The role of Innovation in Development – could lessons be drawn for Ethiopia?

Abstract

Innovation is thought to be an engine of social and economic development, particularly in developing countries. However, it is often overlooked in the development process. This paper reviews  the  concept  of  ‘innovation’  (as  conceptualized  in  Schumpeterian  Economics)  i.e.  it builds on recognition that ‘innovation’ is a social and economic as well as a technical process and the knowledge or technology transferred does not need to be necessarily new, nor does it consist only of ‘formal’ knowledge. The tale of Ethiopian shoemaker Bethlehem in Ethiopia is presented to illustrate the huge untapped potential of innovation for development in Ethiopia. Key constraints/barriers to innovation were highlighted. Finally, as a way of tackling barriers to innovation,  the  following  policy  suggestions  were  forwarded,  particularly  for  developing country governments, including Ethiopia:(a) develop pro-innovation policies and promote new ideas and thoughts, (b) remove certain restrictive policies and allow free flow of information, (c)support cooperation, production and sharing of information, (d) gear education and research to provide evidence-based case studies of good practice, success stories and lessons learnt, and the factors promoting and impeding innovation, (e) human capacity-building to promote innovation, (f)promotion of a wider awareness and public understanding of innovation at the practitioner, programme and policy levels to ensure innovation gets effectively onto the Development Agenda.