The economic structural change taking place throughout the world today is progressively driven by the “intensification of knowledge”. Knowledge accumulation and an economy’s capability to learn, to generate and to diffuse new knowledge are fundamental drivers of growth. The degree to which a society will prosper in the knowledge-driven new economy is largely determined by the characteristics of its innovation system and accumulation of tangible and intangible assets. The objective of this project is to monitor and analyse Germany’s transformation into a learning and knowledge-driven economy. The analyses comprise topics such as

• R&D and innovation activities of the German economy, based on R&D and innovation survey data, international patent statistics and high-tech trade data
• Internationalization of the industrial R&D in Germany
• Efficiency of the public science and research system and technology transfer and co-operation between the public and industrial R&D systems
• The dynamics of the R&D-intensive industries as well as their ability to compete in the international market
• Regional dimension of the knowledge-driven growth in Germany and the effects of catching up technologically in East Germany.
• Supply of and demand for highly skilled workers and the impact of innovation on the skill structure of the workforce
• Monitoring of investment in education and training by government and private sector.

All the findings are interpreted in an international context and it will be discussed, which consequences follow from the identified dynamics. However, technological performance does not change on a year-by-year basis. The impact of the investment in intangible assets on the macroeconomic outcomes becomes evident only in the medium and long term. Accordingly, it is necessary to take a more long-term view when assessing such changes. For this reason, continuity in the monitoring activities and analyses of indicators presents an essential prerequisite for the yearly report on technological performance.