Research in Focus

UNU-INTECH Expands Research on Innovation in Traditional Sectors
As part of its on-going programme of work on upgrading in traditional industries, UNU-INTECH has launched a research project on Innovation Policy and International Trade Rules: A Study of Textile and Garments Exports in Second and Third tier Developing Country Entrants. Coordinated by Prof. Lynn Mytelka and Dr. Kaushalesh Lal , the study examines the export performance of garments and textile producing countries in order to understand why some relatively recent entrants have exited so quickly, while a number of older producers remain internationally competitive. Detailed case studies are being undertaken in Mauritius, Jamaica and Costa Rica (second tier producers) and Vietnam and Kenya (third tier countries). Comparative data from first tier producers - India, Singapore and Korea - will be used in the analysis.

Policies to Strengthen the Capacity of Agricultural Innovation Systems in Developing Countries.
The agricultural sector remains central to social and economic progress in many developing countries. However the sector needs to cope with the challenges of an evolving development scenario where technical and institutional contexts are changing rapidly, and where social welfare needs to be reconciled with private sector competitiveness in an increasingly globalized economy. Focusing on countries in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa this project will investigate the nature of agricultural innovation system capacity and how this can be strengthened in response to its contemporary and evolving setting. A sub-study will explore civil society experience in relation to rural innovation interventions that have relevance for poverty reduction. The study is coordinated by Dr. Andrew Hall .

Recent Events

UNU-INTECH Researchers Dr. Anthony Bartzokas and Dr. Sunil Mani recently launched two books: Innovation, Learning and Technological Dynamism of Developing Countries (UNU Press: co-edited by Sunil Mani and Henny Romijn) and Financial Systems, Corporate Investment in Innovation, and Venture Capital (Edward Elgar, co-edited by Anthony Bartzokas and Sunil Mani).The event was held in the Dag Hammarskjold Library Auditorium, UN Secretariat Building in New York. It attracted close to 70 participants drawn from UN departments, diplomatic staff and private companies. More ...

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Sunil Mani makes a presentation at the launch. Other members of the panel (from left to right): Radhika Lal, UNDP; Lawrence Rausch, National Science Foundation; Charles Gardner, Rockefeller Foundation; Jean-Marc Coicaud, UN University Office at the United Nations; A. Gopinathan, Permanent Acting Representative of India to the United Nations and Anthony Bartzokas, UNU-INTECH/University of Athens

July Research Seminar: "The Latin Americanisation of Asia"
Prof. Manfred Bienefeld of Carleton University, Ottawa, provided a vigorous critique of current development models, as championed by the leading international financial institutions. Calling it the 'End of the Asian Miracle', Prof. Bienefeld argued that the collapse of the South Korean model in the wake of the 1997/98 Asian crisis had in effect robbed the developing world of one of the few viable examples of how to generate stable, rapid and sustained growth over a long period of time. He noted that the critical factor in Korea (and Taiwan's) success was their ability to build strong national technological foundations, while simultaneously achieving a sustained rise in real wages. Both these countries now face the same situation that Latin America grapples with today - "an end to the high levels of investment that allowed growth to be sustained at such a high level and with such consistency". Prof. Bienefeld concluded that only a 'truly global financial crisis' would prod rich countries (and the international finance and trading system that they control) into making fundamental reforms, which in turn will provide space for developing countries to draw up and implement appropriate strategies for achieving sustainable and equitable development.

Recent Workshops
A workshop bringing together contributors to a book on African Clusters took place at UNU-INTECH from 26-30 July, 2004. The book is edited by Prof. Banji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka and Prof. Dorothy McCormick .

An international meeting held on 23 and 24 July in Maastricht assessed progress in an ongoing UNU-INTECH project that is designing a survey instrument to be used in monitoring the innovation landscape in Africa. Participants included a delegation from South Africa involved in that country's previous innovation survey, the head of the NEPAD S&T programme, the head of the team designing the new EU community innovation survey and a member of UNESCO's statistical institute in Montreal. The final draft will be submitted to NEPAD at the end of August

Training Activities
In addition to its regular PhD programmes, UNU-INTECH has initiated a programme of short training workshops on Innovation and Development for policy makers and technical advisers within relevant government ministries. A one week workshop on "Design and Evaluation of Innovation Policy in Developing Countries (DEIP)" took place at UNU-INTECH from 24-29 May 2004. More .
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PhD Students attend Summer Schools
UNU-INTECH recently provided support for three PhD students selected to participate in intensive summer training courses. Ms. Samia Satti Mohamed Nour and Mr. Geoffrey Gachino attended the Fourth Cambridge Advanced Programme on Rethinking Development Economics from 29 June - 15 July, 2004. More ..
Mr. Saurabh Arora , attended the intensive course in Institutional Economics, part of the CEEL programme in Adaptive Economic Dynamics , at the University of Trento, Italy, from 28 June - 9 July 2004.

New Faces at UNU-INTECH
Two research associates have recently joined the Institute's team of Research Fellows:
Micheline Goedhuys , a lecturer at the Institute of Development Policy and Management, University of Antwerp, Belgium has broad experience in conducting firm level surveys in Africa, Dr. Goedhuys is contributing to a UNU-INTECH project to design a methodology for carrying out national innovation surveys in Africa.

Saeed Parto is based at MERIT, University of Maastricht. His research utilises evolutionary and institutionalist approaches in economics to examine the dynamics of environmental policy-making process and issues arising from business and environment interactions, regional economic development, and global governance. Dr. Parto is a member of UNU-INTECH's research team on national innovation surveys.

Andrew Hall joined UNU-INTECH as a full time researcher in April 2004.
His research interest is institutional change and capacity development in agricultural innovation systems. Dr. Hall was previously based at ICRISAT, India.

Relocating .
Rajah Rasiah , Senior Researcher in Foreign Direct Investment and Technology has relocated to the Asia Europe Institute at the University of Malaya, Malaysia, as Professor of Industrial Organisation. Prof. Rasiah will continue to contribute to UNU-INTECH's research programme on Multinationals, Learning and Innovation Synergies .

Sunil Mani will be rejoining the Centre for Development Studies, Trivandrum, India, as a Professorial Fellow. Dr. Mani's area of specialisation is the design and evaluation of innovation policy instruments in developing countries and analysis of innovation capability in new technology based industries. He will continue to contribute to UNU-INTECH's research programme on innovation capability in the telecommunications industry .