Russia ranks 38th in a competitiveness rating of national innovation systems compiled by Bauman Innovation (affiliated with Bauman Moscow State Technical University) together with OPORA Russia All-Russian Public Organization. There are 50 positions in the rating. A number of factors were considered when it was being compiled: the presence of innovative ideas, conditions for commercializing them, demand for innovation products, technology infrastructure in the innovation sphere, the innovation potential of the companies, and the effectiveness of government administration, infox.ru reports.
“At the top of the rating are the United States, Sweden and Switzerland; Finland and Israel are in the top ten. Russia ranks only 38th out of 50 countries in this rating, not only behind its BRIC “neighbors” – China, India and Brazil – but even Turkey and Thailand,” specialists at Bauman Innovation note. Trailing Russia in the list of countries are Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, Bangladesh and Bolivia.
According to data of the National Association of Innovations and Information Technology Development (NAIRIT), about 4000 research institutes and 40 000 innovative companies are active in Russia today. In 2009, 1.3 trillion rubles, 1.15 trillion of which were government funds, on developing innovation programs and projects. According to the association’s information, in 2009, nearly 6100 scientific specialists left Russia, which is evidence of an active “brain drain” process.
Nikolai Nikolsky, Chairman of NAIRIT’s Management Board, agrees that effectiveness of innovation activity in Russia is low. “Russia’s low ranks in global ratings are primarily due to the lack of actual results in the innovation sphere. About 1 trillion rubles have been spent on innovations in our country in the last few year, and the whole world knows this. The need to transition to an innovation economy was declared five years ago. But to no obvious effect. According to NAIRIT’s data for 2009, the ratio of effectiveness of investments in innovation between Russia and the U.S. is 1/112,” Nikolai Nikolsky says.
