Most industries spend less than Tk 500 per year in research and development (R&D) for a worker, said the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) today.

"The lower spending in R&D is alarming," it said.

However, the country's pharmaceuticals, medicinal chemical and botanical products industry has the highest R&D expenditure per worker among all industries.
They spend Tk 23,735 per worker annually, said the CPD.

The think tank made the comments today at a dialogue titled "Technology Use in the Manufacturing Industries of Bangladesh" at BRAC Centre Inn in the capital's Mohakhali. 

Only one percent of the medium-sized firms and five percent of the large firms spend on R&D, it said.

Speaking as the chief guest, Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun said a collective effort from the private sector is needed to spend on R&D as it's not a waste of money. 

Fahmida Khatun, executive director of CPD, moderated the event