Skip to main content

Kyrgyzstan requests UNECE assistance to steer innovation policies towards the achievement of sustainable development

The Government of Kyrgyzstan has stressed the necessity to enhance its national innovation system as one of the priorities of its National Sustainable Development Strategy for the period 2013-2017. The strategy has highlighted the need to strengthen linkages between, on the one hand, the transformation of the national scientific and research capacity of the national economy; and the achievement of sustainable development outcomes, on the other. However, in order to fully achieve sustainable outcomes, it will also be necessary to encourage rapid and broad-based adoption and diffusion of innovations in fields critical for sustainable development, such as energy efficiency in buildings and transport, renewable energy and sustainable cities, among others.


In order to better align its innovation policies with the achievement of sustainable development goals in line with the UN Agenda 2030, the Government of Kyrgyzstan has requested UNECE assistance to undertake an Innovation for Sustainable Development Review. The request was made by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan. A preliminary mission in Bishkek was undertaken on 12-16 December 2016 to discuss the contents and structure of the project.  The State Service of Intellectual Property and Innovation under the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic (Kyrgyz-patent) has been designated as the implementing agency.  A fact finding mission by a team of experts will follow in the Spring of 2017 in order to gather relevant information. The preliminary findings and recommendations of the review will be available by June 2017.


The Review will analyse current strategies, policies and programmes related to the Kyrgyz national innovation system and provide relevant policy recommendations on crucial subjects. These include such topics as the role of innovation in the country’s sustainable development strategy; recent economic and innovation performance; knowledge generation, industry-science linkages and commercialization; financing innovative entrepreneurs; international cooperation on innovation activities; and the role of eco-innovations and social innovations as a pillar of sustainable development.


The review will assess existing Government programmes in each of these domains, including projects aimed at fostering creative industries, increasing public awareness about the role and importance of intellectual property, and a number of measures to encourage the commercialisation of scientific research products and the import of advanced international technology, among others.


National Innovation for Sustainable Development Reviews (formerly Innovation Performance Reviews) are in-depth national studies of a country’s innovation infrastructure. Reviews assess a country’s innovation ecosystem, discuss policy options and provide recommendations to foster innovation for sustainable development in the national economy. The Reviews are often followed by capacity building activities to assist in the implementation of policy recommendations. The programme builds on earlier Innovation Performance Reviews which were undertaken in Belarus, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Armenia and Tajikistan.

If you wish to subscribe to the UNECE Weekly newsletter, please send an email to:  [email protected]