2009年-世界发展银行全球_Background_Paper_for_the_Workshop_on_Science_Technology_and_Innovation_in_Jordan_Lebanon_and_Syria_19页_572kb

Summary of the Background Paper on Science, Technology and Innovation in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria

A. Introduction

This document outlines the role of science, technology, and innovation (STI) in economic development, emphasizing the importance of STI in fostering growth and improving living standards. It discusses the World Bank's initiatives and lessons learned in promoting STI in Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria, highlighting the need for a supportive institutional environment, effective policies, and private sector involvement.

B. The Knowledge Economy

The Knowledge Economy is defined as an economic environment where innovation and knowledge replace capital and labor as the primary wealth-creating assets. To support the development of a knowledge-based economy, the World Bank has implemented various projects, including:

• Upgrading Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) regimes
• Improving measurement, testing, standards, and quality systems
• Restructuring R&D institutes
• Establishing technoparks and venture capital funds
• Assisting enterprises in developing, adapting, using, and commercializing new technologies

Four pillars are identified as essential for building a knowledge-based economy:

1. Policy & Institutional Framework: Requires a coherent national strategy with free competition, ease of entry and exit, transparent financial systems, and open trade.
2. Innovation System: Includes functioning knowledge-producing organizations, stable macroeconomic and regulatory frameworks, communications infrastructure, and access to global knowledge.
3. Education & Training: Must align with industry needs through modern curricula, skill development, and quality assurance systems.
4. Infrastructure & ICT: Ensures universal access to telecommunications, affordable internet, and improved rural connectivity.

C. Critical Characteristics of STI Projects

Key characteristics for successful STI projects include:

• Project Scope/Complexity: Should be tailored to the country's context, with a focus on aligning R&D institutions with industry needs and providing financing support.
• Flexibility in Project Design: Projects should allow for adjustments and have unallocated funds for priority areas.
• Public-good Nature and Externalities: The public sector plays a central role in creating an environment conducive to innovation.
• Private Sector Participation: Essential for process efficiency and cost-effective delivery.
• Technology Financing Agencies: Specialized agencies can facilitate funding and project execution.
• Institutional Reforms: Public institutions need to be accountable and responsive to industry demands.
• Management Intensity: Requires strong government commitment and coordination.
• Time Factor: Projects should have a sufficient timeline, typically 4–5 years.

Impediments to Avoid:

• From the World Bank perspective: complex design, rigidity, insufficient resources, poor supervision, inadequate M&E, lack of customization, and insufficient follow-up on policy issues.
• From the Client perspective: ineffective leadership, weak institutional capacity, resistance to change, inappropriate policy frameworks, lack of continuity, no M&E, and insufficient focus on impact.

D. Policy Options for S&T

There are four main policy options for enhancing science and technology:

1. Human Resource Development:

   • Promote basic science education
   • Encourage careers in S&T
   • Support research and advanced training, and link private sector with academia

2. Stimulating Demand for Knowledge in the Private Sector:

   • Encourage competition and entrepreneurship
   • Provide stable macroeconomic conditions
   • Offer low-cost capital and fiscal incentives
   • Facilitate the integration of research with private sector development

3. Public Sector Support of S&T:

   • Ensure transparent governance and peer review
   • Maintain long-term commitment and quality improvement
   • Increase scientific rigor through competitive funding and institutional linkages
   • Create sustainable funding mechanisms
   • Conduct human resource training

4. Promoting ICT Infrastructure:

   • Develop robust ICT networks
   • Ensure universal access to telecommunications and internet
   • Facilitate information flow and knowledge sharing

E. Lessons from Promoting S&T

• The World Bank has supported over 119 S&T projects and included S&T activities in 647 projects totaling $8.6 billion.
• Agriculture accounts for 42% of S&T lending, followed by education and industry.
• East Asia received 40% of all major S&T loans from 1980–2004, while Latin America received 20%.
• Smaller countries often focus on tertiary technical studies and technical standards related to trade liberalization.
• The Development Grant Facility (DGF) provides $100 million annually for S&T-oriented programs.

Lessons from ICT experience:

• Invest equally in human capital and ICT infrastructure.
• Integrate IT activities with research programs and private sector initiatives.
• Develop demand-driven and cohesive IT infrastructure, incorporating the InfoDev initiative.

F. Concluding Remarks

• The intensity of R&D and STI in an economy is influenced by macroeconomic stability, public policies, human capital development, and openness to ideas.
• The Knowledge Economy Index shows a 87% correlation between knowledge accumulation and economic development.
• Four key recommendations:
  1. Prioritize education at all levels.
  2. Engage the private sector in driving innovation and technology adoption.
  3. Ensure government oversight and supportive frameworks for S&T strategies.
  4. Improve ICT networks to promote universal access and information flow.

Annex I: Special World Bank S&T Initiatives

• Millennium Science Initiative (MSI): Supports high-level S&T research, with criteria including government vision, program ownership, and research team commitment.
• Special Program for African Agricultural Research (SPAAR): Aims to improve food security and economic development through agricultural research.
• Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR): Focuses on productivity, environmental protection, and policy improvement.
• Knowledge for Development (K4D): Helps countries build capacity to access and utilize knowledge, offering services like policy support and knowledge assessment methodologies.

Annex II: Case Studies

Republic of Korea

• Electronics Technology Project: $29 million, 1979–1986, aimed to develop the semiconductor industry but faced challenges in profitability and R&D.
• Technology Development Projects (First, Second, Third): $129 million, 1982–1992, supported R&D institutions and SMEs.
• Technology Advancement Projects (First, Second, Third): $108 million, 1989–1994, aimed to modernize R&D institutions and improve industrial standards.
• Science and Technical Education Projects: $195 million, 1984–1997, focused on improving education and research capacity.

China

• Rural Industrial Technology (Spark) Project: $114 million, 1997, aimed to transfer technology to rural enterprises.
• Technology Development Project: $200 million, 1995, supported government reforms and the diffusion of clean technologies.