According to Stats Canada, spending on research and development in the higher education sector amounted to $9.6 billion for the fiscal year of 2006/2007. This includes money used in affiliated research hospitals, experimental stations and clinics. Broken up by category, miscellaneous natural sciences accounted for 41 per cent of the total, while health sciences came in at 39 per cent and social sciences and humanities accounting for the remaining 20 per cent.

Higher education institutions themselves were the largest contributors, funding $4.4 billion, followed by the federal government with $2.5 billion in funding, provincial governments with $992 million, business enterprises $808 million, private NPO’s with $775 million, and finally foreign bodies contributing $125 million.