Transnational Corporations and Local Innovation: BRICS National Systems of Innovation

This series of books brings together results of an intensive research programme on aspects of the national systems of innovation (NSI) in the five BRICS countries ― Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. It provides a comprehensive and comparative examination of the challenges and opportunities faced by these dynamic and emerging economies. In discussing the impact of innovation with respect to economic, geopolitical, socio-cultural, institutional, and technological systems, it reveals the possibilities of new development paradigms for equitable and sustainable growth.

This volume explores the relationship between transnational corporations (TNCs) and NSI across BRICS economies. The essays highlight the role of foreign direct investment (FDI), the evolution of TNCs and examine local factors ― such as government policies, human resources, market structures, and technological capabilities ― that affect collaborative efforts with indigenous firms towards innovation and development. The authors approach the thesis of technological globalisation with some caution, refuting the idea that research and development (R&D) activities have been inexorably internationalised. Original and detailed data, together with expert analyses on wide-ranging issues, make this book an invaluable resource for researchers and scholars in economics, development studies and political science, in addition to policy makers and development practitioners interested in the BRICS countries.

José E. Cassiolato is Professor of Innovation Studies and Coordinator of Research Network on Local Productive and Innovation Systems (RedeSist) at the Institute of Economics, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Brazil.

Graziela Zucoloto is Researcher at the Institute for Applied Economic Research (IPEA), Brazil.

Dinesh Abrol is Chief Scientist at the National Institute of Science, Technology and Development Studies (NISTADS) and co-convenor of the National Working Group on Patent Laws, India.

Liu Xielin is Professor and Associate Dean of the School of Management, and Director of Research Center of Management of Innovation and Strategy, Graduate University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.