Most recent issue published online for the International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development.

The introduction of the systems of innovation approach in economics curricula

Mario Scerri — 2012-01-13T23:20:50-05:00

The introduction of the systems of innovation approach in economics curricula
Mario Scerri
International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development, Vol. 5, No. 1/2 (2012) pp. 12 - 27
In this paper, I examine the possible modes of introducing a systems of innovation (SI) approach into economics curricula. I look at the various possible choices of coupling this approach with standard economic curricula and then explore the implications of these various choices. I link this argument with current heterodox debates on the relevance of the neoclassical text and the possibilities of the displacement of its hegemony over the teaching of economics. My main argument is that the current exclusive hegemony of the neoclassical paradigm in most economics programmes constitutes a formidable deterrent to the teaching of the SI approach, except in contained locations at postgraduate levels. I discuss the nature of this hegemony and the reasons for its establishment and then look at the strategic implications for the introduction of the SI approach in economics curricula. My conclusion is that the adoption of the broad definition of this approach could lay the foundation for an overhaul of economics curricula starting at the undergraduate level. This would displace the current mono-lingual economics text with a multi-lingual one with considerable benefits both for the economic discipline and for the teaching of the SI approach.

Innovations for the poor by the poor

Anil K. Gupta — 2012-01-13T23:20:50-05:00

Innovations for the poor by the poor
Anil K. Gupta
International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development, Vol. 5, No. 1/2 (2012) pp. 28 - 39
The concern for inclusive or harmonious development is being articulated worldwide. There is a belated realisation that for extreme affordability, there is no choice but to learn from green grassroots innovators and traditional knowledge holders. Honey Bee Network began scouting, spawning and sustaining innovations by knowledge rich-economically poor people more than 20 years ago. A database of more than 140,000 ideas, innovations and traditional knowledge practices has been pooled mainly from 500 districts of India and some other parts of the world. Blending formal and informal science has become imperative. Several new models have been proposed such as long tailored innovations, Kho Kho (relay) model, empathetic innovations, inverted innovations, and grassroots to global (g2G) to illustrate different dimension of innovations for the poor by the poor. The policy implications of these models have been drawn briefly besides explaining the conditions, which must be met for inclusive innovations.

Measuring innovation in developing countries: some suggestions to achieve more accurate and useful indicators

Judith Sutz — 2012-01-13T23:20:50-05:00

Measuring innovation in developing countries: some suggestions to achieve more accurate and useful indicators
Judith Sutz
International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development, Vol. 5, No. 1/2 (2012) pp. 40 - 57
The paper contributes to an ongoing international discussion around how to measure innovation in developing countries and how to turn the findings into useful policy tools. It stresses the fact that innovation needs to be understood as a learning process, and concomitantly measuring innovation needs to pay special attention to related aspects that are not usually taken into account. Which people have knowledge in the firm, and which kind of knowledge they have are examples of those aspects. Innovation surveys have not yet displayed major policy impact in developing countries; they usually go little farther from what is already known. They can also give misleading results, for instance by assuming that innovation is a value-free concept, which it is not the case. The paper analyses concretely how to redress these flaws, aiming at a better design of innovation policies in developing countries.

South Africa's national system of innovation and knowledge economy evolution: thinking about 'less favoured regions'

Lucienne Abrahams; Thomas E. Pogue — 2012-01-13T23:20:50-05:00

South Africa's national system of innovation and knowledge economy evolution: thinking about 'less favoured regions'
Lucienne Abrahams; Thomas E. Pogue
International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development, Vol. 5, No. 1/2 (2012) pp. 58 - 82
This article reviews some basic features of inequality in South African society and in the national innovation system, using national research survey data. It poses questions about how sub-national innovation systems might evolve in the 'less favoured regions' of South Africa. It commences with a brief overview of interpersonal inequality and the regional bias in inequality with respect to the economy. It explores this regional bias in relation to its effects on the innovation system. It integrates earlier research on innovation system perspectives in two sub-national environments, the KwaZulu-Natal and Free State provinces. The article uses particular themes from the literature on regional economies pertinent to an analysis of innovation in less favoured regions and concludes that South Africa needs locally-informed strategic approaches to push forward the formation of sub-national innovation systems, using in particular the infrastructure and resources available in universities.

Institutional capacity and policy for latecomer technology development

Banji O. Oyeyinka — 2012-01-13T23:20:50-05:00

Institutional capacity and policy for latecomer technology development
Banji O. Oyeyinka
International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development, Vol. 5, No. 1/2 (2012) pp. 83 - 110
Latecomer countries possess varying levels of policy and institutional capacity to make the right kinds of choices that promote development, which explain to a large extent the difficulties they face in transforming knowledge through learning activities to technological capabilities and innovative performance. This paper tries to answer some of the myriad of questions that arise in resolving the development conundrum of the latecomers. For instance, why is access to knowledge not sufficient to promote the use of knowledge? Why is technology transfer not a necessary precondition for technology absorption? Why is public sector research not sufficient to promote product development through the private sector? The answer to most of these very basic, often-assumed-to-be-given, constraints lies in the nature of, and the capacity of formal and informal institutions that underlie innovation in latecomer countries. I suggest that one of the causes of this failure is the lack of an institutional base for innovation that builds on local and contextual factors.

