PHIL UP IN RANKING IN GLOBAL INNOVATION INDEX

The long wait is finally over. The Philippines rose to rank 50th in the Global Innovation Index 2020, a symbol of hope for the country that is currently fighting the pandemic brought about by COVID-19.

This is indeed a remarkable performance for the country considering there were 131 economies ranked in 80+ indicators grouped into innovation inputs and outputs and the Philippines was in rank 100th way back in 2014.

Moving up four notches from 54th in 2019 and scaling up by 23 steps from the 73rd ranking in 2018; the GII 2020 report shared that the Philippines performed on innovation above expectations for its level of economic development for the second consecutive year.

The country ranked 41st in terms of innovation outputs from 42nd in 2019 and 68th in 2018. Also this year, the Philippines jumped to rank 70th in innovation inputs from 76th in 2019 and 82nd in 2018.

The Philippines, likewise, scored high in all seven (7) GII pillars which are above average for the lower middle-income group, coming in at rank 4th among the 29 lower middle-income group economies. The other pillars and their respective ranking of the Philippines are the following: knowledge and technology outputs (26th), business sophistication (29th), creative outputs (57th), infrastructure (63rd), market sophistication (86th), human capital and research (86th), and institutions (91st).

Furthermore, the Philippines, together with other three economies namely China, Vietnam, and India, made the most significant progress in the GII innovation ranking over time.

Innovation in various fronts

According to the GII 2020 report, the Philippines stood out in the areas of innovativeness of its business sector and the innovation outcomes produced by its investments, with the levels of outcomes that even surpassed some high-income economies.

Compared to other economies in Southeast Asia, East Asia, and Oceania, the Philippines performed above average in the pillars of Business sophistication and Knowledge and technology. This overall performance earned the Philippines rank 11th among the 17 economies in the said region.