ABSTRACT
Innovation has been recognized as the most important component of long-term economic growth. The purpose of this study is to identify the crucial indicators of innovation in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkey and Uzbekistan based on the Global Innovation Index (GII). Out of the five GII Input pillars, regression analysis identified Institutions and Infrastructure to be significant. Subsequently, Political Environment that is based on Political Stability and Government Effectiveness is isolated out of the six sub-pillars. Finally, Government Effectiveness alone emerged as the most significant indicator of GII for this sample. Innovation appears to flourish within a stable “institutional framework” before the full benefits of R&D funding and educated professionals can have a critical impact. At the individual country level, Tajikistan appears to be behind the others in most cases, followed by Uzbekistan. Turkey leads the group in terms of the most significant indicator, which is government effectiveness.
Keywords
Innovation, Economic Growth, Political Environment, Eurasia