Measuring R&D in developing countries: Annex to Frascati Manual

1. Measuring R&D in developing countries: Annex to Frascati Manual SEMINAR – WORKSHOP ON SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION INDICATORSPhnom Penh, Cambodia18-20 Nov 2008

2. Outline • The UIS approach • R&D statistics in developing countries • Characteristics of R&D in developing countries • Measurement issues • Present status and way forward

3. The UIS approach • Advisory Meeting to the UIS S&T Statistics Programme held in Montreal, Canada, December 2007 • Papers commissioned by UIS to Jacques Gaillard (IRD, Paris), Michael Kahn et. al.(HSRC, South Africa), and Gustavo Arber et. al. (RICYT, Argentina) • Experience acquired through the UIS work, in particular through the direct contact with S&T statisticians in numerous workshops and other meetings around the developing world. • Proposal for an annex to the Frascati Manual on measuring R&D in developing countries was presented at the OECD 2008 NESTI meeting.

4. R&D statistics in developing countries are still rare in some countries/regions Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics, 2008

5. R&D statistics in developing countries • Meeting targets, evidence-based S&T policy, but • lack of interest at the level of policy makers (low policy-relevance?), • lack of resources devoted to statistics in S&T, • lack of technical knowledge for the production of cross-nationally comparable R&D statistics, • difficulties in applying FM concepts and methods. • weak statistical institutions • S&T indicators need to be adapted to particular policy needs, and need to provide answers to actual policy questions.

6. Selected characteristics of R&D in developing countries • Nature of R&D activities • Patterns in research funding and budgeting • Professional Crisis • Concentration • Heterogeneity • Brain mobility and internationalization • More than R&D indicators needed

7. Characteristics of R&D in developing countries – funding • Traditionally dominated by government spend (or higher education) BUT becoming much more diversified • Foreign investment much larger % of R&D funding • Significance of the ‘not-for- profit’ sector • Funding may pass direct to individuals rather than institutions; bypassing traditional data collection

8. Characteristics of R&D in developing countries - personnel • Researchers with research but no funding • Researchers with funding but no research • Much less common than lack of funding (?), but includes other barriers to research; availability of ‘tools’, problems of ‘access’, conflict situations etc • ‘taxi professors’ • Two (or more) jobs resulting in less than expected, or very variable, time spent on research • ‘enseignant-chercheur’ (teacher-researcher) • A contract giving a certain employment status but not necessarily linked to a certain level of active research

9. Characteristics of R&D in developing countries – special types of R&D • Traditional knowledge • traditional knowledge as an object of scientific study • applying scientific methods within areas of traditional knowledge ie biodiversity • using science to develop the products of traditional knowledge • Community development • If projects are concerned with development and testing • Clinical trials • Of growing importance in R&D • Led by foreign institutions • Reverse engineering • Deriving principles from an existing product in the context of an R&D project

10. Other structural issues • Co-ordination of national science • Concentration – national R&D can be dominated by one or two BIG projects, impacting on both finance and personnel • Informal economy may play a large part in R&D activities, but is usually hidden from measurement

11. Measurement strategy • Acknowledge differences and problems. • Maintain Frascati standard to ensure, and through guidance increase, comparability • Allow statistics to better identify key priorities • Sectors for development • Improved conditions for researchers • Clearly identify barriers > so they can be removed • Identify successes > make them easier to • Maintain and develop • Replicate in other areas/countries

12. Measurement issues • FM issues affecting developing countries • applicability of concepts and definitions • structure of R&D systems • Sectorial issues • Business enterprise sector • Higher Education sector • Private-non-profit sector • Abroad and international sector • use of secondary sources (beyond surveys)

13. Measurement issues • Developing country issues beyond FM scope • Difficulties in establishing surveys • Data sources: Need to establish proper registers and directories to provide an overview of the system and an initial framework for R&D surveys • Institutionalization • Interaction with stakeholders - users and producers - ownership • Develop new internationalization indicators • Develop STA indicators • Need for studies to complement, interpret and use indicators

14. Frascati manual proposals • Introduce/define more precisely categories of funding sources and performing sectors that highlight characteristics of developing countries eg foreign investment • Capture the role of the researcher to better identify successes and problems

15. Present status and way forward • "Annex to the FM on measuring R&D in developing countries". To provide guidance and clarifications to help developing countries to implement R&D surveys and FM concepts. A task force (lead by UIS) was established by the NEST to proceed with this. • UIS is in the process of preparing the 1st draft of the Annex. More inputs needed… • "UIS guide to S&T statistics". UIS to develop new concepts and guidelines to address challenges specific to developing countries, exceeding the scope of FM: S&T statistics beyond R&D. • Some of the issues might also present measurement challenges for a future revision of the Frascati Manual. • UIS to further consult Member States to expand and refine the issues.

16. Statistical capacity building to help countries with • Co-ordination • Technical skills • Advocacy

17. Thank you! http://www.uis.unesco.org UNESCO Institute for Statistics C.P. 6128 Succursale Centre-ville, Montreal, Quebec, H3C 3J7, Canada. TP: (1 514) 343-6880 Fax: (1 514) 343-6872