China is set to become the world’s powerhouse of innovation over the next decade, eclipsing the United States and Japan, according to an international survey released by AstraZeneca today.
The world’s most populous nation and second largest economy will also be its most inventive by 2020, followed by India.
The survey of 6,000 respondents across six countries portrays a strong sense of optimism amongst people living in the developing nations of China and India about the ability of their nations to prosper through innovation – in stark contrast to the views of those in developed Western economies.
when asked which country will be the most innovative a decade from now, China, which is also forecast to overtake the US as the world’s biggest economy by 2020, comes top with 27 per cent, followed by India on 17 per cent and the US with 14 per cent. Japan is in fourth place with 12 per cent, while just two per cent of respondents think Britain will rank as the world’s most innovative nation in a decade’s time.
From the survey:Indian citizens consider the US to be the most innovative country in the world (29 per cent) but 16 per cent think their own country can already make that claim and 56 per cent believe it will be the case by 2020. Three in ten Indians think India provides the most supportive environment for innovation while IT & telecoms (66 per cent) and media (45 per cent) are viewed as the most innovative industries. The computer is voted the greatest innovation of the last 100 years and instant global communication (42 per cent) is seen as the greatest achievement of the last century, compared with 16 per cent who nominate the eradication of serious diseases
