ABSTRACT. The need for radical transformations to respond to the environmental polycrises of climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution has come to the forefront of political and academic debates. Nation-states must have transformative capacity, meaning the ability to ignite, enable, and steer large-scale sustainability transformations. However, despite its importance, there remains a significant gap in understanding how innovation policy influences and shapes this transformative capacity. In this conceptual paper based on a systematic literature review, we explore which capacities are needed to navigate the current transformations and how different innovation policies influence transformative capacity. We argue that the current Grand Challenges put a double demand on nation-states regarding transformation breadth and depth and highlight that the literature on transformative innovation policies is biased towards some dimensions of the transformation. We propose a more holistic approach to innovation policy, which takes a dynamic system perspective and evolutionarily conceptualizes transformative capacity. We discuss the implications of this more holistic approach to innovation policy. This approach reflects on how different capacities should be mobilized through innovation policies throughout the transformation process.

ABSTRACT. Advanced technological developments have significantly contributed to the effectiveness and efficiency of several pillar sectors in many economies around the world. Developing countries, are amongst those whose strategic pillar sectors have benefited from the prowess of innovative technological advancements. The natural resources of our Regions are many and within those economies are many opportunities, challenges and vulnerabilities toward infrastructural development. Of the many resources, one major resource – Water is recognized as of particular importance to the much talked about national agenda for many developing countries but more specifically the Caribbean Region. This presentation will present national events which have call for the urgent need for inventors/innovators to more purposeful in identifying innovative solutions for water and waste water management as this resource diminishes . The WATER sector is identified as a prime target for - Sectoral Systems of Innovation (SSIs) toward the effective and efficient management of this importance and critical resource.

ABSTRACT. Recent reports on Climate Change and impacts of climate change the recent natural disasters leave little doubt: Climate Change is progressing at faster speeds than originally predicted, its impacts are felt globally, and the window to mitigate the worst climate impacts is closing very quickly. Climate targets set to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees by 2030 have essentially been missed already, with 2023 being the warmest year on record. However, science also suggests (Ga that action is still useful and necessary and the ability of the global community to scale and accelerate climate action over the coming five years is critical to supporting human life, biodiversity, societies and social and economic goals. The food system, consisting of the complex elements and activities relating to the production (including agriculture), processing, transport and consumption of food, is key to addressing climate change. The agricultural sector alone is responsible for approximately a third of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) (Crippa et al., 2021). This has been recognized and much work has been done, leading to an abundance of localized solutions and pilot projects. Yet, there still is a critical and urgent need to scale and accelerate GHGE reduction activities from niche projects and prototypes to the system-level scale where global climate impacts are achieved within relevant time frames. This paper first presents a conceptual framework highlighting key elements useful in identifying and addressing opportunities to achieve system changes on short time lines. It then derives the practical framing underlying a sector-wide initiative aiming to scale and accelerate climate action across the agriculture and food sector.

ABSTRACT. Digitization in agriculture is currently one of the most important developments to meet the growing economic, ecological and social demands in the agri-food sector of developing countries. The aim of this work is to analyze the impact of AI adoption on food insecurity in Sub-Saharan Africa. The results obtained from propensity score matching, a non-parametric method of impact assessment on 33 Sub-Saharan African countries over the period 2010-2020, show that on average, adoption of IA significantly reduces food insecurity in Sub-Saharan Africa. The results are robust to several additional robustness analyses and specifications. All other things being equal, the application of AI in the agricultural and food sectors contributes to increasing the efficiency, productivity and resilience of food systems. Apart from the optimism offered by the adoption and use of AI to combat food insecurity, disparities remain between countries. We suggest that African governments, firstly, invest more in technological infrastructure and make it accessible to small-scale farmers. Secondly, develop training and coaching programs to enable farmers and food sector players to make effective use of AI-related technological tools. Thirdly, multiply partnerships between African players and international organizations and research centers to further exchange best practices and promote the sharing of technologies and knowledge in order to reach optimal potential.

ABSTRACT. This study investigates the dynamic interplay between regulatory frameworks and digital transformation in the banking sector. Through empirical analysis and a comprehensive literature review, we develop a novel categorization framework for regulators and digital banking attributes among 88 countries. Our cross-sectional analysis spanning two time periods, 2014 and 2022 reveals significant trends in regulatory rankings and digital banking performance across various countries. The study contributes insights into regulatory adaptability and the complex relationship between regulations and digital banking evolution, offering valuable implications for academia, practitioners, and policymakers.

ABSTRACT. Digitalisation has been widely explored across many academic fields (e.g. Llopis-Albert, Rubio and Valero 2021; Diener and Špaček 2021; Ricciardi et al. 2021; Jackson 2019) and is “…a sociotechnical process of applying digitising techniques to broader social and institutional contexts that render digital technologies infrastructural (Tilson, Lyytinen and Sørensen, 2010:749). Simply put, digitalisation involves the use of digital technologies and infrastructures that will impact on consumers, businesses and society (Autio 2017). This growing phenomenon enables new ways of working and organising, the development of new products and services (Yoo et al. 2012), creation of new markets and business models, expansion of operations and system efficiencies throughout the organisation (Adner, Puranam and Zhu 2019) as well as novel practices in consumer engagement (Morgan-Thomas, Dessart and Veloutsou 2020). Hence, the benefits of investment in digital technologies include cost reduction, productivity growth, efficiency and effectiveness, customer satisfaction and competitive advantage (Pfister and Lehmann 2023). Common applied technologies of business processes include the Internet of things (IoT), big data, blockchain, robotics, big data, artificial intelligence, 3D visualisation, cloud computing and social technologies (Truant, Broccardo and Dana 2021).

