Framework for building national innovation capacity in China

Abstract

With the view of becoming an innovation-driven nation by 2020, national innovation capacity (NIC) building has become a key issue for China to transform its development pattern. A series of fundamental questions, such as how to build NIC and what roles should the government play, are faced by both the government and academia. The current literature concerning NIC mainly focuses on measurement and determinant analysis, which cannot give direct and sufficient support to policy making. This paper tries to fill the gap between theoretical analysis of NIC and policies for building NIC by proposing a conceptual framework, in which the inherent connections between innovation capacity indicators and policy options for building NIC are investigated. Policy measures for building NIC in China are discussed in the end of this paper.

Keywords:

• national innovation capacity
• conceptual framework
• measurement
• innovation policies in China

JEL Classifications:

• O20
• O53
• P21

Notes

1. Abbreviation for the analytical framework of national innovation capacity raised by Furman, Porter, and Stern (2002).

2. ‘Engineerization’: the conversion of a chemical or biochemical process to pilot scale and then eventually production scale.

3. ‘Informatization’ (alternative spelling ‘informationalization’): the extent to which the economy or society is becoming information-based.

4. Convincing evidence as to this judgment is the release of governmental plans and programs addressing innovation at a national level, such as the American Competitiveness Initiative (2006), A Strategy for American Innovation (2009, 2011), Creating an Innovative Europe (2006), the National Innovation Act of 2008 (India), as well as China's Outline of Medium and Long-term Plan for National Science and Technology Development (2006–2020).

5. Key industries refer to those industries that take a considerable share of the whole economy, such as ICT, automobile, ship building and chemistry, etc.

6. Strategic emerging industries refer to those knowledge and technology intensive industries with less resource consumption, huge growth potential and comprehensive benefits based on significant technological breakthroughs and large market demands (The State Council 2010). The State Council identified seven key strategic emerging industries, such as biotechnology, new energy, new materials, and new energy automobiles, etc.