Estado e Innovación en la Periferia: ¿por qué y cómo (re)pensar el rol del Estado y las Políticas de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación en América Latina?

Abstract

El trabajo pretende realizar un aporte teórico y metodológico al estudio de las políticas estatales de ciencia, tecnología e innovación (PCTI). Se presentan argumentos sobre la necesidad de reintroducir al Estado como problema de estudio, evaluando las capacidades/cualidades estatales que deben estar presentes para tener una intervención virtuosa en la arena de CTI. De esta manera, se introduce la discusión de las capacidades/cualidades que deben estar presentes en las oficinas estatales que tienen a su cargo el diseño y gestion de las PCTI, para lograr una intervención virtuosa en el SSP capáz de revertir tendencias y prácticas no conducentes a la innovación o que desalienten las actividades de I+D. Al final, en un cuarta parte presentamos unas breves conclusiones.

This paper seeks to make a theoretical and methodological contribution to the study of State and its policies on science, technology and innovation (PSTI) in Latin America. We argue about the need of reintroducing the State as a problem of study and of evaluating those capabilities/qualities that must be present in the state for a virtuous action in the arena of PCTI. To account for these arguments, the papers is divided in three sections. The first one analyses the role assigned to the State in the design and management of PSTI, identifying some contributions from Latin American Thought in Science, Technology and Society (LTSTS) as well as the National Innovation System (NIS) approach. We highlight some particularities of LTSTS and its subsequent displacement for NIS. The second section introduces and presents the Social System of production (SSP) approach, arguing that this is a theoretical framework broader than NIS, which allows to reintroduce the role of the State in the current historical context from a more holistic perspective. Here we identify some relevant analytical dimensions to account for those particularities of the SSP in Latin American countries that may influence/enhance the development processes, claiming that even though the approach has not the State as a center of analysis, it is possible to incorporate it in order to know the SSP´s performance in peripherals countries. Thus, in a third section we introduce the discussion about those capabilities that are required to the State offices in charge for the design and management of PCTI, to achieve a virtuous intervention in the SSP able to reverse trends or practices that are not conductive to innovation or discourage the R&D activities. Finally, in the fourth section we present some brief conclusions.