Innovation and its real possibilities for the Cuban economy: the whole and the parts
It is beyond dispute that research and innovation are essential factors in the economic development process of any country. It is important that governments promote it, finance it and make it part of the national strategy. However, this cannot occur in a vacuum or simply as general national structures guided by government commissions, etc. It must be part of a process integrated into strengthening the business fabric, as part of what the enterprise needs to advance in an environment of competition, collaboration and incentives, as well as the general conditions and services necessary for investment. Without the reform of the business system, as part of the comprehensive transformation of the economy, fundamentally of the state enterprise (not so that it stops being public, but so that it stops being inefficient), the role of innovation in real productive processes will always be very limited. There is abundant proof of this fact. Various Cuban economists have systematically insisted on the need for a comprehensive reform of the economy as a sine qua non condition so that all other factors that drive the economy towards development can operate effectively. This is also the case with science-based innovation. Cuba has demonstrated its capacity for...