Education and science, research and innovation are the crucial foundations for our country's competitiveness. Germany has therefore opted for an active science and innovation policy with great success. Since 2006, the German government's high-tech strategy has helped government and industry invest more in research and development than ever before. Germany is in the top group when it comes to exporting high-tech goods, with five of Europe's ten most research-intensive companies based here. Three percent of gross domestic product is invested in research and development in Germany. However, we need to do even better if we are to successfully master the international competition between locations.

New competitors are entering global markets all over the world. In order to move our country forward on the path to becoming a global innovation leader and to achieve strong value creation in Germany, we must identify opportunities early on, participate in the latest technological developments and implement ideas quickly. With the new high-tech strategy, we are focusing on six areas that are of particular importance for our society, for new growth and for future prosperity: Digital Economy and Society, Sustainable Business and Energy, Innovative Work, Healthy Living, Intelligent Mobility and Civil Security.

Among other things, we want to use research and innovation to pave the way for more resource-efficient, environmentally friendly, socially responsible and thus more sustainable production and consumption. In Germany, 11 percent of gross domestic product is already generated by green technologies. Water technologies for the treatment of wastewater are an export hit. Early funding under the umbrella of the High-Tech Strategy and the "Research for Sustainable Development" program of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research have made a decisive contribution to this success.