UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT

UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT
CONCLUSION
Innovation performance down for half of EU
The EU, in general, and the 19 members of the Eurozone,
in particular, have been hard hit by the economic crisis.
Unemployment rates have spiralled upwards, with one out
of four EU citizens below the age of 25 years being without
a job in 2013. This economic hardship has created political
instability, with some countries questioning their place in the
EU and the UK even contemplating a Brexit.
The Eurozone countries have had to bail out several banks
over the past five years. Today, they face additional problems,
as the growing public debt burden of some members sows
doubts as to their financial credibility. Eurozone countries, the
European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund
have all had to lend substantial amounts of money to Ireland,
Italy, Portugal, Spain and, above all, Greece. Whereas the
other countries have managed to restore their economy by
implementing structural reforms, the Greek economy is still
convalescent. Despite Greece having adopted a new austerity
package in July 2015, there is still a risk that it may have to
leave the Eurozone as a result of what increasingly appears to
be an unbearable public debt burden.
The EU has adopted an energetic programme to 2020
to conjugate the crisis and foster smart, inclusive and
sustainable growth, Europe 2020. One of the key strategies
is the Innovation Union, a compilation of more than
30 commitments for improving the capacity of countries to
innovate. The EU’s eighth framework programme for research
and technological development, Horizon 2020, is endowed
with by far the greatest budget ever, € 80 billion. With almost
one-third of this amount to be spent on promoting research
excellence, Horizon 2020 should raise the EU’s scientific
output considerably.
Scientific excellence is being fostered by the European
Research Council, which is responsible for 17% of the overall
budget of Horizon 2020 in the form of grants to researchers
at different stages of their career. The European Research
Council has had a profound impact on scientific output and
on national research funding, with many member states
having created similar institutions and funding schemes.
Despite the framework programmes, EU funding makes up
only a modest share of total funding for R&D. The lion’s share
comes from national governments and businesses. The EU
has formulated an ambitious goal of spending 3% of GDP on
R&D by 2020 but progress has been slow in many countries.
trend is a consequence of the drop in the share of innovative
companies, public–private scientific collaboration and the
availability of risk capital. This calls for further support of
innovation at both the EU and national levels by making
access to finance easier for SMEs, facilitating the inflow of
researchers from beyond the EU, by promoting collaboration
within but also between the private and public sectors and
by harmonizing national support programmes and even
replacing them with EU support programmes to increase
the scale of EU research and avoid overlap between national
activities.
There is support for business innovation in the new Horizon
2020 programme but, even more importantly, member
states are taking the initiative in this area. Several countries
are re-emphasizing the importance of technology-intensive
manufacturing, including France and Germany, and
acknowledging the special role that SMEs play in this area
by making funds more accessible to smaller companies.
Knowledge and technology transfer are being reinforced
through the promotion of public–private partnerships.
Only time will tell whether this intensified support for
research and innovation has had a positive, marked impact
on innovation in Europe. That analysis will have to wait for the
next UNESCO Science Report in five years’ time.
KEY TARGETS FOR THE EUROPEAN UNION
n At least 75% of people between 20 and 64 years of age
should be employed by 2020;
n On average, 3% of GDP should be invested in research
and development (R&D) by 2020;
n By 2020, greenhouse gas emissions should be limited
by at least 20% compared to emission levels in 1990,
20% of energy should come from renewables and
there should be a 20% increase in energy efficiency
(known as the 20:20:20 target);
n School dropout rates should be reduced to below 10%
and at least 40% of people between 30 and 34 years of
age should have completed tertiary education by 2020;
n The number of persons at risk of poverty or social
exclusion should be reduced by at least 20 million by
2020.
Although the gap between the least and most innovative
countries has narrowed, the innovation performance of
almost half of member states has worsened. This worrying
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