and about the same as the US. It is also comparable to public spending in other small research-intensive economies.

As it made its RIE2020 plan public, the National Research Foundation said the funding would be prioritised in domains where Singapore has a competitive advantage or important national needs.

The four domains it singled out are advanced manufacturing and engineering; health and biomedical services; services and digital economy; and urban solutions and sustainability.