The Republic of Moldova ranked 56th out of 132 countries and economies in the ranking of the Global Innovation Index 2022 (GII), thus climbing 8 positions compared to the previous year.
The Global Innovation Index is one of the most important benchmark studies for measuring performance of countries based on innovation. The study includes 132 countries worldwide and examines around 80 indicators including: Human and research capital, Infrastructure, Loans, Investments, Interconnections, Innovation, Creative activity outputs, etc. Its purpose is to familiarize the public with the developments of the innovative sector and to approach this field beyond the traditional innovation mechanisms, reflecting through the prism of research and development indicators the situation at global, regional and national level.
The report, launched on September 29, contains graphs focusing on the relationship between income levels (GDP per capita) and innovation performance (GII score). Thus, according to the report, the Republic of Moldova, for a 12th consecutive year, records positive performances on innovation relative to its level of economic development.
According to the ranking, in 2022, our country ranked 78th in the Innovation Input Sub-Index (80th in 2021), and 46th in the Innovation Output Sub-Index (54th in 2021).
Thus, compared to 2021, the Republic of Moldova registered a better ranking in the categories: Creative outputs – 43rd place, Knowledge and technology outputs - 49th place, Human capital and research – 62nd place, Business sophistication - 79th place. The other categories registered small regresses due to social conditions and the economic crisis: Infrastructure - 84th place, Market sophistication - 79th place, and Institutions - 98th place.
At the global level, our country ranked 11th in the category of upper middle-income countries out of a total of 36 states (Serbia and Mexico are in neighboring positions).
The strengths that led to Moldova’s rise in the ranking are: Utility models by origin, Loans from microfinance institutions, Trademarks by origin, Industrial designs by origin, etc.
The same ranking also reveals the weaknesses of the country such as: Internal market, University-industry collaboration, Logistics performance, Business policy, etc.
The highest place occupied by the Republic of Moldova in this ranking was 39 in 2011.
According to the current edition of the Global Innovation Index, Switzerland leads the ranking, maintaining its top position since 2011. It is followed by the United States, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.
Neighboring countries: Romania ranks 49th, while Ukraine ranks 57th right after the Republic of Moldova.
The 2022 edition of the GII focused on the anticipated effect of innovation in three key areas: productivity, economic growth and societal well-being in the coming decades. The last two editions have also taken into account the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on innovation – slowing of productivity growth and other evolving challenges.
The ranking of the Global Index has been published annually since 2007 and is carried out by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Oxford University, Portulans Institute, European Institute of Business Administration, International Institute for Management Development, INSEAD, etc.
The detailed results of the study can be consulted here: https://www.globalinnovationindex.org/gii-2022-report#
