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PH up 4 notches to 50th place in 2020 Global Innovation Index

By Ma. Cristina Arayata

September 3, 2020, 8:08 am

<p>(<em>Image grabbed from World Intellectual Property Organization's Facebook page</em>)</p>

(Image grabbed from World Intellectual Property Organization's Facebook page)

MANILA – The Philippines now ranks 50th in the Global Innovation Index (GII), up four notches from its ranking in 2019, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) announced Wednesday night.

The GII ranks 131 world economies based on innovative capabilities. The innovation inputs and outputs are being considered in the GII.

In a statement, DOST Secretary Fortunato de la Peña said that despite the pandemic, the country was able to show that innovation through research and development (R&D) "is the key to survival and success in the new environment".

In the same statement, Undersecretary Rowena Cristina Guevara said, “With the high marks achieved by our country in the latest GII, R&D provides us the opportunity to change and mold the shape of our country’s recovery from the pandemic.”

Both de la Peña and Guevara have underscored that DOST's main strategy, the Science for Change Program (S4CP), identifies the areas that need enhanced R&D investments and innovations.

The S4CP "provides an enabling platform where government, academic, and industry players in the country collectively pursue market-oriented research that directly addresses the needs of specific sectors," Guevara said.

According to the DOST, the Philippines' Innovation Input ranking reached 70 in 2020, from its previous ranking of 76 in 2019 and 86 in 2018. The country's Innovation Output ranking, on the other hand, is 41 in 2020, from 42 in 2019 and 68 in 2018.

The DOST attributed the improved rankings to investment in R&D, improving human resources, and the establishment of research centers and laboratories.

In 2019, the Philippines’ ranking (54th) in the GII was up 19 notches from its previous ranking of 73 in 2018 and 2017.

A virtual presser is scheduled on Friday to further discuss the 2020 GII ranking, de la Peña said.

This year's GII is co-published by Cornell University, INSEAD, and the World Intellectual Property Organization. (PNA)

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