Intermediary organisations to foster the agricultural system of innovation: the Mexican Produce Foundation

Javier M. Ekboir; Alexandre O. Vera-Cruz — 2012-01-13T23:20:50-05:00

Intermediary organisations to foster the agricultural system of innovation: the Mexican Produce Foundation
Javier M. Ekboir; Alexandre O. Vera-Cruz
International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development, Vol. 5, No. 1/2 (2012) pp. 111 - 125
The building of innovation capabilities in industrial firms has received a great deal of attention in the last three decades; however, innovation capabilities within agriculture has barely been explored. This study contributes to this under-researched area by presenting a novel conceptual framework to analyse the dynamics of innovation capabilities building in an intermediate organisation, the Mexican Produce Foundations. These foundations support agricultural research, extension, and innovation activities in Mexico, and have had major and diverse impacts on the Mexican agricultural innovation and research systems. An intermediary organisation actively facilitates interaction among actors who seek to innovate. The facilitation includes exchanging technical and commercial information, identifying potential partners, brokering interactions and fostering exchanges of resources and knowledge. Derived from a case study, this article investigates the PFs' path to success. Drawing on a diverse literature on innovation systems, complexity theories, and organisational cultures and governance, the authors explore how these institutions have sustained organisational innovation over time and affected the Mexican agricultural innovation system. This study will be valuable for researchers, policy-makers, and others interested in improving the design and implementation of research and innovation systems in developing countries.

Innovation policies institutions and performance: why Malaysia overtook Nigeria in the oil palm industry

Boladale O. Abiola Adebowale — 2012-01-13T23:20:50-05:00

Innovation policies institutions and performance: why Malaysia overtook Nigeria in the oil palm industry
Boladale O. Abiola Adebowale
International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development, Vol. 5, No. 1/2 (2012) pp. 126 - 157
Forty years ago, Nigeria and Malaysia had comparative GDP per capita; Nigeria was the leading oil palm producer and exporter in the world. Within a decade, Malaysia overtook Nigeria both as producer and exporter. This paper provides a comparative perspective of the evolution of institutions and policies contrasting Nigeria and Malaysia over a relatively long period. The aim is to understand, based on the evidence, how and why Malaysia performed so well and Nigeria did not thereby exploring the systemic, remote and immediate causes of the different evolutionary trajectories of the two countries with very similar geographical characteristics. The data for this paper came from a variety of methods including secondary and primary survey as well as face to face interviews. The paper concludes that differential institutions, policies and investment efforts explain much of the catch-up story of the oil palm sectors in the two countries.

Nuclear energy technology adoption by intensive energy industrial users in South Africa

Ezekiel Maphisa; Gillian Marcelle; Radhika Perrot — 2012-01-13T23:20:50-05:00

Nuclear energy technology adoption by intensive energy industrial users in South Africa
Ezekiel Maphisa; Gillian Marcelle; Radhika Perrot
International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development, Vol. 5, No. 1/2 (2012) pp. 158 - 183
This paper analyses factors affecting adoption of pebble bed modular reactor (PBMR) process heat plant (PHP) technology, a nuclear power generation technology, among intensive energy consumers in South Africa. It reports on a study that analysed the factors affecting take up of a novel technology, examining the role played by technology attributes, organisational characteristics of potential adopters and technology developers' actions in the market. Empirical results show that although PBMR PHP is viewed as a credible nuclear technology, there remained serious concerns over safety and other social concerns. The study found strong correlations exist between likelihood of technology adoption and the specific attributes of the technology; the adopters' organisational characteristics, including elements of absorptive capacity and the actions of technology developers.

Bridging the digital divide: the Indian experience in increasing the access to telecommunications services

Sunil Mani — 2012-01-13T23:20:50-05:00

Bridging the digital divide: the Indian experience in increasing the access to telecommunications services
Sunil Mani
International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development, Vol. 5, No. 1/2 (2012) pp. 184 - 203
India has one of the fastest growing telecom services industries in the world. Teledensity in the country which was less than one telephone per 100 people in 1991, when the country unleashed a wave of market reforms, have now increased to about 66 per 100 at the end of 2010. There are, of course, considerable variations in rural-urban teledensities, although this has been narrowed down in an impressive and sometimes unbelievable fashion. This is especially impressive when you take into account two factors: first, the industry is dominated by private sector enterprises accounting for about 80% of the services market, and second, administrative and financial mechanisms that the government has put in place to increase access to telecom services in rural areas and thereby bridging the digital divide has not met with much success. In the context, the purpose of the present paper is to provide some explanation as to how these reductions in teledensities have been accomplished.

Channels of interaction in health biotechnology networks in South Africa: who benefits and how?

Glenda Kruss — 2012-01-13T23:20:50-05:00

Channels of interaction in health biotechnology networks in South Africa: who benefits and how?
Glenda Kruss
International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development, Vol. 5, No. 1/2 (2012) pp. 204 - 220
The promotion of university-industry linkages in developing countries is contested, given high levels of poverty, inequality and human development needs. A recent research trend offers new insights that can shift the terms of debate and inform differentiated policy approaches in a more contextually appropriate way. The focus is a framework to analyse the benefits and risks associated with different channels of university-firm interaction. The paper analyses case studies of diverse channels of interaction in the health biotechnology sector in six research groups based in two South African universities, a sector prioritised for its potential to enhance global competitiveness and address social problems. Analysis demonstrates the complexity of the ways in which combinations of channels are engaged in the practice of health biotechnology research groups to meet multiple economic and intellectual goals. The framework requires further refinement, but points to the importance of targeted policy attempts not only to support those channels that are likely to have the greatest benefits, but equally, to mitigate the risks of specific channels, particularly the social risks to knowledge generation and diffusion or to growing a new industrial sector.