Vinnova samt Kungliga IngenjörsVetenskapsAkademien (IVA) har publicerat skriften "Research and Innovation in Sweden - an international comparison" som en bra utgångspunkt om man vill lära sig grunderna om varför vi idag är så fokuserade på innovationer och innovationsförmåga.
Här följer rapportens sammanfattning:
On the issue of combined research, development and innovation investments, Sweden is one of the countries investing the most in relation to the country’s total resources. The absolute majority of Swedish investments are, however, financed by the private sector. It is also worth noting that R&D activity in Sweden is dominated by a handful of multinational corporations. Since 2001, however, R&D investment has declined as a percentage of GNP, in both public funding and in certain leading sectors of industry.
Sweden’s total public investment in R&D is small compared to other countries. Also, unlike in many other countries, Sweden lacks tax incentives for R&D activity to supplement direct R&D subsidies.
The nature of Swedish research financing has also changed and there is now a greater emphasis on the competitive aspect. Universities and other institutions of higher education are now forced to seek more external funding, both nationally and internationally. This means that they must maintain and develop their appeal and competitiveness through more clearly-defined profiling. Interest and investment in strong research and innovation environments has also increased.
The institute sector, which in other countries accounts for a considerable portion of more close-to-market research, is a small sector in Sweden. Institutes linked to specific industries are, however, currently undergoing a process of restructuring which may improve the Swedish institute sector’s international competitiveness and thus support industry. Competence resources in Sweden have been gradually increasing. The number of highly educated people has increased and, in an international comparison, Sweden is currently in a relatively strong position. Also, a relatively large number of Swedish researchers are young.
In an international comparison, a relatively large percentage of businesses in Sweden are involved in innovation activities. Sweden is also strong in generating innovation through collaboration. Although this percentage has increased over time, the existing statistics indicate that exchange between those conducting research within the business world and in academia is not as extensive as in many other countries. The level of corporate research funding at Swedish universities is low in an international comparison and instances of shared positions is limited.
There should be strong potential for increased exchange because most of the companies conducting R&D are located close to universities. In general the scientific quality of Swedish research is high and Swedish researchers are productive. The results are particularly strong in life sciences, and in particular in biomedicine and clinical medicine.
The Swedish patents are, like R&D investment, owned by a handful of R&D intensive large corporations. Globally, we are seeing a strong increase in patent applications within IT and telecoms, although Sweden is experiencing a downward trend in this field which may be a sign that competitiveness has declined within one of Sweden’s most important areas.
One important factor for the renewal of industry is the emergence of new enterprises, although the data available on new enterprise is somewhat ambiguous. On the one hand, Sweden ranks among the countries with a relatively low and declining number of individuals that have started or intend to start a business. On the other hand, there is a trend in Sweden towards an increase in the number of new enterprises. We should also add that access to venture capital in Sweden, which is often considered a critical factor for new enterprise, is relatively good compared to other countries. Most of this investment is, however, only forthcoming in the later stages.
Rapporten pekar också ut två viktiga utmaningar för de länder och regioner som vill tävla i det globala innovationsracet:
- Globalisation's challenges
- R&D and innovation for sustainable growth
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