The Research and Development (R&D) sector in Turkey witnessed remarkable growth during the decade spanning from 2016 to 2025, with total spending allocated to these activities exceeding 2.5 trillion Turkish Lira, driven by a focus on strategic areas such as defense, space exploration, and advanced technology.
Evolution of Spending Volume and Historical Escalation
Official statistical data issued by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) showed that R&D expenditures experienced successive leaps over the last ten years. In 2016, the volume of spending reached approximately 29.4 billion Turkish Lira, reaching 101.7 billion Lira by 2021, marking the first time the 100 billion threshold was crossed. The figures continued to rise, recording 377.5 billion Lira in 2023, then 651.8 billion Lira in 2024, reaching a historical level of approximately 980.4 billion Lira last year. Thus, total spending increased by a factor of 33, bringing the grand total to approximately 2 trillion and 550 billion Lira, while the ratio of spending to GDP rose from 1.12% in 2016 to 1.55% in 2025.
Growth of Investment in the Advanced Technology Sector
Within the framework of industrial and technological initiatives aimed at supporting innovative infrastructure, R&D investments for high-tech within the manufacturing sector achieved a massive leap of approximately 45 times over the full decade. After being allocated 3.4 billion Lira in 2016, high-tech investments jumped to 154 billion Lira last year, accounting alone for the largest share of total industrial spending in this field at 47.7%.
Expansion of Specialized Human Resources
This financial expansion was accompanied by a significant increase in the volume of the workforce specialized in R&D fields. The total number of employees rose by approximately 178.8 thousand people, with the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) personnel rising from 139.1 thousand people in 2016 to approximately 317.9 thousand people last year. Female personnel also recorded growth, reaching 108.4 thousand women, representing approximately 34.1% of the total workforce, while the percentage of those holding doctoral degrees or equivalent reached approximately 31% of the total employees in the sector.
What This Development Represents for the Tech Sector
This continuous rise in spending reflects a structural shift toward the sustainability of an innovation and knowledge-based economy, especially with high-tech investments taking precedence over medium-tech. The focus on sectors such as advanced manufacturing and space projects is considered an indicator of the local technical ecosystem's pursuit of increasing its regional and international competitiveness by supporting qualified talent and institutional infrastructure.