India Emerging as a Global Innovation Hub

By R Anil Kumar

• India, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership has made one more landmark achievement by rising to 40^th rank in Global Innovation Index (GII).

• It has been on a rising trajectory, over the past several years in the Global Innovation Index (GII), from a rank of 81 in 2015 to 40 in 2023

• Innovation has been at the forefront of India’s battle against the unprecedented crisis created by the pandemic and will be pivotal in driving the country’s resilience, as enshrined in the Prime Minister Modi’s clarion call on AatmaNirbhar Bharat

WIPO, Geneva, September 3. India achieves 40th rank out of 132 economies in the Global Innovation Index 2023 rankings published by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

India has been on a rising trajectory, over the past several years in the Global Innovation Index (GII), from a rank of 81 in 2015 to 40 in 2023. Innovation has been at the forefront of our battle against the unprecedented crisis created by the pandemic and will be pivotal in driving the country’s resilience, as enshrined in the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s clarion call on AatmaNirbhar Bharat.

The consistent improvement in the GII ranking is owing to the immense knowledge capital, the vibrant start-up ecosystem, and the amazing work done by the public and private research organizations.

All Departments of the Government, including Scientific Departments such as the Department of Science and Technology; the Department of Biotechnology; the Department of Space; and the Department of Atomic Energy and also, departments such as Ministry of Electronics and IT, Department of Telecommunications, Department of Agricultural Research & Education and the Department of Health Research have played a pivotal role in enriching the National Innovation Ecosystem. Most importantly, the Atal Innovation Mission has played a major role in expanding the Innovation ecosystem.

NITI Aayog has been working tirelessly to ensure the optimization of the national efforts for bringing in policy-led innovation in different areas such as electric vehicles, biotechnology, nanotechnology, space, alternative energy sources, etc.

It has also played a role in expanding the innovation eco-system in states and districts. A constant thrust in monitoring and evaluating India’s position in the global rankings has been provided by the NITI Aayog, including in the GII.

The GII is a reliable tool for governments across the world to assess the innovation-led social and economic changes in their respective countries. Over the years, the GII has established itself as a policy tool for various governments and helped them to reflect upon the existing status quo.

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has also been collaborating in India’s journey towards an innovation-driven economy. The NITI Aayog, in partnership with the CII and the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), had Virtually hosted the India Launch of the GII 2023 on 29th September 2023.

The launch session was graced by many senior dignitaries including Mr. Suman Bery, Vice-Chairman, NITI Aayog; Dr. V.K. Saraswat, Member, NITI Aayog; Mr. BVR Subrahmanyam, Chief Executive Officer, NITI Aayog; Mr. Daren Tang, Director General, WIPO; Dr. Sacha Wunsch-Vincent, Co-Editor, GII & Head, Economics and Statistics Division, WIPO; Dr. Nausad Forbes, Chairman, CII National Committee on Technology, Innovation & Research, and Co-Chairperson, Forbes Marshall; Professor Rishikesha Krishnan, Director, Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore; and Sh. Alok Nanda, Co-Chairman, CII National Committee on Technology, Innovation & Research, and CEO, GE India Technology Centre.

NITI Aayog said, India is part of the group of countries that has climbed the GII rankings fastest over the last decade. As per the report, India has also been making the most headway in innovation over the last decade.

India has emerged as a Regional GII leader as it performed above expectations on innovation relative to the level of economic development. It continues to adhere to the record of being an innovation over-performers for the 13th consecutive year.

The Global Innovation Index captures the innovation ecosystem performance of 132 economies and tracks the most recent global innovation trends.

The Global Innovation Index is an annual ranking of countries by their capacity for, and success in, innovation, published by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

What is WIPO?

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is the United Nations agency that serves the world’s innovators and creators, ensuring that their ideas travel safely to the market and improve lives everywhere.

WIPO does so by providing services that enable creators, innovators and entrepreneurs to protect and promote their intellectual property (IP) across borders and acting as a forum for addressing cutting-edge IP issues.

WIPO’S IP data and information guide decision-makers the world over. It’s impact-driven projects and technical assistance ensure IP benefits everyone, everywhere.