Canberra’s Knowledge Capital Credentials
Canberra has a sophisticated, knowledge based economy with services accounting for 98 per cent of gross value added. It is undeniably oriented towards service delivery and public administration.
Canberra has the highest concentration of knowledge-based activity in Australia, as ranked by the National Institute for Economic and Industry Research. It also ranks number one in the Global Knowledge Flows Indicator, meaning the city has the highest ratio of global knowledge flow workers, with skills in IT, international business and innovation. There are an estimated 6,000 people directly employed in the ACT's research and development community.
The Canberra region has the highest Research and Development (R&D) expenditure intensity in Australia. In 2008-09, gross expenditure on R&D (GERD) in the ACT as a proportion of Gross State Product was over four per cent (4.11%), a percentage which exceeded the GERD/Gross Domestic Product ratio of any OECD country.
ACT GERD has grown from $662 million in 2000-01 to $1.06 billion in 2008-09. The vast majority (around 90 per cent) of this occurs in the government and education sectors.
Canberra's world class universities and research institutes complement knowledge based Canberra businesses. The Australian National University has consistently been ranked Australia's top university in various international rankings.
The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) which is headquartered in Canberra, is rated as one of the top four most influential research agencies in the world, ranking in the top one per cent of world scientific institutions in 13 of 22 research fields.
National ICT Australia (NICTA), Australia's Information and Communications Technology Centre of Excellence, has a significant presence in Canberra. It is an independent company focused on ICT research, innovation and commercialisation. Canberra is also home to the Australian e-Government Technology Cluster.
