The Philippines climbed three ranks to 53rd in the 2024 Global Innovation Index (GII) and, for the first time, claimed third place among 38 lower middle-income economies.
The GII report released by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on Thursday shows that the Philippines stood out as one of seven economies for its stellar innovation growth over the last ten years.
Since ranking 100th in the 2014 GII, the Philippines has advanced by 47 positions and leapfrogged from 18th among its income group peers a decade ago.
The Philippines showed its strongest performance in business sophistication, ranking 37th globally in 2023, the year evaluated for the 2024 GII.
This was due to advancements in innovation linkages, particularly a notable 13-rank climb to 44th in the university-industry research and development collaboration indicator.
“IPOPHL’s Innovation and Technology Support Office (ITSO) program was one of many government initiatives that played a key role in increasing university-industry partnerships,” said IPOPHL director-general Rowel Barba.
The report says that of the seven pillars, the Philippines’ ranking in institutions jumped 14 spots to 65th, as its regulatory environment sub-pillar improved by 26 spots to 82nd. Othel V. Campos
The local innovation landscape in 2023 reflected the global downward trend in venture capital deals, patent cooperation treaty (PCT) filings and scientific publications, threatening the rise of startups and businesses focused on impact-driven innovation.
The inflow of venture capital to the country amounted to $158,850 in 2023, down by 78.3 percent from the prior year and equivalent to a rank of 40. By count, VC deals fell 39.1 percent to 73rd.
PCT applications also declined by 72.4 percent to 94th and scientific publications dropped by 7.7 percent to 125th.
Tracking 133 economic globally, the GII is an annual report published by WIPO, a specialized agency of the United Nations.
