Vienna, January 27, 2025: Forschung Austria and IV jointly warn against cuts in the RTI Pact and appeal to the federal government to urgently adopt the next RTI Pact for 2027-2029 in accordance with the Federal Finance Framework Act without cuts, including in individual sub-budgets.
Forschung Austria emphasizes the importance of the RTI Pact as a central framework for planning security and strategic investments in the innovation system. Research, technology, and innovation (RTI) are the decisive levers for securing and expanding location quality, competitiveness, prosperity, and jobs. "In order to achieve the goals of the industrial strategy and successfully develop and implement key technologies, strategic investments in applied, business-oriented research and the sustainable development of skills are needed—so that innovations can be effectively and successfully transferred into economic applications," appeals Forschung Austria President Brigitte Bach.
RTI pact as a key lever for industry, innovation, and prosperity
"Research spending is an important part of our provision for the future. The budget cuts for applied research currently under discussion must therefore be avoided, even if the budgetary situation is very tight," emphasizes IV Secretary General Christoph Neumayer. "Cutting back on research, technology development, and innovation contradicts the objectives of the recently presented industrial strategy and its key technology offensive." In this strategy, Austria has rightly set itself the goal of becoming one of the top 10 most competitive economies. Applied and business-oriented research in particular is an important lever for translating excellent ideas and research results into concrete innovative solutions, thereby generating added value and securing prosperity.
Putting applied, business-oriented research into reverse would have negative effects on all stakeholders – be they universities, research institutions, start-ups, SMEs, or research-active industrial companies. In addition, this would also jeopardize participation in strategic EU initiatives, which are more necessary than ever for the development of Austria as a research location.
The RTI Pact, with its three-year performance agreements, offers planning security and gives research institutions and industry the necessary perspective to invest specifically in the future.