PH climbs three notches in Global Innovation Index

The Philippines climbed three spots in a global ranking of world economies according to innovation capabilities, based on this year’s Global Innovation Index released by the World Intellectual Property organization (WIPO).

The country placed 50th out of 139 economies this year, after ranking 53rd out of 133 economies in 2024. This is better than the government target ranking of 52nd this year under the Philippine Development Plan (PDP).

The country was ranked 59th in terms of innovation inputs, an improvement from 67th last year. It was ranked 49th in terms of innovation output, also higher than 53rd in 2024.

“Surpassing our 2025 target is the result of sustained reforms, targeted investments, and strong collaboration across sectors and key players in the country’s innovation ecosystem,” Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DepDev) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said in a separate statement.

“We remain committed to scaling our innovation capacity, bridging capital gaps in research and digital infrastructure, and ensuring that innovation drives inclusive and sustainable development,” he added.

Its best-ranked innovation strengths were high-tech exports percentage to total trade, high-tech imports percentage to total trade, and utility models by origin.

These were followed by creative goods exports, high-tech manufacturing, information and communications technology (ICT) services exports, university-industry research and development collaboration, state of cluster development, and domestic market scale.

The country’s worst rankings were in scientific and technical articles, the pupil-teacher ratio, top-level domains, cultural and creative services exports, and electricity output, among others.

The latest report indicates that the Philippines ranks third among the 37 lower middle-income group economies and 11th among the 17 economies in Southeast Asia, East Asia, and Oceania. —VAL, GMA Integrated News