Switzerland the world’s most-innovative in latest rankings

NEW DELHI — Switzerland is the world’s most innovative country for a second consecutive year, while Asian giant India made the biggest strides among major economies, a global indicator showed on Wednesday.

The annual Global Innovation Index — compiled by World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), Cornell University and INSEAD — ranks 129 world economies on 80 parameters including research, technology and creativity.

Switzerland was closely followed by Sweden and the United States.

India, where the announcement was made, was ranked 52nd but has leaped up the rankings in recent years, WIPO Assistant Director General Naresh Prasad said.

The report came as the International Monetary Fund downgraded global growth and warned of a “precarious” 2020 amid trade tensions, continued uncertainty and rising prospects for a no-deal Brexit.

The report’s authors said spending on innovation was still growing and appeared resilient despite the slowdown.

But they also warned of signs of waning public support for research and development in high-income economies usually responsible for pushing the innovation envelope, and increased protectionism.

“In particular, protectionism that impacts technology-intensive sectors and knowledge flows poses risks to global innovation networks and innovation diffusion,” the report said.

“If left uncontained, these new obstacles to international trade, investment, and workforce mobility will lead to a slowdown of growth in innovation productivity and diffusion across the globe.”