G20 china_web

Innovative technologies
The OECD will bring hard data, evidence
and analysis to the G20 debates
Adult populations who use the
internet every day...
Angel
Gurría
90%
…in Norway… 50%
…and in China
DBIMAGES/ALAMY
This will not happen without decisive
action, though. The current productivity
slowdown reflects a breakdown in the
‘innovation diffusion machine’. We are not
running out of ideas. Rather, ideas are not
spreading more widely enough within and
across countries. Science and technology
are highly concentrated. Only 2,000
companies account for more than 90% of
global spending on business research and
development, while a handful of countries
dominate patent filings in emerging
technologies. Start-up rates have fallen in
many countries, but young firms are crucial
for introducing game-changing innovations.
Advancing through disruption
Digitalisation and the internet underpin the
current buzz about innovation and highlight
the challenges faced by policymakers.
Data and its analysis are driving advances
in automation, robotics and artificial
intelligence, which are at the core of the
next industrial revolution. The use of digital
technologies is becoming ubiquitous – 80%
of citizens in the members of the OECD
have broadband subscriptions and more
than three billion people now use the
internet. Self-driving vehicles are already
on our roads and digital innovation is
revolutionising health, education and
other public systems.
These benefits go hand in hand with
disruptions. Digitalisation transforms how
we interact with one another and with
society more broadly. It changes the nature
and structure of organisations and the
profile of jobs, evidenced by the rise of
platforms for online services and asset
sharing. There are also concerns about
digital divides. Almost 90% of adults aged
16 to 74 in Norway use the internet every
day. In China it is less than 50%. We have
to tackle important issues relating to
privacy, security, social protection and
skills, and inclusion.
Policymakers have good options for
creating eco-systems for innovation that
Secretary General
OECD
Angel Gurría has been Secretary
General of the Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD) since 2006,
having been reappointed in 2010.
He served as Mexico’s Minister
of Foreign Affairs from 1994 to
1998 and Minister of Finance and
Public Credit from 1998 to 2000.
Gurría has participated in various
international organisations,
including the Population Council
and the Center for Global
Development. He chaired the
International Task Force on
Financing Water for All and was
a member of the United Nations
Secretary General’s Advisory
Board on Water and Sanitation.
@OECD
www.oecd.org
encourage entrepreneurialism, while also
dealing with the social consequences.
Recent OECD work highlights the
‘Productivity-Inclusiveness Nexus’ and the
related importance of combining policy
reforms – aimed at strengthening
regulation, competition and innovation –
with policies that provide the opportunity
for everyone to share in their benefits.
Countries need to invest in health,
education, skills and social protection,
measures that help the most vulnerable in
our societies. Effective skills strategies, open
and competitive business environments,
efficient systems of knowledge creation and
diffusion and sound governance are all
essential. They must keep pace with the
changes in our economies, so that growth
is inclusive.
Promoting the innovation agenda
The G20 has taken up this challenge under
the leadership and vision of China’s 2016
presidency promoting the leitmotiv of an
‘Innovative, Invigorated, Interconnected
and Inclusive World Economy’. It is
designing a ‘Blueprint for Innovative Long-
Term Growth’ to unleash the potential of
innovation, grasp the opportunities offered
by the digital economy and reap the benefits
of the next industrial revolution. The OECD
has been honoured to support the Chinese
innovation agenda by bringing hard data,
evidence and analysis to the debates,
especially on defining innovation and
measuring the extent of the digital economy.
The OECD has a clear mandate to
continue our work to help policymakers
harness innovation for the benefit of all
society. The Daejeon and Cancun
declarations resulting from our 2015 and
2016 ministerial-level meetings on science,
technology, innovation and the digital
economy provide our vision. The OECD, in
promoting better policies for better lives,
will continue to support the G20 as it strives
to realise new sources of innovation, growth
and well-being. G20
G7G20.com September 2016 • G20 China: The Hangzhou Summit 101