1. Enabling better RTDI policy-making in Europe's Region

Enabling Better RTDI policy-making in Europe's Region Strategic Policy Intelligence Tools - A Guide 2008   Download

Tuesday, 01 September 2009 | 5065 hits

2. Globalization of R&D and Developing Countries

Globalization of R&D and Developing Countries Proceedings of the Expert Meeting, Geneva, 24-26 January 2005 Download

Saturday, 01 April 2006 | 3877 hits

3. Competitiveness and Future Outlooks of the Estonian Economy

Competitiveness and Future Outlooks of the Estonian Economy R&D and Innovation Policy Review Marek Tiits, Rainer Kattel, Tarmo Kalvet, Rein Kaarli (2003) Download   Foreword In the last few years lively discussions have been held in Estonia about what the country’s hitherto economic growth has rested on and how to speed it up in order to catch up with the average living standard of the European Union. Knowledge-based economy is increasingly the key term used in the discussions about the strategies of future economic development in Estonia, Europe, Asia as well as in America. The Estonian Research and Development Council, as strategic advisor to the Government, has substantial contributions to make in these discussions. In general terms, the Regular Report on Estonia’s progress towards accession to the European Union, as well as the World Economic Forum and several other organisations estimate Estonia’s economic situation and its future perspectives to be promising in the global competitiveness setting, pointing out, however, a few dangers that need to get the Government’s careful attention in the near future. The current Review synthesises the results of various international surveys about Estonia. In their analysis the authors relied on widely accepted economic approaches. The Review aims to give a maximally objective and pragmatic view of the Estonian socio-economic conditions and foundations of development. The issues related to specifi c aspects of research policy, which are traditionally the main concern of the Research and Development Council, will only receive a cursory glance. The terms innovation policy, economic policy, or public policies in general used in this report do not represent any particular political party’s policies. The authors use them, proceeding from the classical public administration perspective, thus proposing a certain universal foundation that does not depend on the political leanings of the parties that form the Government or fi ll the seats in Riigikogu [Estonian parliament].

Monday, 25 August 2003 | 3579 hits

4. Technology-Intensive FDI and Economic Development in A Small Country: The Case of Estonia

  Technology-Intensive FDI and Economic Development in A Small Country – The Case of Estonia Marek Tiits (2007) Download   Abstract. This article reviews the role of foreign direct investment in industrialisation of various catching-up economies and draws based on this lessons for policy-making in small countries. The author states that the introduction of proactive foreign investment strategy is one of the most effective means in a small country to rapidly increase the knowledge intensity of the economy. However, the Estonian innovation policy, similarly to most of the EU new member states, has underestimated the power and role of such proactive strategies. The author calls for much better focusing of the activities of foreign investment agencies and closer co-ordination of FDI strategies with education, research, employment and other policies.  

Sunday, 25 November 2007 | 4232 hits

5. Intra-Industry trade in the Baltic Sea region

Intra-Industry trade in the Baltic Sea region Working Paper 2/2006 Marek Tiits, Juhan Jüriado (2006) Download   Executive summary The purpose of this paper is to analyse economic integration in the Baltic Sea Region as it has emerged from mid-1990s. More importantly, we seek to assess the quality of integration as conferred by the development of intra-industry trade between the two groups of countries in the Baltic Sea region: Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Germany at the Western coast, and Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland at the Eastern coast of the Baltic Sea. The change of several variations of the Gruber Lloyd index over the last decade indicates an increase in intra-industry trade between the above two groups of countries, but the increase is not huge. The analysis of intra-industry trade within the top 25 commodity groups reveals a remarkable increase of the share of intra-industry trade from the East to the West in a number of modern industries, such as metal and machinery, and automobile production, production of electrical equipment and telecom equipment, etc. The share of intra-industry trade has remained, at the same time, largely unaltered in traditional resource- and/or labour-intensive industries, such as wood processing and furniture or textiles and apparel production. The analysis of the change in the quality of the traded goods reveals, however, that the economic intergration in the Baltic Sea Region has so far not led to a vast increase of the competitiveness of industry at the relatively less developed Eastern coast of the Baltic Sea. The equalisation of market prices has predominantly taken place in the trade of raw materials, whereas the Eastern countries continue to trade with deficit in the majority of manufactured goods where the equalisation of unit prices has actually taken place. The above seems to support the results of our previous research, in which we have concluded that the economies of the Baltic States and Poland continue to act as lower value-added parts of the cross-border clusters in the Baltic Sea Region. Consequently, if catching up in living standards with the northern and western neighbours is envisioned, much more systematic investment into education and technology is needed in the Baltic States and Poland.

