| dc.description.abstract | In the contemporary global economy, innovations are the motor of growth, competitiveness,
productivity and employment. Being aware of the importance of innovations in economy
and trying to improve the European economic efficiency, and also to diminish distance to the
USA, countries of the EU worked out the agenda that aims at acceleration of the innovative
progress and creation of the knowledge-based economy, which is the core of the Lisbon
Strategy.
The paper offers a tentative diagnosis of the range of innovativeness in the countries of
the “old fifteen” of the EU as well as in Poland when referred to them. The survey in the
level of innovativeness in particular countries is difficult and still imperfect in comparison to
such economic factors as production, investment, trade or employment. To define the level of
the innovative activity one can apply two methods, that is, so to say, an objective one, which
includes mensuration of the number and character of the innovations that really exist, and
the so called subjective method, which involves the analysis of the innovative activity of the
enterprises, its directions and prospects, barriers and results.
When examining the level of innovativeness in the countries of the EU and ten countries
pretending to membership in 2004, The European Commission used 18 partial indicators
characterizing different aspects of innovativeness. They include, among others, the height of
expenses for research and development (R+D) in relation to GDP, the employment in R+D
in relation to total employment, a share of the graduate in the age group of 25–64, activity in
creation of knowledge and technical progress, commonness of utilization of the European ITC
technology by the enterprises of the EU, popularity of Internet and mobile phones in society,
and value of direct foreign investment per capita.
The present research shows a serious differentiation between the range of innovations
in the countries of “the old fifteen” and points to a great distance that separates Poland from
the leading innovative countries of the UE, like Sweden, UK and Denmark, but also from the
average European standard in the areas of innovativeness under discussion, except for a share
of the graduate in the general number of people aged 25–64.
In Poland, the essential changes must be introduced in the expenses on R+D, innovations,
and on increasing the number of the qualified scientists and academics so that the knowledgebased
economy could arise. Moreover, what is necessary is also doing one’s best to improve
the efficiency of the conducted research and growth – oriented projects which are inculcated
to industry. | en_EN |
