One fundamental factor in the sustained growth of a country is having a strong and purposive research and development (R&D) program.   R&D plays an essential role in society’s advancement. It provides science-based knowledge for the development of new products, solutions and services. While it requires substantial investments and tremendous patience, the rewards are substantial. Unfortunately, R&D in the Philippines is relegated to the back burner in terms of government funding. It is lamentable that the Philippines is among the “lowest spenders” for R&D.  In 2017, the government set an initial funding of R21 billion for a program called Science for Change.  It was estimated then that if R&D spending was doubled every year, the Philippines could have reached one percent of GDP, the amount prescribed by the UNESCO as the minimum investment for a country to be competitive. However, R&D funding for this year went down to just R18 billion. There is a need for government to allocate a substantial portion of its national budget for R&D as it tries to fight off the global pandemic so that science could  be deployed to mitigate the detrimental effects of a protracted health crisis. Vietnam’s R&D investment is four times higher than the Philippines. As a result, Vietnam ranked fourth in the world in science, according to the Program for International Student Assessment or PISA, a global organization that measures 15-year-old students’ skills on reading, mathematics and science literacy every three years where the Philippines is a perennial bottom dweller. Boosting the government’s R&D efforts is Republic Act 11293 or the Philippine Innovation Act.   The implementing rules and regulations were crafted by the National Economic and Development Authority, in coordination with the Department of Science and Technology and the Department of Trade and Industry. One of the state policies under the law is the formulation of the Cluster Development Program under the National Innovation Council (NIC). The Cluster Development Program shall provide the mechanisms for the establishment of the regional inclusive innovation centers, R&D centers, as well as the evaluation of innovation policy and impacts and a database linked to the Filipinnovation portal. The NIC shall develop R&D and extension program themes to be adopted by concerned government agencies which would ensure that a higher level of mission orientation in publicly funded research is observed. For the private sector, investments in R&D are also entitled to tax incentives as these are listed in the Investment Priorities Plan of the Board of Investments. The country’s push for R&D must be ramped up and accelerated.  This is the path that leads to enhanced country competitiveness.