South Africa was ranked 29th out of 40 countries in the Global Cleantech Innovation Index 2014.
This report investigates the countries where entrepreneurial clean technology companies are most likely to emerge over the next 10 years. 40 countries were evaluated on 15 indicators related to the creation, commercialisation and growth of cleantech start-ups. Israel topped the 2014 index, with its relative outperformance on the measure of start-up companies per capita being a key reason. Finland came second and the USA third, while Russia took last place. South Africa is the only country on the continent to make the list. South Africa scored below average on all factors. According to the report, the country lacks general innovation and early-stage entrepreneurial activity, resulting in a weak general innovation driver score. South Africa does slightly better in cleantech-specific drivers due to supportive government policies, but lacks public R&D budget and access to private finance. South Africa scored very low on all indicators of emerging cleantech innovation and achieved an average score in commercialised cleantech, thanks to good cleantech revenues but falls behind in terms of late-stage investments in publicly traded cleantech companies. The report points out that new feed-in tariff policies have only been implemented in some parts of the world, namely Africa and the Middle East. South Africa in particular, has witnessed the launch of ambitious new policy frameworks. South Africa’s scores:2014 Score…………………………………………………………………. 1.37
Inputs to Innovation…………………………………………………….. 1.62 Outputs of Innovation………………………………………………….. 1.11 General Innovation Drivers…………………………………………… 1.43 Cleantech-Specific Innovation Drivers…………………………….. 1.82 Evidence of Emerging Cleantech Innovation……………………. 0.26 Evidence of Commercialised Cleantech Innovation…………… 1.93 Read the full report.
