| Azlan Othman |

BRUNEI Darussalam retained its top spot (first place) in cost of redundancy dismissal and salary weeks, another top spot (first place) in ease of getting credit and second spot in applied tariff rate while recording a major jump in the ease of starting a business, the latest Global Innovation Index (GII) 2019 revealed on Wednesday.

However globally, the sultanate was ranked 71st among more than 100 economies in the world in a benchmark innovation ranking in 2019, slipping four spots from last year. Brunei was also at 71st place in the 2017 ranking.

But it is still the region’s better ranking economy in 13th place in Southeast Asia and Oceania category (after Singapore, Korea, Hong Kong, China, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand and the Philippines).

According to the ranking, the Sultanate is in 35th place in innovation input (which includes criteria such as the quality of human capital and research).

Brunei also ranked 17th in market sophistication, scoring first place globally in ease of getting credit (from second place last year) and second in applied tariff rate (from fourth place last year).

The Sultanate slipped in graduates in science and engineering to 11th place (from eighth place last year) and ease of starting a business at 14th place (compared to 49th place last year).

The Sultanate was also placed at 27th place in institutions retaining top spot as well as in cost of redundancy dismissal and salary weeks and seventh place in political and operational stability (sixth place last year).

Business sophistication is placed at 45th while infrastructure is in the 52nd spot.

Among other criteria, the report noted that Brunei performed relatively weaker when it came to global research and development (R&D) companies, domestic market scale, patent families, high & medium hi-tech manufactures, ICT service exports, trademarks and industrial by designs as well as cultural and creative service exports.

It also lost several ranks in the areas of females employed with advanced degrees, foreign direct investment inflows, e-participation and intellectual property payments.

Switzerland is the world’s most-innovative country followed by Sweden, the United States of America (US), the Netherlands and the United Kingdom (UK), according to the 2019 edition of the GII, which also identifies regional leaders India, South Africa, Chile, Israel and Singapore, with China, Vietnam and Rwanda topping their income groups.

Now in its 12th edition, the GII is a global benchmark that helps policy makers better understand how to stimulate and measure innovative activity, a main driver of economic and social development. The GII 2019 ranks 129 economies based on 80 indicators, from traditional measurements like research and development investments and international patent and trademark applications to newer indicators including mobile-phone app creation and high-tech exports.

The annual ranking is made by Cornell University, INSEAD and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). The GII 2019 also looks at the economic context: Despite signs of slowing economic growth, innovation continues to blossom, particularly in Asia, but pressures are looming from trade disruptions and protectionism. Sound government planning for innovation is critical for success, the report shows.

“The GII shows us that countries that prioritise innovation in their policies have seen significant increases in their rankings,” WIPO Director General Francis Gurry said.

“The rise in the GII by economic powerhouses like China and India have transformed the geography of innovation and this reflects deliberate policy action to promote innovation,” Gurry said.