TRANSFORMATION OF ECONOMIC PROCESSES ON THE BASIS OF DIGITALISATION

The main task of our study is to justify the primary directions of transformation of economic processes on the basis of digitalisation. Nowadays, the digitalisation of the economy in the global economic environment is considered a priority model of global innovation development. Institutional factors are particularly important in the conditions of transformation of economic processes on the basis of digitalisation. They form the fundamental parameters of the long-term functioning of economic systems. It is determined that the role of institutional factors in ensuring economic development is multifaceted as they affect its duration and quality. These factors can be divided into formal and informal. We have systematised the influence of formal and informal institutional factors on the transformation of economic processes. It is found that the inability of the Ukrainian institutional system to ensure effective economic development demonstrates the institutional traps. Negative manifestations of this system hinder the positive directions for the transformation of economic processes, modernisation of the economy, and competitiveness. It is justified that the transformation of management economic processes should be based on the implementation of the proposed system of principles, the use of which will identify and solve a set of problems of social development of the region, which meets the challenges of our time. To create an effective system of interaction between corporate and regional participants, it is necessary to link their goals, to harmonise them with the goals of socio-economic development of the region. This is where digitalisation can help. It is determined that in modern conditions, the problems of the digital sector affect the competitiveness of the economy, as the lag in obtaining and processing relevant data, the inability to use digital resources are accompanied by the loss of former market positions. From the standpoint of the theory of asymmetry of international trade, the digital dependence of one country on another leads to an increase in the gap in economic development between these countries. The rapid development of information and computer technologies and the active Internet penetration into all spheres of human life have led to the transformation of economic processes according to the level of digitalisation. The development and dissemination of key technologies underlying the digital economy have a decisive impact on the transformation of globalisation: they directly affect the production of goods and services, human resources, investment in human and physical capital, foreign direct investment, international technology transfer, industrial innovation. In essence, all this directly affects the efficiency of production, performance, competitiveness, and economic growth – from individual market participants to countries, regions, and the world economy as a whole.

Technological structure network analysis to explore the hotspots of academic patents in international technology transfer

International technology transfer is a determinant of a country’s national revenue and economic growth. Technology exported through international technology transfer can be the factor that gives a country a competitive edge. Therefore, investigation of international technology transfer has become essential. With the role of universities in innovation changing, academic patents have increased significantly over the past 10 years. Thus, this study used academic patents involved in international technology transfer as a basis for analysis and attempted to identify technological hotspots through a technological structure network analysis. The results indicated that key technologies in academic patent–based international technology transfer networks were mainly concentrated on measurement, nanotechnology, medical technology, biotechnology, and electric digital data processing. An academic patent technological hotspot network model was established to serve as a reference for academic technology transfers as well as for governments in their promotion of emerging technologies.

Transfer of technology: a North-South debate?

The transfer of technology has been mainly subject to the North-South dichotomy where the North is regarded as the principal source of technical knowledge to the South. Nevertheless, as new economic powers emerge in the South, the scene of international technology transfer is changing rapidly. Many South-South endeavors on transfer of technology are on the rise. Thus, a new model of transfer of technology is gaining momentum, in particular the South-South Model of transfer of technology. This paper aims to look at this issue by attempting to answer the following questions: How did South-South cooperation in the field of transfer of technology evolve? How did the rise of the South affect the North-South conflict in the context of transfer of technology? What is the impact of the South-South cooperation in the field of technology transfer on the North?

Paving the path: drivers of standardization participation at ISO

Several studies investigating the trade effects of standardization have found a positive impact of the number of international standards in a country on its trade volumes. While international standards have so far been considered as exogenous, we investigate what drives countries to take over leading roles, i.e. secretariats, in committees of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) using a panel dataset on the ISO participation of 12 countries. Looking at this phenomenon through the perspective of agenda setting in international institutions we expect ISO participation to be a desirable tool for shaping technological trajectories and substantiating global influence via international technology transfer. We find that, while for most countries no systematic pattern can be observed, both China and the US show a close correlation between R&D and standardization work at ISO. For China, we attribute this finding to having a strategic approach toward standardization participation, for the US to the distinct features of the decentralized US standardization system. Finally, we derive implications of findings for both research and practice.

