Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin said investment in science, technology and innovation is central to the party’s plan for a better future.
He said Fianna Fáil was the only party which had ever shown a commitment to science and technology in government and there would be "no such thing" as a high-income economy that failed to invest in these areas.
"We believe that Ireland can be a global innovation hub. This is not an empty phrase, it is achievable with the right policies - delivering high-quality employment which is sustainable and competitive," he said.
He said his party had ring-fenced funding for research programmes and for the enterprise agencies.
"It would have been easy to hit these funding programmes because they do not evoke great emotions, but national recovery cannot be achieved without them."
Mr Martin said investment in ideas and people was essential to attracting multi-million investments to Ireland.
"I have heard Eamon Gilmore's comments about this area where he said "we can't all work in a laboratory". He's absolutely right: we can't," he said. "But without the thousands of people who are today directly and indirectly supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs through their expertise and innovation, we will not have a successful economy with new job creation."