Digital technologies support collaboration and innovation in a more connected world (Ross and Blumenstein 2015). These authors suggest that such collaborative approaches across various units in an organisation employing information and communication technologies (ICTs), allow for process and product innovations. In tandem, Scuotto et al. (2017) underscore the need for higher ICT investment that fosters innovations through knowledge exploits from internal and external actors. Conversely, Usai et al. (2021) find that digital technologies have only a marginal influence on innovation performance, suggesting that digital technologies moderate the association between innovation and other variables (e.g. knowledge).

Goal nine of the 2030 Development Agenda by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), “Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”, speaks of improving the technological capabilities and encouraging research and innovation in developing countries along with the provision of affordable access to ICT and enhanced financial support (UN DESA 2015). The adoption of such targets is expected to be a part of both the national and regional development plans of Caribbean member countries (Fonseca-Hoeve 2017). Prior to 2011, innovation research was quite thin in the region but with the promulgation of micro-level Caribbean data through the Compete Caribbean Partnership Facility (CCPF) development programme as well World Bank’s Latin America and Caribbean Enterprise Surveys (LACES), the output of innovation articles has somewhat increased, in particular examining innovation and productivity in the region. The aim of the paper is to investigate the Caribbean’s proliferation of digitalisation, particularly the utilisation of electronic payments relative to global expectations.

This study uses Innovation, Firm Performance and Gender (IFPG) Issues in the Caribbean 2020 and 2021 survey data that was created by the CCPF and conducted by Étude Économique Conseil (EEC Canada) on 1979 enterprises from 13 Caricom member states. The database covers areas such as gender, technology usage, innovation, business climate and the impact of COVID-19. The investigation evaluates the effect of digital technology adoption on innovation propensity. The paper considers traditional digital technologies such as mobile phones, email, social media and website but also incorporates the utilisation of digital payment avenues. The dependent variable considers the innovation expenditure over three periods taken in logarithms and separately for both product and process innovation. Other independent variables used to explain innovation propensity are firm size, firm age, competition and top manager experience.

Under Tobit model estimation, preliminary findings are in line with earlier studies. Firm size and competition determines the propensity of both product and process innovation. In highly open economies, competition drives firms to develop products and services continuously to sustain their market share (Ortiz et al. 2013). Larger firms are able to undertake innovative activities as they already have the requisite technological infrastructure (Parida, Westerberg and Frishammar 2012) or are able to secure financing for innovation (Czarnitzki and Hottenrott 2011). The traditional digital technologies augment the extent of product innovativeness of Caribbean firms. Firms can use their technological capabilities strategically (e.g. websites and social media) to directly connect with consumers of their products and services that encourages feedback for improvement (Chatterjee and Kar 2020). In terms of the digital payment index, there was no significance with respect to innovation propensity. As digital payment platforms remain nascent in the region, many alternatives are out of reach for many Caribbean enterprises (Beecher, Bissessar and Julien 2018).

ABSTRACT. Education Is Considered A Critical Nexus In The Development And Innovation Ecosystem. Various regions are at different stages of transforming their economies through adaption and adoption of digital technology. Across many countries and jurisdictions, different scholars and relevant stakeholders share responsibility for providing conducive digital teaching and learning to institutions and students that meet the purpose. Africa is one of the continents still struggling with digitization taking place non- proportionally in all sectors. The continent is considering technology to be the panacea of faster growth and development that can lead to transformation for now and the future in terms of inclusive economic growth and job creation cycles. Sustainable Development Goal 4 on quality education need multi-sectoral approach as there is growing need for better quality and affordable education that prepares the learners as innovators, design and critical thinkers that relate to future of the job market. This study, investigated the valuable outcomes that were realized in a project dubbed Global classrooms .The project was launched in 2022 between University of Toronto, Canada and University of Nairobi Kenya targeting the postgraduate and undergraduate students. The students involved selecting a number of students from University of Nairobi, Kenya who were enrolled in the one semester programme with University of Toronto students doing same semester courses in their semester offered for different cohorts in 2022 and 2023.The study goals were to explore an on how technology can be used in higher education for Global Knowledge, to establish benefits acquiring skills acquired by engaging higher education students in a global course offered synchronously and asynchronously.

ABSTRACT. Broadly speaking, innovation is the conversion of new ideas and knowledge into practical application – in the form of new products, services or processes – typically to enhance a business or to support a public undertaking. Business innovation is key for a country’s competitiveness, productivity, and sustainable economic growth. As such, the governments of almost all countries promote business innovation through various support programs. The programs could include tax credits, direct supports such as grants and contributions, regulations, etc. These programs should periodically be reviewed to assess whether they achieve their objectives, and modified if needed.

The Government of Canada supports innovation through close to 150 programs by different departments. Canada’s innovation policy has been reviewed many times in recent decades. “Horizontal Review of Business Innovation and Clean Technology Programs” was the most comprehensive review and was conducted by the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) in 2017-18. The objective of this session is to draw on the lessons learned from the 2017 exercise and to use them in future reviews.

Panelists:

1. Lessons learned from the 2017 Horizontal Business Innovation and Clean Technology Review Neil Bouwer, Visiting Professor of Practice at McGill University

2. Using Micro-Data to Conduct Horizontal Review of Government Innovation Programs Rashid Nikzad, Manager at the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, Government of Canada, and Lecturer at Carleton University

3. Horizontal Review of Government Programs: Concepts and Objectives Don Wilson, Executive Director at the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, Government of Canada