scholarly journals Synergy within the West African Triple Helix innovation systems as measured with game theory

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 96-114
Author(s):  
Eustache Mêgnigbêto

Purpose University, industry and government relationships, known under the Triple Helix, have been studied under various aspects. The West African region and countries have been analysed with mutual information and transmission power, two information theory-based indicators. The purpose of this paper is to portray the landscape of West African Triple Helix innovation systems using three main game theory indicators (core, Shapley value and nucleolus) with the objective to measure the synergy within the selected innovation systems. Design/methodology/approach The collaboration between university, industry and government is modelled as a three-person coalitional game. Bibliographical data of selected countries were collected from Web of Science and organised according to collaboration patterns between the three actors. The characteristic functions of the games were computed, the cores plotted, the Shapley values and the nucleoli computed. Findings Either university or government has more power to create and lead to synergy; government shows solidarity towards university and industry in most of countries; and they are joined in their efforts by industry in two countries. The core exists in all the countries meaning that all the selected innovation systems present synergy; however, the extent is limited and varies over countries. Research limitations/implications Innovation includes all research products; however, this study focuses on publications only. Originality/value Synergy within a Triple Helix innovation system is studied up to now with information theory indicators. The paper portrays the landscape of West African Triple Helix innovation systems using three main game theory indicators: the core, the Shapley value and the nucleolus and gives a new way to study university, industry and government relationships.

2016 ◽  
Vol 44 ◽  
pp. 27-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tom C. McCaskie

Abstract:This paper deals with aspects of the still relatively neglected history of African medicinal plants. The core of the paper is a discussion in tabular form of the plants collected in the West African forest kingdom of Asante in 1817 by Henry Tedlie, a member of the well known English mission led by Thomas Bowdich. More generally, the paper considers episodes in the accumulation of Akan, Asante, and African plant specimens by Europeans, and the eventual classification of these in a western authorized botanical taxonomy that is now in worldwide use. The gathering of potentially medicinal plants is a little studied facet of European global expansion, from exploration to colonialism and beyond, and of the sovereign scientific orthodoxy that became established alongside it. The paper frames and discusses relevant details of this process over thelongue durée, from pre-Linnaean taxonomies to current controversies over bioprospecting.


2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 698-716 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabete Sá ◽  
Beatriz Casais ◽  
Joaquim Silva

PurposeBy using the Triple Helix model, the purpose of this paper is to uncover the perceptions of nascent entrepreneurs about a university–industry–government collaboration program, in particular about the role of each agent to foster rural entrepreneurship; the value and effect of this collaboration; and their own contributions to local development.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative case study method is adopted, involving semi-structured interviews with entrepreneurs and secondary data. The text is analyzed using qualitative content analysis.FindingsThe interaction of the Triple Helix partners is perceived as valuable both at the personal and the business levels. One of the most salient results is the value ascribed to the knowledge-rich environment created. Entrepreneurs are aware of their contribution to local development, identifying economic, social and cultural effects.Practical implicationsThe research strengthens the importance of the joint efforts of the Triple Helix partners by uncovering a number of outputs from their collaboration, which affect both the entrepreneurs and local development through entrepreneurship.Originality/valuePrevious studies assume that the Triple Helix fosters technological innovation that favors regional development, mainly by adopting a macro-level perspective. This study makes a contribution by furthering the knowledge on the micro-level dynamics of the Triple Helix, through the view of low tech, rural entrepreneurs, considering their context.


2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 246-259 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haven Allahar ◽  
Ron Sookram

This study examines the progress of the two major universities in the Caribbean country of Trinidad and Tobago towards the transition to entrepreneurial universities through incorporating the core components of designing and delivering entrepreneurship education programmes, establishing effective university-led business incubators and the building of university–industry–government collaboration. The theoretical construct of the Triple Helix interrelationships and the development stages framework provide the basis for analysing the progress of the universities towards achieving their development mission. The general conclusion is that progress towards building an effective university-centred entrepreneurial ecosystem has been relatively slow and needs to be accelerated through more proactive leadership and greater involvement of internal and external stakeholders.


