knowledge and innovation in the arab region: realities and a suggested framework for a guiding index...
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Knowledge and Innovation in the Arab Region:Realities and a suggested framework for a guiding index
Prepared by:
Ghaith FarizDirector / Coordinator
Arab Knowledge Report
Knowledge
The concept of “knowledge” expands to embrace all forms of a society’s epistemological and cultural assets. It is a
major organizing principal of holistic human development, aiming to expand the choices and opportunities available to the individual Arab to enjoy freedom and an honorable life.
Knowledge in terms of its acquisition, production, indigenization, and deployment, thus becomes a tool and
goal that affects all levels of society equally and involves all fields, from the scientific, artistic, cultural and traditional to
accumulated social experiences.
Arab Knowledge Report 2009
Knowledge is an entry point to reform and human development: a tool and product of development
Knowledge is a human rightAdopting the broader concept of knowledge, which
includes humanities, art, literature, in addition to applied sciences
The tight connection between the status of knowledge and the enabling environments (Political, economic and social environments)
Intercommunication; within the inside and with the outside, is a founding pillar
The Arab Region
and the Aspired Knowledge Society
General Environment
• Human development… the broader framework of knowledge society: A slight improvement with the persistence of many structural problems (Poverty, unemployment among youth, illiteracy among adults)
• Additional pressures: Negative impact of wars, occupation and internal conflicts, extremism
• The global financial/economic crisis: Opportunities and challenges for the establishment of the knowledge society
Education: The founding tributary of knowledge society
Despite the Arab region having spent about 5% of GDP and 20% of government
budgets on education over the past 40
years, around 1/4 of the population (15 years & older) is unable to read or write,
and there are still some 48 million illiterate individuals in the Arab region.
• About one third of the Arab countries suffer
from significant school drop out rates• Children in many Arab countries receive less
than 70% of the time allotted for their formal education
Some 5 million school age children in the Arab countries are out of school of which over 60% are females
Minimum Required Score
Cognitive Skills
(Searching for information, written communication, problem solving and use
of technology)
Conative skills(motivation to learn, self
esteem and planning for the future)
Social Skills(communicating with
others, teamwork, public participation)
Values(cognitive, conative, social and universal)
Quality of Education
Source: Arab knowledge Report 2010/2011
Up to this date, the educational systems in the Arab region were
not able to create a critical mass of technicians capable of meeting the
demands of the labor market
Enrollment in higher education=24.1% compared to world average of of 28.7% and
57.5% in Europe and Central Asia, and 59% inJapan, and 75.8% in countries of very high HDI
Enrollment in Higher Education
CountryEducati
on
Humanities and
Arts
Social Sciences,Law and Business
Administration
Sciences
Engineering
manufacturing and
reconstruction
Agriculture
Health
Services
/Other Unknow
n
Algerie1.83*
23.86*41.01*
11.7*13.25* 1.63* 3.47*
1.54*1.7*
Djibouti
..
30.77***
17.27***
27.79***
18.68*** .. ..
5.5***
..Jordan 19.43* 17.6* 28.06* 9.72* 6.4* 5.44* 2.98* .. *9.88Lebanon 5.1* 12.62 46.49 10.99 12.35 .. 11.19 0.81 ..Morocco
4.69***
13.21***
35.27***
23.25***
12.4*** 1.12***6.65***
3.39***
..Oman
10.73***
15.88**
24.59**
21.52**
17.41** 0.84**10.22**
0.73**
10.9***Palestine
34.13
9.39
31.17
8.65
7.27 .. 8.46
0.53
..Qatar 5.23 18.64 34.59 6.35 27.22 .. 5.49 2.49 ..Saudi Arabia
9.05
27.34
27.73
20.65
8.3 .. 8.5
1.97
..Tunisia 0.5 18.74 23.72 25.92 16.45 1.54 9.19 3.92 ..
*2011 Data **2010 Data ***2009
Information and Communication Technologies The pillars and tools of knowledge
• Arabic is among the top ten languages used on the net. Arabic-speaking internet users are the fastest growing group (>2000%).
