Science and Technology Policies / Politique en science et technologie

Permanent URI for this collection

Browse

Recent Submissions

Now showing 1 - 20 of 105
  • Item
    Towards a more effective innovation promotion : learning lessons from the Bio-N fertilizer experience; a policy brief
    (2011-04)
    Concerted efforts to reorient farmers’ perceptions about the positive effects of biofertilizers on productivity and income are needed, as farmers have typically been conditioned to the advantages of chemical input– intensive green revolution technology. Many farmers revealed that they did not know how to use Bio-N, and discarded the Bio-N packets given to them; they were not provided with information or training about the innovation. Policy recommendations are made in this brief towards harnessing BioN’s poverty alleviation, food security and climate change adaptation potentials, and helping create an enabling environment for better operation and collaboration between innovation system domain actors.
  • Item
    One-Day Preliminary National Consultation on Access to Patented Knowledge "Patents and Platform Technologies: Understanding Implications for Research and Development in Malaria and Tuberculosis"
    (2010)
    Mr. Linu Mathew Philip, Executive Director, Centad warmly welcomed all distinguished resource people and delegates attending the consultation. He began the introduction by stating the importance of platform technology as an inter-phase to access medicine, in a time when pathogens were getting more resilient and there are fewer technologies to take on these issues. Mr. Philip also mentioned about Centad‟s dreams of access to medicines by taking on the policy issues effectively and aggressively. To make policies enable in such a way that people can have access to medicines and access to innovations, adding that technologies can find a good solution to these existing disease and the diseases that maybe coming in the course of time...
  • Item
    Quelle organisation communautaire de la recherche pour stimuler l'innovation dans la zone CEMAC ?
    (2010)
    Dans le cadre de son projet de recherche sur le thème dans quelle mesure l’exemption de la recherché peut-elle stimuler l’innovation, l’Appia a mené un ensemble de travaux dont plus d’un s’est intéressé à la problématique de l’état de la recherche dans la zone Cemac. A la suite de ces travaux, une préoccupation principale est née de la constatation de ce que l’état de la recherche dans cette sous-région était assez critique, non pas seulement du fait de l’absence d’une politique y relative, mais aussi et surtout du fait de la vétusté des outils institutionnels, juridiques et techniques qui concourent à son efficacité et sa contribution au développement socioéconomique de la zone...
  • Item
    Patent and research exemption: Challenges for research capacity and utilization in universities, research institutions and industry in Botswana
    (2009)
    This study focuses on the patent system, which is a key tool in promoting research and innovation. The general objective of the study is to assess the challenges of patent and research exemptions on research capacity and utilization in universities, research institutions and industry in Botswana. Empirical evidence was obtained through the use of questionnaires administered to researchers in academic and research institutions, manufacturing industries and companies throughout the country, backed by two focus group discussions (one in the south of the country and the other in the north). The records of patents registered in the country before and after independence were extracted and studied. The empirical findings gathered from the questionnaires and focus group discussions were carefully analysed and a number of conclusions were drawn. First, that in spite of intellectual property legislation having been introduced as early as 1966, the level of patent awareness and possibly intellectual property awareness in the country generally is low (67%), while only 62% of researchers from academic institutions were aware. Most researchers, whether in the academia or in industry, claim some awareness about the existence of patents but on closer questioning, it becomes clear that such knowledge is usually very superficial. Hence, the existence of a legal framework dealing with patents and its attempts to provide incentives and promote research and innovations, especially through research exemptions is bound to be ineffective in the absence of patent awareness. Second, whilst it is clear that the existing legal framework recognizes and protects patents, the nature and scope for encouraging research use of patented inventions through research exemption is less clear. A wide variety of options are available for addressing the problems associated with experimenting with patented products. It is necessary that for patent legislation to be balanced, it must also contain an experimental use exemption to enhance the prospects of encouraging research and innovation with respect to patented products. Finally, it is also necessary that incentives to innovate, such as royalty sharing agreements and special achievement awards are provided to encourage inventors. At the end of the day, the critical issue seems to be the need to create an awareness of the potential benefits of patents and research exemptions in underdeveloped countries if the legal protection provided is going to have any practical effects on researchers.
