Research & development spending as a share of GDP in Belarus
Belarus: Research & development spending as a share of GDP was 0.6% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Research & development spending as a share of GDP in Belarus, 1996–2024
Source: UNESCO UIS Stat Bulk Data Download Service, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2024, research & development spending as a share of gdp in Belarus stood at 0.6%.
That represents a change of up 2.4% on the previous year and up 16.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, research & development spending as a share of gdp in Belarus peaked at 1.0% in 1996 and was at its lowest, 0.5%, in 2021.
That places Belarus 58th out of 116 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 29 years of available data.
Research & development spending as a share of GDP in Belarus, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 1.0% | — |
| 1997 | 0.7% | -26.9% |
| 1998 | 0.7% | -3.3% |
| 1999 | 0.8% | +19.8% |
| 2000 | 0.7% | -14.6% |
| 2001 | 0.7% | -1.8% |
| 2002 | 0.6% | -12.4% |
| 2003 | 0.6% | -1.5% |
| 2004 | 0.6% | +2.6% |
| 2005 | 0.7% | +8.1% |
| 2006 | 0.7% | -2.6% |
| 2007 | 1.0% | +45.6% |
| 2008 | 0.7% | -22.9% |
| 2009 | 0.6% | -16.2% |
| 2010 | 0.7% | +7.6% |
| 2011 | 0.7% | +1.3% |
| 2012 | 0.6% | -4.7% |
| 2013 | 0.7% | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 0.5% | -22.5% |
| 2015 | 0.5% | -1.1% |
| 2016 | 0.5% | +0.1% |
| 2017 | 0.6% | +16.7% |
| 2018 | 0.6% | +3.5% |
| 2019 | 0.6% | -4.5% |
| 2020 | 0.5% | -6.6% |
| 2021 | 0.5% | -14.7% |
| 2022 | 0.5% | +3.3% |
| 2023 | 0.6% | +20.8% |
| 2024 | 0.6% | +2.4% |
Belarus compared with similar countries
- Belarus's 0.6% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.3%, 2.0× the median. (36 countries reporting)
- Belarus's 0.6% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 1.4%, 43% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Research & development spending as a share of GDP in Belarus changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | +45.6% | 0.7% | 1.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0.8% | 0.7% | 1.0% | 4 |
| 2000s | 0.7% | 0.6% | 1.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Belarus
More science & technology data for Belarus
- Mobile landline subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Mobile landline subscriptions, gaps filled 131.12 (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per capita 1.3 units per person (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, gaps filled 11.88 million (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per square kilometre 57.92 units per square kilometre (2023)
- Mobile landline subscriptions, annual growth rate 1.66 % change on previous year (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, annual growth rate 1 % change on previous year (2024)
- Scientific and technical journal articles 1,429 (2023)
- Scientific and technical journal articles, per capita 0.0002 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is research & development spending as a share of gdp in Belarus?
- Research & development spending as a share of gdp in Belarus was 0.6% in 2024, according to UNESCO UIS Stat Bulk Data Download Service, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest research & development spending as a share of gdp recorded in Belarus?
- The highest recorded value was 1.0% in 1996.
- What is the lowest research & development spending as a share of gdp recorded in Belarus?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5% in 2021.
- How does Belarus rank for research & development spending as a share of gdp?
- Belarus ranks 58th out of 116 countries with data for 2024.
- Is research & development spending as a share of gdp rising or falling in Belarus?
- Over the last ten years it is up 16.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Belarus data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO UIS Stat Bulk Data Download Service, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Research & development spending as a share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Includes basic research, applied research, and experimental development.