Bulgaria Last in EU by Innovation Activity in 2008 – 2010

Only 27.1% of Bulgarian enterprises introduced innovations in the period 2008 – 2010, compared to a rate of 53% in the EU27, according to data of Eurostat.

The information comes from the Community Innovation Survey 2010 covering the EU27 Member States, Iceland, Norway, Croatia, Serbia, and Turkey.

The survey includes enterprises with at least 10 employees in the following sectors of industry and services: Mining and quarrying; Manufacturing; Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply; Water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities; Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles; Transportation and storage; Publishing activities; Telecommunications; Computer programming, consultancy and related activities; Information service activities; Financial and insurance activities; Architectural and engineering activities, technical testing and analysis.

Innovation activity in this survey focuses on product and process innovation as well as organizational and marketing innovation.

According to the survey, the highest proportions of enterprises with innovation activity in the EU were recorded in Germany (79% of enterprises), Luxembourg (68%), Belgium (61%), Portugal, Sweden and Ireland (all 60%), and the lowest in Bulgaria (27%), Poland (28%), Latvia (30%), Romania and Hungary (both 31%).

Among enterprises with product and process innovation activities in the EU27, 27% co-operated with other enterprises, universities or public research institutes in 2008-2010, while the remaining 73% innovated using only internal resources.

The highest proportions of innovation co-operation were found in Cyprus (62% of all product and process innovative enterprises), Austria (51%), Slovenia (45%), Lithuania and Hungary (both 43%), and the lowest in Italy (12%), Malta (18%), Portugal (20%), Spain and Bulgaria (both 22%).

In the EU27, 11% of innovative enterprises had innovation co-operation with a partner in another EU27 Member State, EFTA, acceding or candidate country, 3% with a partner in the United States and 2% with a partner in India or China.

Innovation co-operation with a European partner was highest in Cyprus (38% of all product and process innovative enterprises), Slovenia (35%), Austria, Estonia and Slovakia (all 30%), Finland (28%) and Luxembourg (27%), and lowest in Italy (4%), Spain (5%), Germany (8%) and Portugal (9%).

Finland (12%), Sweden (11%) and Slovenia (8%) had the largest shares of innovation co-operation with partners in the United States, and Finland (9%), Sweden (7%), Luxembourg and Slovenia (both 6%) with partners in India or China.