SDG 9.3 Knowledge and innovation

Part three of SDG 9 relates to investment in knowledge by business and the public sector, technological development, and access to ICT and the internet. Knowledge is essential for the economy and finding solutions to major societal problems.

• Private spending on R&D is rising as a percentage of GDP, while public spending on R&D is constant.
• Investment in ICT as a percentage of GDP is declining.
• The capital intensity of the economy is gradually declining.

Dashboard and indicators

Colour codes and notes to the dashboards in the Monitor of Well-being

Knowledge can be converted into new technologies and processes – which can in turn be used to make products and production processes more efficient and sustainable – and into new solutions to society's problems. But knowledge also has sociocultural and intrinsic value.

Resources and opportunities concern the money, human resource and infrastructure to develop, share and apply knowledge and innovation. In 2024, expenditure on research and development (R&D) was 2.3 percent of gross domestic product. This was conducted by firms, research institutes and higher education. Together, they spent 25.7 billion euros on R&D in 2024 using their own personnel and external personnel. Firms spent 18.1 billion euros, institutions 1.2 billion euros and higher education 6.3 billion euros. Total spending on R&D is increasing. Public spending on R&D (expenditure by institutes and higher education) is stable (as a percentage of GDP). The growth in R&D expenditure as a share of GDP is due to the increase in private R&D spending.

In 2024, the Netherlands was among the countries with the highest percentage of total and private R&D spending within the EU-27 (7th in the EU-27). At 0.7 percent of GDP, the Netherlands was around the middle of the EU rankings for public expenditure on R&D in 2024 (10th in the EU-27).

Gross investment in tangible fixed assets (such as buildings, housing, machines and transport vehicles) is relatively low in comparison with other countries. In 2025, the Netherlands ranked 21st in the EU-27. The trend is stable. Investment in ICT as a percentage of GDP is on a downward trend. Until 2015, investment in ICT rose gradually to a level of 3.2 percent. In the subsequent years, investment fell to 2.9 percent of GDP in 2025. Some countries, such as Germany and Finland, are following roughly the same trajectory as the Netherlands. In other countries, such as France, Czechia and Sweden, the share of GDP invested in ICT has instead continued to grow.

The number of hours worked on R&D per capita is increasing. In 2024, 4.2 hours per inhabitant were spent developing new software, products or production processes, or conducting technical-scientific research. However, between 2022 and 2024, the number of hours fell.

Use concerns the amount of knowledge produced, innovations introduced and knowledge networks formed. The number of scientific publications with contributions by Dutch researchers has risen consistently since 2000, but in recent years the level has been more variable. The number of publications is no longer trending upwards, although it did increase by 4.8 percent in 2024, to 3,753 publications per million inhabitants. The number of PCT patent applications per million inhabitants has fallen from around 270 at the start of the century to 234 in 2025. The trend is stable. The Netherlands is among the leaders in the EU-27 on both academic publications and patents.

The share of technologically innovative companies as a total of all firms with more than 10 employees was higher in 2022 than in all previous measurements since 1996, at 45 percent. According to the European Innovation Scoreboard, in 2025 the Netherlands ranked among the EU’s leaders on innovation, along with Sweden, Denmark and Finland.

Outcomes relate to the extent to which new technology and knowledge are embedded in the stock of capital goods. The stock of capital goods (machinery, tools and other means of production) is calculated in euros per hour worked. Capital goods are based on knowledge. In the form of technology in machines and mechanical equipment, software and databases, intellectual property and accumulated R&D results, this knowledge makes a major contribution to the productivity of the Dutch economy.
The stocks of physical and knowledge capital per hour worked provide a measure of the capital intensity of production. This capital intensity is the value of the available means of production relative to the amount of labour employed. The trends for both forms of capital are stable. Looking back beyond the trend period (2018 to 2025 inclusive), capital intensity is gradually falling. The stock of physical capital rose to 177 euros per hour worked (in 2021 prices) from the start of the time series in 1995 up until 2013, but has since gradually fallen back to reach 169 euros in 2024. Between 1995 and 2015, the stock of knowledge capital increased from 7.14 euros to 12.97 euros per hour worked. From 2015, it declined slightly to 11.62 euros in 2024. Totals stock of both physical and knowledge capital are steadily increasing (adjusted for inflation), but the number of hours worked is rising faster. The Netherlands is one of the few countries where the stock of knowledge capital per hour worked is falling rather than rising. In 2024, the Netherlands occupied fifth place in the EU ranking, which includes 13 countries, but is gradually losing its advantage in this area.

Subjective assessment relates to trust in science and innovation. Trust in science is measured every year by the Rathenau Institute. In 2025, trust in science was rated 7.5 (on a scale from 1 to 10). Although average trust rose slightly between 2021 and 2025, the share of people with low trust in science also increased.