Innovation centers are not contributing to the economy: NIK

The activities of innovation centers have not contributed to better commercialization of research results or the implementation of innovations in the economy, the Supreme Audit Office stated in a report published on Tuesday.

According to NIK, only 14 percent of the entrepreneur-tenants of the surveyed innovation centers filed applications with the Patent Office in 2013-205. It points out that in recent years the infrastructure in innovation centers has not been adequately utilized. “It is worrying that most of the centers are in a difficult economic situation. As a result, they have trouble maintaining and renewing their infrastructure,” the audit agency warned.

NIK noted that innovation centers rely heavily on public funds, including EU money, but pay insufficient attention to increasing revenues from their activities. During the surveyed period, the majority of the centers had not improved their financial results. The agency believes the centers should be less dependent on public funding.

Poland continues to rank low in innovation. The Global Innovation Index 2015 puts Poland in second-last place among EU countries, ahead only of Romania.