Subject The political outlook in Togo. Significance On April 28, the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) announced that President Faure Gnassingbe had won re-election in the presidential ballot held on April 25, with 58.75% of the vote. His controversial third term will extend his family's rule to nearly 50 years. Opposition candidate Jean-Pierre Fabre secured 34.95% of the vote. His Combat for Political Change (CAP) alliance rejects the result. Impacts Western donors' effectiveness at pushing for democratic norms will wane as Togo, like other African states, accesses new debt sources. Togo's membership of the West African CFA franc zone, which is backed by the French treasury, will ensure currency stability. A Burkina Faso-style ouster of Gnassingbe is unlikely, for now -- he enjoys the support of the military who first installed him. Despite being spared the Ebola crisis, standards of public health will remain poor, with child mortality rates far above global averages.


Subject Prospects for the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) Significance Economic growth in WAEMU reached 6.1% in 2016, outperforming peer regional blocs including its closest rival, the East Africa Community (EAC), which (excluding South Sudan) grew by 5.8%. However, business environment reforms lag those of the rest of sub-Saharan Africa, which could dampen longer-term growth. Impacts Despite recent progress, growth rates need to increase above 7% for at least 20 years for the zone to reach middle-income status. The structural depreciation of Nigeria's naira could erode regional integration as importing within the zone becomes more expensive. Security fears in Ivory Coast could shift investors' focus to Senegal -- despite Yamoussoukro's recent eurobond success.


Subject West African franc. Significance Despite apparent growing domestic opposition to the CFA franc in recent years, regional government efforts to defend its integrity have increased, particularly among the Central African Economic and Monetary Community countries (CEMAC). On the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) side, an uptick in the volume and issuers of Eurobonds has increased dependence on the key feature of the CFA franc -- its unlimited convertibility to euros guaranteed by the French Treasury. Impacts Complacency among WAEMU countries could replace macroeconomic instability in CEMAC as the main threat to the CFA franc. As the sole CEMAC country without an IMF package, Equatorial Guinea will come under growing pressure to finalise negotiations for one soon. Greater progress towards macroeconomic convergence in the CFA zone will shield its members from the proposed ECOWAS ‘Eco’ zone.


Subject West African currency plans. Significance The new ‘Eco’ currency backed by the West African and Economic Monetary Union (WAEMU) and France is meant to be put into circulation in July. However, the COVID-19 pandemic and other political issues have compounded existing problems in meeting the deadline. At a recent extraordinary summit of ECOWAS leaders, the Eco issue was notably absent from the agenda. Meanwhile, divisions and confusion persist over proposed regional currency plans, with accusations from several mainly English-speaking states that an earlier ECOWAS-backed ‘Eco’ single currency has been hijacked. Impacts In the event the WAEMU Eco is introduced, France’s guarantee will mitigate the risk of capital flight and abrupt currency depreciation. Nigeria will likely oppose WAMZ members joining the WAEMU Eco until such point as there is no French involvement. ECOWAS’s short-term focus will be on the African Union’s debt cancellation and relief initiatives.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Suzana Xavier Ribeiro ◽  
Marcelo Seido Nagano

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate how knowledge management and university-industry-government collaboration – including the triple helix – relate with each other in influencing organizations’ performance. In the competitive environment nowadays, an organization’s ability to create and use knowledge becomes ever more essential in the search for sustainable competitive advantage, even leading to the search for new forms of inter-organizational arrangements. Design/methodology/approach The representatives of such collaborations selected for this study are the National Institutes of Science and Technology. The categorical content analysis technique was used for the qualitative analysis of the data. Findings The principal contribution was the proposal of an analytical model relating the knowledge management and triple helix theories and the proposed dimensions (namely, structural, relational, cognitive and the context), considering the peculiarities of the Brazilian context. The findings show that the organizational structure (structural) influences not only the relationship among members (relational) but also the flow of knowledge (cognitive), as well as how relational elements (collaborative culture, trust and leadership) facilitate knowledge sharing. Moreover, the context affects these three other dimensions. The main obstacles identified were cultural differences, bureaucracy and the socio-economic reality, while facilitators were the existence of technology parks and incubators, government incentives and geographical proximity between universities and industry. Originality/value This topic was chosen as there are few empirical studies that comprehensively relate the topics of knowledge management and university-industry-government cooperation focusing on the Brazilian context.


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