Many economists and policymakers regard the ratio of R&D investment to GNP to be a good indicator of a nation's technological capabilities. Consequently, their major policy recommendation to promote technological development is a rapid expansion in R&D investment. However, a low R&D ratio does not necessarily mean less efforts at technological advancement since the composition of technologies to be developed varies depending upon the stage of economic development. Technology policy to improve the international competitiveness of domestic industries should be based on the stage of economic development and present technological status rather than on a simple comparison with advanced countries. At Korea's stage of development, maximizing the efficiency of R&D investment is more important than enlarging the size of the investment. Strategic alliances between domestic firms and foreign enterprises should be encouraged to save time and costs involved in acquiring new technologies and learning how to use them. The government should establish institutional devices to stimulate private enterprises to internationalize their business activities such as R&D, production, and marketing. The government should also promote the development of domestic and international R&D networks, which can serve as the infrastructure for technological innovations.