Time for Australia to adopt a national industry strategy

In the wake of the Federal Government’s Jobs and Skills Summit there is a clear need for an overarching industry strategy to guide future decision-making, investments and workforce planning.

The Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA), in conjunction with Microsoft, is launching Harnessing Science x Technology to drive Australian innovation and growth at CEDA’s State of the Nation conference in Canberra on Thursday.

The paper is a result of a series of workshops and one-on-one discussions with leaders across industry, government and academia. 

It identifies the need for Australia to leverage its science and technology capabilities to address the challenges and opportunities facing the nation, including our ageing population and climate change.

"Without an industry strategy to drive our innovation and technology focus, our capabilities as a nation will not be fully realised,” says CEDA CEO Melinda Cilento.

Australian businesses and industries are currently moving further away from, not closer to, the global productivity and technology frontier while the sophistication of Australia’s industry and economy is declining.

While most nations have increased gross domestic spending on R&D in the past 10 years, Australia has dropped to 1.8 per cent of GDP against an OECD average of 2.6 per cent. 

“There is a common desire to ignite greater ambition, excitement and imagination around our science and tech possibilities as drivers of future prosperity, and to bring business, academia and government together in this pursuit,” says Ms Cilento.

The paper highlights the need for captaincy, collaboration, capability and the establishment of an independent, cross-sector forum to articulate a shared vision for Australian innovation.

"We will work with stakeholders to identify the critical elements of a pragmatic, practical and targeted-industry strategy that takes a coordinated approach to building capabilities at scale,” she says.

CEDA’s State of the Nation puts emerging science and tech opportunities at the core of future economic development and the “Harnessing science x technology to innovate and drive economic growth” session is the first step in a cross-sector discussion of these opportunities.

CEDA Chief Executive Melinda Cilento is available for further comment and interviews. 

For more information, please contact: 

Elizabeth Byrne, Media Manager and Content Specialist

Mobile: 0410 627 250 | Email: elizabeth.byrne@ceda.com.au 

CEDA – the Committee for Economic Development of Australia – is an independent, membership-based think tank.   

CEDA’s purpose is to improve the lives of Australians by enabling a dynamic economy and vibrant society. Through independent research and frank debate, we influence policy and collaborate to disrupt for good.

CEDA has more than 620 members from a broad cross-section of industry, government, community and academia. Our members span every state and territory.

CEDA was founded in 1960 by leading economist Sir Douglas Copland. His legacy of applying economic analysis to practical problems to aid the development of Australia continues to drive our work today.