Abstract:
This study investigates the levels and determinants of regional innovation catch-up,
frontier shift, and productivity growth of African national innovation systems from
2010 to 2018. The study relied on the World Development Indicators data for 28
African countries. Non-radial non-oriented Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and
bootstrapped truncated regression were the central estimation methodologies. The
results revealed that 18% of Africa’s national innovation systems had experienced
progress in the catch-up and frontier shift indexes. Further results showed that 21%
had experienced total factor productivity growth. Nigeria and South Africa were on
the region’s efcient frontier and had achieved the most technological advancement.
In addition, Ghana and Senegal had the most productive national innovation sys tems. The results suggested that national innovation systems in Africa had experi enced marginal progress. Further results indicate that the population growth rate and
GDP per capita are the critical determinants of African national innovation systems,
efciency, technical efciency, and productivity performance. Consequently, the
implications of the results to policy are twofold. First, African countries should use
benchmarking practices with the region’s best-performing national innovation sys tems. Lastly, African countries have the potential to grow their economies through
regional collaborative Science, Technology, and Innovation practices.
