Azerbaijan : The Role of Higher Education in Innovation
As the push to engage in the global knowledge economy becomes increasingly vital to countriesaround the world, higher education institutions (HEIs) are being recognized as valuable centers for research and teaching in support of entrepreneurship, i...
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| Format: | Policy Note |
| Language: | English |
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World Bank, Washington, DC
2019
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/222451557427795620/Azerbaijan-The-Role-of-Higher-Education-in-Innovation http://hdl.handle.net/10986/31678 |
| Summary: | As the push to engage in the global
knowledge economy becomes increasingly vital to
countriesaround the world, higher education institutions
(HEIs) are being recognized as valuable centers for research
and teaching in support of entrepreneurship, innovation,
competitiveness, and economic growth. Many HEIs in
Azerbaijan, however, lack the capacity to serve as effective
dynamic hubs for such enterprising efforts, limiting
Azerbaijan’s ability to collaborate and compete with other
nations in the global economy. Leveraging its expertise in
this area, the World Bank carried out an analysis of the
status of the research and innovation environment in
Azerbaijan’s higher education sector, identifying the main
obstacles to the advancement of research work and its
results and to effective coordination between higher
education institutions and industry to achieve
innovation-led growth. Science in Azerbaijan is examined
through policy and institutional lenses, encompassing its
governance, funding and management issues. The analysis
looks at innovation as a dynamic outcome from
university-industry collaboration, examining issues of
technology transfer and intellectual property rights, the
start-up environment, and funding of research toward
practical and applied outcomes. The results of the analysis
presented in this note, based on national and international
data sources along with numerous consultations with a
variety of stakeholders, informs concrete policy measures
that can be taken by Azerbaijani authorities to strengthen
the capacity of HEIs to serve as key actors in the country’s
innovation ecosystem and facilitate economic diversification
within the global knowledge economy. Recently adopted
national strategic documents are creating possibilities for
reform by the MOE as well as by individual HEIs. The
Education Development Strategy (EDS), approved by the
President of the Republic of Azerbaijan in 2013, defines
purposeful reforms in education with the main goal of
building a competitive and leading education system in line
with the world’s best practices and based on cutting-edge
technology infrastructure, quality and accessibility. The
key findings and recommendations center on undertaking
strategic efforts to maximize the quality and relevance of
higher education as it relates to innovation and economic competitiveness. |
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