The King of Spain chaired last 19th May the annual meeting 2008 of the patrons board of the Cotec foundation for Technological Innovation. Cotec Spain and Cotec Europe (alliance between Cotec Spain, Cotec Italy and Cotec Portugal) have been established by some companies, aiming to promoting innovation, and with it, both the development and competitiveness. These initiatives are born thanks to the personal support of Don Juan Carlos de Borbón. Given the success achieved by Cotec The King of Spain encouraged the patrons to “reorient the project” … “looking for new fields of activity “.
“…Starting with the new orientation of a project, which has been successful for years, is a task that needs for prudence and courage in equal proportion”. Prudence, because it would be not desirable that a change could leave the Spanish innovation system without an orientation that has always proved right and appropriate.”… “Courage, because it would be not too innovative keeping on doing the same way. A way of doing things that because of its success becomes unnecessary”.
“Looking for new fields of activity is a must, when the old fields have already given their fruits. The thing consist of identifying other fields, in which our singularity can make us become more useful and efficient. This objective is the one that we have been pointing at all this year..”, this concluded HM King Juan Carlos at the annual meeting of the patrons board of Cotec Spain.
The first contacts made by Cotec Europe with the European Commission, are one of the major achievements of this institution along 2008.
Innovation policies adapted to the needs of southern Europe
Established 4 years ago, Cotec Europe looks at promoting , among other objectives, the efficiency of the innovation policies of the EU. The European Cotec intends that the aforementioned policies translate the specific needs of the members of this foundation. Needs, which differ a lot from those of the countries in central and northern
Europe,those that have marked the EEC and UE legislative initiatives in the field of innovation since the beginning. Precisely with this aim, the presidents of Cotec Spain, Cotec Portugal and Cotec Italy, met with the President of the European Commission in October 2007 in Lisbon, where they all agreed organizing periodical meetings.
In the words of Federico Baeza (Vice Director General of Cotec Spain for technical matters and member of the board of patrons): “it is vox populi, that Europe has missed the train or the pace a bit, compared to other regions in the world like the USA or Asia, mainly Japan. Europe has lost a little the pace in making profit from the knowledge derived from of the research programmes. We need to improve, to be more efficient in this field and Cotec believes that from the European Commission can be done much to favour this efficiency improvement”.
Europe goes down, while Japan and China are on the rise
Taking into account the data published by Eurostat, the share held by high technollogy products in total exports outside de European Union, has significantly dropped down in 2007 with regard to 2006. For the Europe of the 27 the fall has been of 6.02 points (from the 16.65% in 2006 to the 10.63% in 2007). The Europe of the 25 members registered the same reduction, but not from the same percentages (a 16.54% in 2006 and a 10.52% in 2007). The Eurostat indicator considers the following products: aerospace, computers, office machinery, electronics, instruments, pharmaceuticals, electrical machinery and armament.
The Survey of Research and Development, published by the Statistics Bureau of the Japanese government in 2007, indicates that the domestic companies’ receipts for technology exports were Yen 2,378 Bn, a 17.3% more than the previous year. The edition 2006 told about Yen 2,028 Bn with an increase of a 14.6%. The payments made by the Japanese companies for technology imports were Yen 705 Bn, according to the report 2007, and Yen 704, according to the edition of 2006.
Taking into account the figures published by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, this country maintained its exports at around a 2%, with a slight decline (the 2% refers to the proportion of the high technology exports in the total exports, both in 2006 and last year). The exports of this kind of products grew by a 30% ($ 171,250,950,000) in 2006 and a 24.8% ($ 222,557,920,000) in 2007.
Supporting innovation through the CIP
“In fact”, Federio Baeza continued explaining to Eastwind, “the European Commission is convinced of it and works in this line. We just want contributing with our litte sand grain if we are allowed”… the seventh framework programme 2007-2013 has just started” … “it accounts with almost €52.000 million. The programme promotes the R+D whether public, private or developed thanks to public-private cooperation.
“But in Europe we need going a step further. I mean there’s a lack relating to the translation of this R+D effort into wealth generation. We need transforming that R+D into innovation. This is already being done, but not with all the intensity that the European Union needs to avoid losing competitiveness in the world. The Programme of Competitiveness and Innovation (CIP), created in 2007, includes several actions which already existed. It should become as important as the R+D Programme. That’s what Cotec considers important for the future of innovation in Europe”.
Quoting again the Eurostat data, Spain experienced a decrease, of the sare of technology exports in the total domestic exports outside the EU, of 1.85 percentage points (from a 4.92% in 2006 to a 3.07% in 2007).
The figure is rather less alarming than the registered by other member countries, as Luxembourg or Germany. The first one exported 24.71 percentage points less, experiencing a drop from a 40.66% in 2006 to a 26.95% in 2007.
The second, 5.61 less (from the 14.6% of 2006 to a 8.45% in 2007). Italy and Portugal, the other two Cotec Europe partners, also beared falls.
In the case of Italy 2.34 points (from a 6.35% in 2006 to a 4.01% in 2007). The drop was stronger for Portugal, 5.68 points (from the 6.99% in 2006 to 1.31% in 2007).
The IV meeting of Cotec Europe will be held on next 27th June in Naples, under the chair of the State heads of Spain, Portugal and Italy.
Purchase of innovative technologies by the State, quite an achievement
Another key work by Cotec during 2007 has been the publication of the White Paper on Public Purchase of Innovative Technology. “The law in our country did not allow the acquisition of innovative technology by the Administration until October last year, when it entered into force the new Law on Contracts for the Public Sector (Law 30/2007)”, Federico Baeza underscored.
The objective of this kind of purchase is, according to the Art. 11th of the mentioned law: “the manufacture of services that incorporate some technology specifically developed with the purpose of adopting most advanced and economically more advantageous solutions than the existing in the market”.
The Vice Director General of Cotec explains that “this white paper just aims to describe the purchase of innovative technology process,…, in case that it may be helpfull for the State purchaser, at the time of acquiring this kind of developments, always, of course, for the benefit and improvement of citizens. But the book also points at companies, in the case of enterprises that could sell this kind of developments to the Administration. Hence, in the book it is summarized how is the work they must carry out for the Administration. To the extent that the book may be usefull for private companies and the Administration, perhaps, indirectly, it may result in some increased purchases of innovative technology “.
Both the law and the book are important, as the Administration can become an important engine for innovation in Spain through this contracts.
Three new patrons
Esteve, La Seda de Barcelona and Vicinay Cadenas have joined Cotec’s board of patrons as new members this year. The patrons board of Cotec accounts at present with around 90 corporate and individual members, like Álvaro de Orléans-Borbón or Adrián Piera, among others. As well as non State companies, they are also members of Cotec Spain representatives from each Autonomous Community, through private or semi-private institutions devoted to the regional development and the support of enterpreneurship. The IMPIVA from Valencia is a good example.
José Ángel Sánchez Asiaín Francés(Everis), José María Loizaga (MERCAPITAL) and Francisco Vallejo (Assessorship for Innovation Science and Enterprise of the Autonomous Community of Andalucía), are all of them Vice Presidents of Cotec and Juan Mulet Meliá, the Director of the foundation.
Cotec Italy accounts with about 25 patrons. Around 102 patrons (all together a 18% of the domestic GDP of this country) are members of Cotec Portugal, which celebrated its General Assembly last 16th May. The General Assembly of Cotec Spain will be held on next 17th July.
Image over the headline.- HM King Juan Carlos of Spain welcomes Fernando Francés (Everis) to the annual meeting 2008 of the Cotec board of patrons. © Eastwind
