Israel has been listed in the Global Innovation Index top 10 for the first time - ranked tenth for innovation in 2019 after being ranked 11th in 2018 and 17th in 2017.
Switzerland topped the innovation ratings again this year, followed by Sweden. The US advanced from fourth place in 2018 to third place this year. The rating, published by Cornell University in the US, the INSEAD School of Business, and the UN World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), is composed of 80 different indicators measuring various aspects of innovation.
Israel was in 17th place in innovation inputs and eighth place in innovation outputs, which the report's authors say shows that Israel excels in producing innovation with relatively little investment.
One indicator in which Israel is especially strong is business sophistication, in which Israel was ranked in third place. This ranking is composed of high secondary indicators, such as cooperation between industry and higher education (second place worldwide), foreign investments in R&D (third place), and participation by women in the highly trained labor force (third place). Israel led the world in investments in R&D, research talent, Wikipedia editing, creating applets, and exports of high-tech services.
Israel has poor rankings in infrastructure and institutional indicators (31st and 33rd place, respectively). Israel was particularly low in government investment per student (56th place) and the cost of layoffs resulting from streamlining (111th place).
The index authors note that Israel is the leading country in innovation in North Africa and Western Asia, and stands out in the ratio of innovation to investment. Jerusalem and Tel Aviv were rated in 23rd place on the index of the world's largest innovation centers.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on July 25, 2019
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