Poland ranked 23rd most innovative country in the world
Last week Bloomberg published its Innovation Index for 2016. Poland took the 23rd position on the list of the world’s most innovative economies, surpassing such countries as Italy, Spain, and Portugal. The country moved up two notches from last year, when it was ranked 25th.
The ranking is led by South Korea, with the total score of 91.31 points. Two European economies follow: Germany on the second place and Sweden on the third. In the top ten there are six countries from Europe (Germany and Sweden as well as Switzerland (5th), Finland (7th), Denmark (9th), and France (10th)), three from Asia (South Korea, Japan (4th), Singapore (6th), and one from North America (United States (8th)).
Poland took the top spot among the CEE countries, with the total score of 71.64. Slovenia follow closely on the 24th position, and a bit further behind there are Hungary (30th), Czech Republic (31st), Lithuania (32nd), and Estonia (34th). On the list there are also Croatia (38th), Slovakia (39th), Latvia (40th), Ukraine (41st), Bulgaria (42nd), and Serbia (44th).
In order to calculate a country’s innovation score, seven factors are taken into consideration: R&D intensity (expenditure on research and development), Manufacturing value-added, Productivity, High-tech density (number of high-tech public companies), Tertiary efficiency (enrolment in tertiary education), Researcher concentration (number of professionals in research and development), and Patent activity.
Poland received its highest marks in the category of High-tech density and Manufacturing value-added, ranking in the top 20, while low scores were awarded for R&D intensity and Researcher concentration. It is worth noting that in terms of Productivity the country surpassed such economies as South Korea, Germany, and the United Kingdom.
In total, Bloomberg assessed the innovativeness of 84 countries from all over the world, while the published ranking includes information on 50 economies.
The classification is constructed based on the data from International Monetary Fund, World Bank, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, World Intellectual Property Organization, and United Nations.
Poland authorities hope to boost the country’s innovativeness even further. Polish government has recently founded Council of Innovation, an inter-ministerial body coordinating and supporting innovation efforts. The goal is to provide support for innovative entities and forge stronger links between entrepreneurs, researchers, and the state.
Among the upcoming plans are amendments to the Act on Supporting Innovation, StartInPoland start-up funding programme, and other measures aiming to increase spending on research and development in Polish institutions and companies.