  • Item
    Compulsory Licenses as means to Access Patented Platform Technologies in TB and Malaria
    (2010)
    Patents are issued to protect inventions and innovations and to serve as incentive for more such activity and as consideration for disseminating the invention/innovation to the wider public. This is expected to lead to larger quantity of the product/service which the patent contains so that the availability would be more and wide spread. It would also encourage competition. Hence the main purpose of issue of patent is encouraging dissemination of knowledge and wider use. If it really happens in the field it is very good. But does it really happen? The situation in the field at times is to exclude than include more people as users of knowledge embedded in a patent. This can happen by broad patents, refusal to license the patent etc. This can lead to monopolies, high prices, slow or no progress on follow-on research, reduced number of new products in the market etc. Ultimately in the case of biomedical research it can lead to reduced access to health care products which are vital. In this area especially after the advent of biotechnology there is a unusual increase in patenting activity by the academia and industry which includes upstream patenting which is the main concern of this study.
  • Item
    Exploring Patent Pooling as a Tool for National Development
    (2009)
    As a response to the global competition initiated by the Call for Proposal by the International Development Research Center on the theme “ACCESSING PATENTED KNOWLEDGE FOR INNOVATION”, this Paper aims at exploring patent pools, a locally unfamiliar yet internationally-recognized and century-old approach to technology commercialization, as a tool for national development in the Philippines...
  • Item
    Indian Biotech Industry and Patent Pooling
    (2009)
    The Indian biotech industry has increased five-fold from its size in 1997 and valued at about $2.5 billion in 2008- 09 which was then about 2% of the global biotech market. The presentation reviews patents in biotechnology, and organizations working in the field in areas of stem cell research, transgenic research, biopesticides, neurobiology; vectors, genes for plant trait; genomics; nanotechnology; recombinant product; therapeutics; biopolymer and others. It explores patent pooling in the context of industry in India. There is no clear incentive in low-income countries for companies to contribute their high-valued patents to a patent pool.
  • Item
    Indian researchers’ perceptions of access problems of protected platform technologies and experiences
    (2010-10)
    The presentation focuses on a survey of researchers specifically working on tuberculosis (TB) or Malaria, and development of a survey instrument to measure their ability to access technologies and resulting patents derived from research work. The majority of respondents did not face any problems of denial of license or breakdown of negotiations to license in patented platform technologies. But ~30% of respondents abandoned their research due to lack of resources that would enable adoption of costly technologies or due to restrictive clauses in their agreements.
  • Item
    Innovation Systems in sub-Saharan Africa and innovation indicators
    (2010-09)
    The presentation reflects on components of innovation systems and innovation system frameworks, including a bias towards the manufacturing sector. Coexistence of a formal sector with a large and growing informal sector is characteristic of innovation in South Africa. Design, engineering and associated management capabilities can play a direct and critical role in adapting and modifying specifications for integration into processes and products. This can be considered a link between new knowledge, and production of goods and services.
  • Item
    Interaction between Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Indicators and the STI Policy Agenda
    (2010-09)
    The presentation analyzes how STI Indicators may adversely affect policy, and articulates how African countries could be enabled to shape directions of change in the technologies they use. The statistics/indicators problem has involved a process of socio-institutional shaping of the statistical technology, with a reflexive movement which serves the interests of those same institutions. In terms of “developing countries” the technology transfer process was usually embedded in a specific type of national institutional context. The ‘real world’ of STI systems in developing countries was built to fit the imported models, maps and ‘blueprints’ created for statistical enumeration.
  • Item
    OECD Innovation Strategy and the Development Agenda
    (2010-09) Gault, Fred
    The presentation emphasizes that the activity of innovation is not an isolated event. A systems approach is implicit in the OECD Innovation Strategy and the Oslo Manual, as innovation requires support through policy and promotion. Knowledge about innovation policy for development needs to be improved, including changing the ways innovation is promoted, measured and discussed.