• Arabic digital e-content is still relatively weak
• Rates of internet use in most Arab countries are less than the prevailing global rates
• Dissatisfactory levels of ICT applications for development (Education, health, media... with the exception of GCC countries)
Arab Performance in Innovation
• Spending on scientific research in the Arab region is among the least worldwide (Ranging from 0 to 1 % of GDP, most of it depends on government funding with minimal involvement of the private sector )
• Scientific publishing and patents...modest achievements • Arab citizen’s share in published books equals 4 per cent
and 5 per cent of the share of British and Spanish citizens
• Loss of Arab human capital (brain drain)...the ultimate result of low incentives and high constraints (45% of Arab students who study abroad do not return to their home countries)
• Weak link between innovation and production/development
Country PopulationNumber of papers in
2013Saudi Arabia 28 287 855 3 266
Tunisia 10 777 500 1 140Lebanon 4 424 888 354Kuwait 3 250 496 249Jordan 6 318 000 451Oman 3 314 001 203UAE 9 205 651 506Bahrain 1 317 827 72Egypt 80 721 874 2 940Palestine 4 420 549 127Algeria 38 481 705 804Morocco 32 521 143 609Libya 6 154 623 75Iraq 32 578 209 274Syria 22 399 254 122Sudan 37 195 349 104Yemen 23 852 409 66Mauritania 3 796 141 7Comoros 717 503 1
Djibouti 859 652 1Somalia 10 195 134 0
Arab countries according to the number of research per million in the first half of 2013
Source: Arab Scientific Community Organization 2013
Number of Patents Granted by the U.S Patent and Trademark OfficeCountry Patents (2013)
Saudi Arabia 237
Kuwait 84Egypt 34UAE 18Lebanon 7Morocco 1Tunisia 4Jordan 6Syria 0Jordan 3Qatar 7Algeria 0Iraq 0Bahrain 2Sudan 0Libya 0Yemen 0Mauritania 0Total Arab* countries 403Malaysia 214Finland 1221South Korea 14548Germany 15498Greece 65Turkey 74Philippines 27
Overall Indicators
Knowledge Index
Knowledge Economy Index
Innovation Education & Training
ICT0
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
4.5
5
20002012
KEI for the Arab Region 2000 & 2012
Source: World Bank Knowledge Economy Index (KEI), 2012:
Knowledge Economy Index Arab Countries 2000-2012
UAE
Bahrai
nOman KSA
Qatar
Kuwait
Jord
anTunis
Leban
on
Algeria
Egypt
Moro
cco Syria
Yemen
Mau
ritan
iaSu
dan
Dijbouti
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
20002012
Source: World Bank Knowledge Economy Index (KEI), 2012:
North America
Europe & Central Asia
East Asia & the Pacific
Latin America
World
Arab Region
South Asia
Africa
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
The Knowledge Economy Index for the World Regions (2000-2012)
2012 2000
North America
Europe & Central Asia
East Asia & the Pacific
Latin America
World
Arab Region
South Asia
Africa
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Innovation Index (2000-2012)
2012 2000
Despite the multiplicity of institutional initiatives in the Arab region, they neither cover all the domains of knowledge, nor do
they reflect a clear policy for doing so.
Arab legislation remain insufficient/inadequate in terms of either
adoption or implementation to address the questions and issues of the knowledge society.
Institutionalism and Legislation…..
Comprehensive Vision for ChangeDevelopment…Openness and Intercommunication…Knowledge
PoliciesRegional and National
Change Management Institutions and Project Implementation
Business and
investment environment
Education, training
and media
ICT and communi-
cation
System of innovation
and creativity
Social, political
and cultural
environment
Arab YouthSkills…Values…Enabling…
Knowledge Society
Sustainable Human Development
Moving Toward Preparing the Youth for the Knowledge Society
Innovation…. The locomotive to catch up
A suggested framework for an innovation index
Knowledge
Productive Intercommunication
and Openness
Development
Innovation
Chronic problems, ambitions and catching up with the world
• Education– Illiteracy over 25%– Quality??
• Rentier economies – No need to be innovative…
• Resource based economies
• Openness and productive intercommunication– Innovation and knowledge require openness and productive
intercommunication
Required scales and indices of innovation in the Arab region
• Most of the available scales and indicators are designed for developed or emerging economies… in the Arab region we are neither nor…..
• How much do we really have of that in the Arab region?
• Are these indicators OK for us???• What should we do..??
Key points for an Arab innovation scale
• Directing the indicators to address our pressing developmental issues
• Can we wait …..Burning stages• Critical mass approach• Democratization/dissemination of innovation
and knowledge• Productive intercommunication and
openness
Impact/Output(social, economic, environmental, cultural)
Governance of Innovation
Linking knowledge/innovation with production and
development
Translation and Languages
R&D
ICT
Partnerships (regional/international
Capabilities (Human/ knowledge
capital)
Legislative tools
Societal tools
Institutional tools
Financial tools
Intercommunication and openness Values
Innovation Doable
Absorptive Capacity
Responsive to Developmental
needs
Feasible
Efficient and
Effective
ImpactBasis Mechanisms Enabling Environments
Employment/povertyPolitical support
Intercommunication/openness
Financial tools
Economic (FDI, ODA, Debt…)
Economic environment R &D Legislative tools
Social (health, education, Societal support ICT Institutional tools
EnvironmentalHuman/knowledge capital
Partnerships (regional &
international)
Societal tools
CulturalValues Translation and languages Overall governance
Wellbeing , dignity and prosperity
Protecting legislations
Governance of innovation
Incentives (financial and non-financial)
Elements of Knowledge and Innovation Scale for the Arab Region
The required change is, at its core, a comprehensive economic, social, political, and cultural process of mobilization to build the Arab renaissance project with and through which the young Arab generation can prepare for a new society that lays the foundations of knowledge and brings openness to the world to serve sustainable human development for the dignity and wellbeing of the Arab people.
Arab Knowledge Report 2010/2011