Wednesday, 25 October 2006 | 3610 hits

6. Industrial and trade dynamics in the Baltic Sea region

Industrial and trade dynamics in the Baltic Sea region – the last two waves of European Union enlargement from a historic perspective Working Paper 1/2006 Marek Tiits (2006) Download   Executive summary The aim of this paper is to review the dynamics of economic development in the Baltic Sea region surrounding the last two waves of European Union enlargement, i.e. the accession of Austria, Finland and Sweden in January 1995; and the Baltic States and Poland joining the EU among 10 new member states in May 2004, assessing the quality of economic change and prospects for future development. We believe that economic development is path-dependent and therefore, to understand properly the observed developments, one should study carefully both the macro-economic trends and the evolution of the specialisation patterns as characterised by the changes in the structure of industry and trade – the emergence of new higher value added industries at the expense of the gradual ceasing of mature industries. Longer-term economic development is rarely smooth and sustained. The ever increasing competition stemming from the globalisation of trade, capital markets and technology leaves policy-makers therefore with a complex task of handling the Schumpeterian creative destruction. In the following working paper, we take the beginning of the 1990s as the starting point of our review, as it appeared to be an important turning point in time for many of the countries in the region, which denoted in many ways an end of an era and a start of a new one. It was the time that brought about the reunification of Germany and the collapse of the Soviet Union, but it was also a point in time when several Nordic countries suffered from a severe economic crisis followed by a miraculously rapid recovery. In contrast, the crisis in the former USSR endured longer and was also much deeper. The Baltic States were the first to manage to stabilise their economies, yet at the cost of the loss of previously overwhelmingly dominant Eastern markets and a large part of the inherited industrial assets. The growth resumed in Russia only after the 1998 crisis. Even though the events were triggered by a set of fairly different events, we notice that both the public policy responses to the crisis and the outcomes of the resolution of the crises varied significantly. While the Nordic countries employed rather pro-active approaches for upgrading the existing competitive assets, the Baltic States, Poland and Russia focused predominantly on the stabilisation of the macroeconomic framework, paying relatively little attention to the actual capability of the industry to cope with rapid changes. As could be easily expected from a common-sense point of view, the above developments led to a strengthening of the industry in the Nordic countries and to the demolition of a large part of inherited, although largely uncompetitive, industries in the Baltic States as in the majority of the rest of the former Soviet block.

Saturday, 25 March 2006 | 3463 hits

7. Catching up, forging ahead or falling behind? Central and Eastern European development in 1990-2005

Catching up, forging ahead or falling behind? Central and Eastern European development in 1990-2005 Innovation: The European Journal of Social Science Research Marek Tiits, Rainer Kattel, Tarmo Kalvet, Dorel Tamm (2008) Download   Abstract This paper aims to assess the economic development and development policies in the Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries in 1990-2005, from the collapse of the USSR to the enlargement of the European Union. A great number of authors have generally seen the transition as a very positive process. They have concluded that the reform policies focusing on macroeconomic and price stability have been the key to success for CEE economies. A reliable economic environment is, of course, instrumental for longer-term economic success, as exemplified by the prolonged crisis in most of the former Soviet Union. Our analysis of the economic development and competitive advantages in the region, however, leads to the conclusion that the specific approach to transition that the Central and Eastern European countries followed came at a rather high cost. Comparative neglect and weakness of a set of policies crucial for longer-term development, such as science, technology and innovation policies, has led to deterioration in the last decade rather than the strengthening of the competitive advantages of Central and Eastern European economies. Furthermore, we argue that, in most cases, CEE countries have unfortunately overlooked or misjudged a number of development challenges, and have thus implemented policies that have generated growth at the cost of rapidly increasing risks. This is how the financial fragility of several Central and Eastern European countries has recently increased drastically, and the region seems to have virtually arrived at the brink of economic collapse. Since the CEE countries joined the European Union, the CEE governments have gradually moved towards acquiring a more active role in economic development. These policies need, however, to be strengthened considerably and reinforced by macroeconomic policies that curb current excessive dependence on foreign-financed growth.

