According to a report issued by the Global Innovation Index (GII), Pakistan stands at 134 among 143 economies which mean it is the 10th least innovative country in the world. The index covers 143 countries and uses a range of themes as well as indicators to scrutinise the entire setup of an economy. Out of 100 indicators, the average score of Pakistan is 24. In the sub-index of innovation output, the country ranks 107 out of 143 with a score of 22.6 out of 100 in 2014. However, Pakistan has improved its previous year’s ranking when it was placed at 137 with an overall score of 23.3 percent. China is at 29 and India at 79 in the index. A survey also reveals that Pakistan has a score of 25.4 in 139 countries placed on the innovation input index, regrettably with low innovative efficiency ratio of 0.9 percent.
The scrutiny covers two basic areas of economy — innovation input and innovation output. Innovation input covers the domains of the quality of institutions, human capital, research, infrastructure, market sophistication and business ethics whereas the output covers technological and creative outputs. The score of Pakistan is 40.1 among the indicators that determine the strength of its institutions. There are various indicators to ascertain the strength of institutions in the background of political, regulatory and business environment. The score of the country on political environment is 22.8, placing it at 141 and in political stability; it ranks 143 with zero score. In utilization of the human capital and research, the country has been placed at 139 with a score of only 9.8 out of 100. The country spends only 0.3 percent of the GDP on research and development.
The report says that skill development is one of the most important factors to raise intellectual capabilities of human capital and it gives impetus to innovation, productivity and economic growth. The conventional education system only focuses on test-based academic performance and it least inspires young people in the fields of development, creativity and communication. On the side of basic infrastructure, that country is ranked at 124 with a score of 22.2. In information technology and communications, it scored 19.8 points. As a matter of fact, education system is the basic requirement for development, but this sector is dominated by the colonial legacy — less technological but more clerical. There is no dearth of talent and capacity in the human capital, but we are bent upon destroying every faculty of young generation by various means.