Effect of International Technology Transfer on the Technical Efficiency of High-Tech Manufacturing in China: A RAGA-PP-SFA Analysis

The sustainable development of China’s high-tech manufacturing (HTM) sector is restricted by dependence on technology introduction and foreign direct investment (FDI), low input-output efficiency, and environmental pollution. This study aimed to examine the roles of technology introduction and FDI in improving the technical efficiency of Chinese HTM from an environmental perspective. By integrating stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) and projection pursuit (PP) based on the real-coded accelerated genetic algorithm (RAGA), this study constructed a RAGA-PP-SFA model that considers undesirable outputs. This model includes various outputs, including environmental pollution, in the production function to improve estimation accuracy. Moreover, to verify the robustness of the estimation results, the results were provided when environmental pollutants were taken as input factors. The results showed that technology introduction could significantly promote HTM’s technical efficiency, while FDI had no significant positive effect. By comparing the estimated results with those that did not consider environmental pollution, this study not only reveals different roles of technology introduction and FDI in improving HTM’s technical efficiency but also confirms that ignoring environmental pollution will overestimate their roles (especially the role of FDI) in such improvement.

Trade agreements and international technology transfer

This is the first paper that analyzes for a global sample of countries how trade agreements that include technology-related provisions impact exports of goods, and how this impact differs depending on the technology content of the goods. It includes estimations of a structural gravity model for a panel of 176 countries over the period 1995–2015. The model differentiates between provisions relating technology transfer, technical cooperation, research and development, and patents and intellectual property rights. It also estimates the differences in these effects depending on whether the trade flow in question is between countries with similar or different levels of development. The main results indicate that regional trade agreements (RTAs) that contain technology provisions generate a significantly higher volume of trade than RTAs that do not, after controlling for the depth of the RTAs. For countries that ratify RTAs that include such provisions, it is exports of technology-intensive goods that increase the most. Trade agreements including such provisions have a heterogeneous effect that varies by income level of the trading partners and depends on the extent to which the RTA incorporates other provisions.

A review of prospective pathways and impacts of COVID-19 on the accessibility, safety, quality, and affordability of essential medicines and vaccines for universal health coverage in Africa

Background The ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has the potential to reverse progress towards global targets. This study examines the risks that the COVID-19 pandemic poses to equitable access to essential medicines and vaccines (EMV) for universal health coverage in Africa. Methods We searched medical databases and grey literature up to 2 October 2020 for studies reporting data on prospective pathways and innovative strategies relevant for the assessment and management of the emerging risks in accessibility, safety, quality, and affordability of EMV in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. We used the resulting pool of evidence to support our analysis and to draw policy recommendations to mitigate the emerging risks and improve preparedness for future crises. Results Of the 310 records screened, 134 were included in the analysis. We found that the disruption of the international system affects more immediately the capability of low- and middle-income countries to acquire the basket of EMV. The COVID-19 pandemic may facilitate dishonesty and fraud, increasing the propensity of patients to take substandard and falsified drugs. Strategic regional cooperation in the form of joint tenders and contract awarding, joint price negotiation and supplier selection, as well as joint market research, monitoring, and evaluation could improve the supply, affordability, quality, and safety of EMV. Sustainable health financing along with international technology transfer and substantial investment in research and development are needed to minimize the vulnerability of African countries arising from their dependence on imported EMV. To ensure equitable access, community-based strategies such as mobile clinics as well as fees exemptions for vulnerable and under-served segments of society might need to be considered. Strategies such as task delegation and telephone triage could help reduce physician workload. This coupled with payments of risk allowance to frontline healthcare workers and health-literate healthcare organization might improve the appropriate use of EMV. Conclusions Innovative and sustainable strategies informed by comparative risk assessment are increasingly needed to ensure that local economic, social, demographic, and epidemiological risks and potentials are accounted for in the national COVID-19 responses.