This week the Dutch Secretary of State for economic affairs and climate has sent our report on public investments in key enabling technologies (KETs) to Parliament. The report was requested for the development of a renewed mission-oriented innovation policy in the Netherlands that will put more emphasis on KETs. The report describes and analyses developments in up-front investments in KETs for ten countries in Europe and beyond, and for the European Commission. In the report we reflect on the current Dutch innovation policy and associated up-front investments in KETs and provide suggestions for change. The report is in Dutch and available online.

One of the key findings of the study is that up-front investments in KETs are expected to increase in the studied countries in the coming years. Many of those countries have developed specific programmes to strategically invest up-front in KETs and have selected several KETs to focus on – often based on perceived economic benefits. France and the Netherlands, however, use more generic instruments – such as fiscal instruments – to support innovation and have less up-front investments in KETs. Such instruments do not target KETs specifically. In our reflections we state that more specific and strategic instruments with a multi-annual horizon should be developed in the Netherlands to follow developments abroad and to increase up-front investments.

Please contact Chiel Scholten for more information.