R&D expenditure in Greece increased by 7.6% in 2024

In 2024, expenditure on Research and Development (R&D) in Greece amounted to €3.62 billion, while employment in R&D activities reached 69,124 full-time equivalent positions, according to the final data published by the National Documentation Centre and Electronic Content (EKT), which have been submitted to Eurostat. The R&D intensity indicator stood at 1.53% of GDP, continuing its upward trend compared with 2023. Businesses accounted for 54.8% of total R&D expenditure, followed by the higher education and government sectors. The Region of Attica accounted for the largest share of R&D expenditure and employment, while the highest R&D intensity levels were recorded in Central Macedonia, Attica and Crete.

More specifically, total R&D expenditure in Greece in 2024 amounted to €3,621.36 million, an increase of €256.25 million compared with 2023, corresponding to a 7.6% increase. Combined with the 5.4% increase in GDP in Greece in 2024, the R&D intensity indicator, which expresses R&D expenditure as a percentage of GDP, reached 1.53%, up from 2023. At European level, Greece ranked 13th among the EU27 countries in terms of R&D intensity.

At the same time, the number of personnel employed in R&D activities, expressed in Full-Time Equivalents (FTEs), representing full-time employment positions, decreased to 69,124 FTEs for total R&D personnel, from 73,263 FTEs in 2023, a decrease of 5.7%. Research personnel amounted to 50,892 FTEs, compared with 54,679 FTEs in 2023, representing a decrease of 6.9%. At European level, Greece ranked 13th among the EU27 countries in terms of FTEs for total R&D personnel.

The results of EKT’s statistical survey, conducted in 2024 among organisations engaged in research and development activities across the four sectors of activity — Business Enterprise Sector (BES), Higher Education Sector (HES), Government Sector (GOV) and Private Non-Profit Institutions (PNP) — are available in the publication Key Indicators for Research and Development Expenditure and Personnel in Greece, 2024 (https://metrics.ekt.gr/publications/754).

R&D expenditure by sector of activity

The Business Enterprise Sector accounted for 54.8% of total R&D expenditure (€1,985.65 million), continuing the upward trend of recent years. In 2024, the economic sectors with the highest levels of R&D expenditure were Information and Communication (€304.75 million), Mining and Quarrying (€299.31 million), Financial and Insurance Activities (€254.91 million), Professional, Scientific and Technical Activities (€203.04 million), Wholesale and Retail Trade (€199.89 million), and Manufacture of Basic Pharmaceutical Products and Pharmaceutical Preparations (€196.16 million). R&D expenditure across the Information and Communication sector as a whole, comprising individual manufacturing and services activities, amounted to €361.43 million.

In terms of employment in R&D activities in the business sector, total R&D personnel amounted to 23,012 FTEs, representing 33.3% of total R&D employment, of which 16,632 FTEs were personnel engaged in research activities.

The second-largest sector in terms of R&D expenditure was the Higher Education Sector, which includes universities, university research institutes and university hospitals. In 2024, R&D expenditure in this sector amounted to €911.03 million, representing 25.2% of total R&D expenditure in Greece. In line with international practices for the sector, R&D activities focused primarily on basic research (€525.94 million) and applied research (€310.64 million). The scientific fields with the highest levels of expenditure were Medical and Health Sciences (€254.73 million), Engineering and Technology (€230.26 million), and Social Sciences (€181.65 million).

The Higher Education Sector accounted for the largest number of R&D employment positions. In 2024, total R&D employment amounted to 29,860 FTEs, representing 43.2% of the total, of which 24,353 FTEs were research positions.

R&D expenditure in the Government Sector amounted to €706.52 million in 2024, representing 19.5% of total R&D expenditure in Greece. The Government Sector includes organisations supervised by various Ministries, such as Research Centres supervised by the General Secretariat for Research and Innovation, Public Research Organisations supervised by other Ministries, Archaeological Services, Modern Monuments Services, Public Museums, Public Hospitals, as well as organisations, directorates and hospitals of the Ministry of National Defence, among others.

Overall, R&D activities in the Government Sector in 2024 covered both basic and applied research, with expenditure of €271.13 million and €296.53 million, respectively. The main scientific fields in which government organisations conducted R&D activities in 2024 were Medical and Health Sciences (€193.35 million), Engineering and Technology (€149.68 million), Natural Sciences (€131.18 million), and Humanities and the Arts (€131.17 million).

Employment in R&D activities in government organisations amounted to 15,898 FTEs, representing 23.0% of total R&D employment, of which 9,649 FTEs were research positions.

Finally, R&D expenditure in the Private Non-Profit Institutions sector amounted to €18.16 million, while total R&D employment stood at 354 FTEs, representing 0.5% of total R&D employment. Of these, 258 FTEs were research positions.

Funding of R&D expenditure and the regional dimension

The largest share of R&D expenditure in Greece in 2024 was funded by private businesses, which contributed €1,682.79 million. Government funding was also significant, amounting to €1,164.46 million, comprising €762.87 million from the regular state budget, €248.72 million from NSRF programmes and the Recovery and Resilience Facility, and €152.87 million from the National Development Programme and other government sources. Finally, €476.98 million came from the participation of Greek organisations in competitive European Union programmes.

In terms of the regional distribution of R&D activities, the Region of Attica accounted for the largest share of R&D expenditure (€1,982.39 million, corresponding to 54.7% of the total) as well as R&D personnel (34,413 FTEs, corresponding to 49.8% of the total). The R&D intensity indicator, which expresses R&D expenditure as a percentage of the GDP of each Region and highlights the importance of R&D activities within the overall activity of each Region, recorded levels above the national average in the Regions of Central Macedonia (2.22%), Attica (1.72%) and Crete (1.55%).

The statistics and indicators on Research, Development and Innovation in Greece form part of European statistics and are produced by the National Documentation Centre and Electronic Content (EKT), the competent national authority of the Hellenic Statistical System. They constitute the official national data submitted to and published by Eurostat and the OECD. The data are also available from EKT in print and electronic publications and data tables on the metricsEKT website.