  • Item
    Patent Pooling: A Tool to Resolve the Problem of Thickets
    (2010-04)
    The presentation expands on the concept of “thickets” in Intellectual Property Rights such as when a company obtains multiple patents associated with a product, process, or formulation “during and towards the end of the protection period of the base patent, with the aim of keeping generics off the market beyond expiry of the first patent.” A disincentive to invest in R&D can result where there is a patent thicket. Patent-pools are suggested as a means to counter-balance the effects of thickets. Examples of successful patent-pools are provided.
  • Item
    Indicators of Science, Technology and Innovation Presenation
    (2010-09) Gault, Fred
    This presentation provides valuable references to various manuals/guidelines that can discriminate differences between indicators, such as those for Research and Development, and those that apply to Science and Technology. The reference manuals can provide guidelines for the collection and interpretation of data and for international comparisons of data, statistics and indicators. At the same time, these standards are supported by an international infrastructure. Manuals provide a language of discourse and behave as codified knowledge. Patents; Technological Balance of Payments; Human Resources for Science and Technology; Bibliometrics; Innovation Systems, and others provide standardized indicators from which to analyze diverse levels of innovation.
  • Item
    Patent Pools Across Industries: Issues and Challenges
    (2010-04)
    The presentation reviews some of the history of the first patent pools. Some recent patent pools include those in consumer electronics necessitated by the need for standard setting (MPEG, JPEG, DVD, or other format standards). Patent holders agree to a central administrative authority, who licenses to third parties. This process can provide a solution to anti-competitive practices of patent ‘holdout’ or refusal to license. Controversial arguments around competitiveness are presented and discussed.
  • Item
    Building the knowledge base for innovation
    (2010-09)
    The presentation focuses on innovation systems and knowledge generation/knowledge ecology. Innovating out of poverty requires supportive mechanisms such as: Financial services facilitating linkages; Money transfer; Banking services; Insurance; Empowering the unbanked (women). Knowledge policy is not just education policy. Knowledge creation, transmission and use is part of innovation systems.
  • Item
    Innovation Strategies and the Role for Indicators
    (2010-09) Gault, Fred
    The presentation focuses on innovation strategies in terms of South Africa’s goals for economic growth. Indicators can support monitoring, benchmarking, evaluation, foresight and research. The presentation provides a broad review of activities that can support innovation.
  • Item
    Challenges of Building Africa's Innovation Systems
    (2010-09) Muchie, Mammo
    The presentation provides clarification of aspects of innovation systems as they apply in the African context. It describes characteristics of emergent innovation systems and innovation drivers and actors. Ideas about the integration of Africa or of creating an Africa nation can themselves be considered as dynamic innovation systems requiring systemic approaches to understanding and creating knowledge in interaction with policies, institutions, system of innovation actors, and incentives. Innovation at the community level would require establishment of a Community Innovation System (CIS) to promote development from the bottom, not just from the state and business.
  • Item
    Data gathering and developing and using innovation indicators
    (2010-09) Kahn, Michael
    There are headline grabbing innovations such as cassette tape to CD to iPod. But it is the softer innovations that really matter: Clean water, Quality mass education, Safe and reliable mass transport systems, Clean and affordable food, Quality primary health care. Innovation involves ‘novelty’ – what exactly does this mean? The presentation analyzes how and what data and statistics measure; what underpins a measure (for example patenting and legal frameworks); ‘Research and Development’ and its link with economic growth. It reviews some ways of measuring growth and innovation, along with how various indicators can be generated and graphically displayed for ranking.
  • Item
    Role of design and engineering in African innovation systems-building
    (2010-09) Bell, Martin
    Engineering overlaps with design, but extends towards the realisation of specifications into concrete realities along with various kinds of ‘project management.’ Innovation systems are seen as part of the purposeful and explicit function of public policy. Design and engineering activities (and hence underlying capabilities) constitute a key ‘core’ of science, technology and innovation (STI) systems, especially in Africa. However, those activities and capabilities are woefully neglected in policy analysis and policy practice concerned with building African STI systems.