ZCZC
BCN-14
SWITZERLAND-INDIA-ECONOMY-SCIENCE-BUSINESS
Switzerland the world’s most-innovative in latest rankings
NEW DELHI, July 25, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Switzerland is the world’s most
innovative country for a second consecutive year while Asian giant India made
the biggest strides among major economies, a global indicator showed
Wednesday.
The annual Global Innovation Index — compiled by World Intellectual
Property Organisation, Cornell University and INSEAD — ranks 129 world
economies on 80 parameters including research, technology and creativity.
Switzerland was closely followed by Sweden and the United States, with
Israel rounding out the top 10.
India, where the announcement was made, was ranked 52nd but has leaped up
the rankings in recent years, WIPO assistant director-general Naresh Prasad
said.
The report came as the International Monetary Fund downgraded global
growth and warned of a “precarious” 2020 amid trade tensions, continued
uncertainty and rising prospects for a no-deal Brexit.
The report’s authors said spending on innovation was still growing and
appeared resilient despite the slowdown.
But they also warned of signs of waning public support for research and
development in high-income economies usually responsible for pushing the
innovation envelope, and increased protectionism.
“In particular, protectionism that impacts technology-intensive sectors
and knowledge flows poses risks to global innovation networks and innovation
diffusion,” the report said.
“If left uncontained, these new obstacles to international trade,
investment, and workforce mobility will lead to a slowdown of growth in
innovation productivity and diffusion across the globe.”
BSS/AFP/HR/1045