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Australians are renowned for their creativity, innovative approach to problems and the ability to think outside the square.
Historically, these unique qualities have placed Australia at the forefront of discoveries - many of which have resulted in worldwide commercial success stories.
From the bionic ear, plastic banknotes and wine casks, to pacemakers and penicillin, the pioneering efforts of Australians have made a difference to peoples' lives around the world.
This culture of innovation, combined with the fast adoption of new ideas, has earned Australia its reputation as a dynamic, forward-thinking and productive investment destination.
Our high value, low cost technology and innovation mean that many international companies benefit from collaborative partnerships with Australian businesses and researchers.
Australian Government support for research and development is matched by strong growth in Business Expenditure on Research and Development (BERD).
The Australian Government is implementing an A$8.3 billion innovation strategy, including substantial R&D tax concessions of up to 175 per cent.
In 2005-06, business expenditure on research and development increased for the 7th consecutive year to a record $10.1 billion, effectively doubling over the past five years.[1]
Australia has been ranked first as a location to conduct clinical trials when benchmarked against the UK, the US, Germany, India, Japan and Singapore.[2]
Australia ranks fourth in the world for IT infrastructure and skills, and fifth for IT industry competitiveness and productivity.[3]
Australia is ranked one of the top three countries in the region, in generating basic research to ensure long term economic development.[4]
In fact, Australia ranks fourth in the world for internet users (743 per 1,000 people), behind only Iceland (803), Sweden (764), and Denmark (755).[5]
A strategic location for technology tests and trials
Australia has been ranked first as a location to conduct clinical trials when compared against competitor countries, including the UK, the US, Germany, India, Japan and Singapore.[6]
As a country of early adopters Australia is the ideal location for trials of new services and products. Australians have quickly adapted to technical innovations including mobile phones, digital photography and electronic funds transfer. Australia is in the top 10 e-government rankings and is first in the Asia-Pacific region and 8th in the world for e-readiness.
Australia's enviable human development effort is another aspect of generating competitiveness, in effect, Australia' human development index is the third best in the world, behind only Norway and Ireland.[7]
Australia is ranked highly for the level of knowledge transfer between companies and universities, and for the availability of research and development personnel.[8]
The Australian population encompasses people from 200 different countries and offers a microcosm of the world’s populations, allowing for simultaneous testing against the preferences of numerous ethnic or linguistic groups.
At the same time, Australia’s westernised consumer and corporate culture means that products that are successful here are also highly likely to be adopted by other western cultures.
The close alignment of Australia’s financial and legal frameworks to those of North America and Europe can mean that products which have been successfully introduced in Australia will have already overcome regulatory scrutiny similar to that which they will face in those markets.
Research focus
Australia has a unique Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) program, which combines the research efforts of the public and private sectors, in more than 7o CRCs operating across a wide range of industry sectors, ensuring widespread collaboration for faster results.
Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), which has an annual operating budget of over A$900 million and is among the world’s largest scientific institutions, is the biggest participant in CRCs. The organisation is ranked among the top four non-university institutions in technology in the world.[9]
Worldwide, CSIRO is involved in more than 850 current or recently completed research projects, working with leading scientific organisations in the US, Japan and Europe and in developing countries, especially in Asia.
Australia has been ranked first as a location to conduct clinical trials when benchmarked against the UK, the US, Germany, India, Japan and Singapore.[10]
Australia ranks third in the Asia-Pacific region for e-readiness[11] and for providing supportive legal environment for scientific research.[12]
It's little surprise then that many companies from around the world are choosing to locate their R&D facilities in Australia. Our impressive list of investors includes Mitsubishi, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Fujitsu, Toshiba, Siemens, Kodak and IBM - a list that continues to grow.
Stem Cell Pioneers Professors Alan Trounson (left) and Martin Pera (right), stem cell pioneers from Monash University and the Australian Stem Cell Centre, inspecting culture dishes containing embryonic stem cell lines. Alan Trounson is the Director of the newly established Monash Immunology and Stem Cell Laboratories (MISCL).
MISCL is a centre of research excellence within the School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine at Monash University.
View Ten Good Reasons to Invest in Australia summary.
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[1] Australian Bureau of Statistics, Cat. No. 8104.0, August 2007
[2] Economist Intelligence Unit, Pharmaceutical Benchmarking Study, November 2005
[3] EIU, The Means to Compete, Benchmarking IT Industry Competitiveness, 2007
[4] IMD Word Competitiveness Yearbook 2007
[5] Ibid
[6] EIU 2005
[7] Ibid
[8] Ibid
[9] The Times Higher Education Supplement and Evidence Ltd. 2005
[10] EIU 2005
[11] EIU 2007
[12] IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2007
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