In this year’s comparison of innovation countries by the United Nations, the German economy did better than in the previous year. Germany moved up from tenth to eighth place, according to the report by the UN Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in Geneva on Thursday. In particular, the investment climate in Germany was rated better this time.
Switzerland defended its status as the most innovative country in the world. It is followed by the United States, Sweden, Great Britain, the Netherlands, South Korea and Singapore. Finland and Denmark come in ninth and tenth. Overall, the innovative power of 132 economies was examined using dozens of criteria.
Germany performed better in investments, education and the development of online products than in the previous year’s index. The UN organization also emphasized that government spending on research and development has recently increased in Germany, while it has shrunk in the USA and Japan. However, the political and private-sector framework conditions for innovation in Germany were rated worse than a year ago.
In the report, WIPO expressed concern that productivity was stagnating globally and that technological progress appeared to be slowing, despite increasing investment. “Therefore, in the future we must not only keep an eye on investments, but also pay more attention to how innovation affects the economy and society,” said WIPO Director General Daren Tang.