Innovation is one of the key forces that drive economic growth and social progress. To monitor it, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) publishes annually the Global Innovation Index (GII), which also identifies the world’s top 100 science and technology (S&T) clusters. Year after year, these happen to be cities.
The next GII will be launched on 26 September but a preview indicates that urban hubs in Asia (Tokyo-Yokohama, Shenzhen–Hong Kong–Guangzhou) and the US (San Jose–San Francisco) dominate the top ten. Hubs in several middle-income countries, including Cairo, Chennai and Istanbul, are growing swiftly.
Urban hubs are responsible for many solutions to global challenges. Their creative influence reinforces the argument that the UN and other multilateral processes should welcome the expertise and experience that cities can bring to global policy making.
“Science and technology clusters serve as the foundation of robust national innovation ecosystems. It is encouraging to see these clusters thriving not just in the mature hubs of industrialized nations, but also in the emerging innovation hotspots of selected developing economies. WIPO will continue to help these clusters to use IP to translate promising research into tangible, real-world solutions.”
WIPO Director General Daren Tang