Tuesday, 25 March 2008 | 4861 hits

8. Science and technology intermediary services for SMEs. A guide via practices

Science and technology intermediary services for SMEs: A guide via practices Supporting Potential & Existing Research Intensive SMEs 2008 Download Introduction This report introduces experiences and practices from seven European regions in the fields of Science and Technology (S&T) intermediation system. It summarises the results of the work accomplished over two years into a 'guide' about the public support actions targeting regional S&T systems, focused mainly on the intermediation function. It can be considered as a reference point, as well, for those who are interested in regional experiences on S&T services or regional tools to increase the quality of systems for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs). In 2002, the European Council set the goal of raising overall research investment in the EU from 1.9% to 3% by 2010. However, instead of rising, European research investments appear to be stagnating and the quantifiable outcomes are not impressive. An issue that arises is what can be done to boost regional innovation systems to help to change this situation? What are the specific actions of regional intermediaries in this effort and how can they improve their performance? Upgrading research and innovation policy does not only imply increasing R&D investments, but also their efficiency and effectiveness. It also requires bringing the research community and SMEs more tightly together, which is considered to be one of the key roles of regional intermediation system. One of the main target groups of this guide are Regional Authorities (RA), which in some countries are in charge of innovation policies. The roles of RAs, according to the design of the new regional policies, in upgrading regional innovation policies, appear to be of major importance. This report describes and analyses a variety of practices and measures of public RA support actions that may improve the innovation capacities of the SMEs through S&T intermediaries. The content of this report is based on the practical experience of the seven partners that represent regions with varying socio-economic profiles and S&T intermediation systems.

Monday, 01 September 2008 | 4720 hits

9. Overview of the Biotech–Health Sector in Europe

Overview of the Biotech–Health Sector in Europe Project: AFIBIO (Access to Finance in the Biotech Sector) Workpackage 1 – Identification and analysis of the biotech sector specificities relevant to access to finance (2006) Download   Introduction The Workpackage 1 aims at a better and common understanding of biotech-health sector specificities, in particular regarding access to finance (task 1.1.) and at identifying a limited number of model of case studies (task 1.2). The key findings and conclusions will enrich the debate during a Roundtable, held in Milano, the 30th of May, 2006, dedicated to exchanging experiences on the access to finance in the biotech-health sector. The present deliverable (n°1.1.) is the starting point of the AFIBIO project, aiming at briefly describing the “countours” of the biotech sector in Europe from four point of view : industry, research base and financial sectors ; and public policy support to the biotech. The deliverable is divided into two parts : - Synthesis at the EU level, including comments on the comparison with the USA performances - National surveys METHODOLOGICAL ASPECTS The informations has been collected by the AFIBIO partners through the most available recent reports and studies, drafted under the umbrella of the national biotech associations or EU association. Statistics, web-based research, and personal contacts and interviews around Europe were also used by AFIBIO partners to compile such datas. AFIBIO partners are aware that such a survey is more “empirical” than conceptual and scientific. Datas are not “harmonised” due partly to the fragmentation of the sector at the EU and national levels. Nevertheless the informations and facts collected are relevant for the AFIBIO objective which was during the first workpackage to capture a general overview of the sector over Europe. DEFINITION For the purposes of AFIBIO project, Biotechnology is defined as: - the application of scientific and engineering principles to the processing of materials by biological agents to provide goods and services (OECD) and - the integrated use of natural sciences and engineering sciences by the application of biosystems – cells of microbial, plant and animal origin, parts thereof and molecular analogues – in bioindustries”, as defined by the European Federation of Biotechnology. The project focuses on Biotechnology applied to healthcare. An additional list of definitions is provided in annex 1.  

Friday, 01 September 2006 | 3699 hits

10. Synthesis report on Biotech National and EU Policies

Synthesis report on Biotech National and EU Policies AFIBIO Network (Access to Finance in The Biotechnology Sector), 2007 Download   The approach This review was prepared by the Institute of Baltic Studies (IBS) in the framework of the AFIBIO project based on various national policy documents on biotech funding identified by the members of the AFIBIO consortium. The member states covered by this report are the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Germany, Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, Ireland, Austria, Estonia, and Malta. Additionally European policies and reviews of the biotech related activities of the 7th RTD Framework Programme, and a limited number of more general documents and news articles on biotech funding were taken into account (see “References” below). The following is based on the analysis of the profiles of the policy documents prepared collectively by the AFIBIO partners. Whenever the policy documents under discussion were available in English, the authors consulted during the preparation of this review additionally also original documents. The policies discussed in that section are divided into three categories: policies designed to support enterprises, policies designed to support research institutions, and policies designed to support both enterprises and research institutions in the area of funding.  

Saturday, 01 September 2007 | 3909 hits