The social context of innovation

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The social context of innovation

• 1 - Introduction
• Innovation done usually to answer the needs of
  society. When something is invented enough
  information about it should be spread out.

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• In Syria, agriculture is a very important sector
  as it is the first sector in the contribution to
  the GDP (i.e. 30).
• The proportion of employment in agriculture
  sector fluctuates as it was 51 in 1970, became
  26 in 1981, and improved again to 36 in 1994.
  This increase was due to improving the
  infrastructure in the rural area as net of
  transportation roads were constructing, net of
  electricity, improving the living conditions,
  encouraging immigrating back to the rural areas.
  During the last three years it became about 30.

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• Prospects and challenges for the future of the
  rural population
• Fragmentation, seasonal work, growth rate of
  population, the droughts during the 1998-2000,
  the limitation of work opportunities, introducing
  new technologies, and low wages.
• Other factors Degradation of soil, pollution and
  scarcity of water resources, poor quality of
  water, improper ways of discarding solid wastes,
  un-organized growth of building areas on the
  account of agricultural lands.

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• Here, concentration on the agricultural sector
  will be presented concerning innovation as it
  will face new challenges it in the near future
  due to the increase in population, and new urban
  nutrition needs which require improving quality
  and increasing quantities in a situation whereas
  the level of water for irrigation decreasing and
  the soil quality and ranges degraded.

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2- Why innovators invent something?What should
they do?

• Innovations usually done to answer a question or
  a need by others. Others invent something due to
  wide insights that they have thinking to smooth
  the progress of doing something, or might find
  something accidentally.
• However, a problem should be identified before
  inventing a solution for it (i.e. insects or
  diseases require pest resistant varieties).

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Invention might have different risks1- Risk to
consumers

• The risk of residues on human being from some
  invented materials i.e. pesticides. Therefore,
  innovators should be responsible for unlikable
  outcomes that might appear from their
  innovations.

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What is being done to protect consumers?

• In Syria, the government throughout different
  ministries plays an important role to protect
  consumers as they try to put rules against
  uncertain innovations that might affect human
  health i.e. (forbidding the use hormones in fruit
  setting). At the same time it promotes using new
  technologies to improve the agricultural sector
  e.g. mechanical seeding i.e. 15652 machines
  (2000).

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2- Risk to nature

• some products might have side-effects to nature
  and sustainability i.e. chemicals (soil
  disinfections, GMOs, etc.). Innovators should
  take into consideration sustainability of the
  nature.
• When a new thing is invented by someone, risk
  analysis to side effects must be studied before
  releasing it. After that, the feasibility of the
  creation should be evaluated. Subsequently,
  rewards as outcomes become visible for inventors
  and stakeholders.

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3- Risk to innovators

• Innovators who work hardly not always find
  solution to problems facing the society and as a
  result they lose a lot of efforts and money
  during their work. At the national level,
  financial support for research (invention) should
  come from those who try to get solutions to their
  problems. Therefore, in agriculture, marketing
  companies, farmers, and the state should
  participate in the budget of research to help
  supporting the innovators and solving the located
  problems faster and to have stronger relations
  with scientists.

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What can be done to avoid the risk of innovation?

• A better way to improve innovation is introducing
  links between the two sectors (public-private
  partnership) and the farmers so that they can
  build a better research system. Each part can
  also participate, in this way, in a portion of
  the budget allocated for the research. Involving
  private sector in a sustainable innovation way
  will help reaching the targets in a smooth way.

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In general people are divided to four groups 1-
First group

• Pioneers, those who like to risk applying new
  things. Since risking depends on financial
  capability of individuals in the private sector,
  this sector proved to be very small as they are
  big growers, or big investors or commercial
  companies, and state farms.

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2- Second group

• Those who like to wait, to see and to touch the
  results from the first group. This group usually
  are educated and have financial capability. As
  examples small agricultural companies,
  private-state farms, and farmers of financial
  capability. Those, could try new technologies,
  i.e. new machineries, new methods of production
  for certain crops, etc. State farms has
  introduced greenhouses, and the area of
  greenhouses expanded and became 3100 ha (2002)
  whereas no state farm still working on protected
  crops (fig.1).

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3- Third group

• Those who wait the majority applying new-tech or
  they might be hesitating concerning financial
  issues. For farmers (agriculture sector) and food
  consumers it is the biggest proportion as they
  are worried about the returns. They are not able
  to adapt expensive technology without some
  financial support (i.e. loans), but they do so
  when the financial risks is removed, financial
  aids are offered or the technology is not an
  expensive one.

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Fourth group

• Those who are conservatives or have some reasons
  not to apply new tech (i.e. political parties,
  poor, etc.).

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What should be done to adapt new technology?

• Communication among stakeholders and among the
  scientists themselves.
• Setting certain strategies for innovation in
  agriculture will help deciding the priorities.
• Putting the researchers, financing bodies, and
  farmers together is not a very easy task. State
  bodies (research) can play a role but that will
  depend on the others (policy makers and financial
  bodies) to help building good strategies.

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• Demands on a new thing facilitates.
• Government policy to introduce something.
• Education in new-technology facilitates
  adaptation.
• Information exchange concerning innovations is
  very important factor to adapt something.

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What can improve innovation?

• Intentional collaboration in the field of
  research will help promoting invention by
  exchanging experiences and information about a
  subject. Providing technical assistances, or
  training when it is needed will nourish this
  matter. If the EU countries have one body as a
  research organization, scientific an agreement
  between GCSAR in Syria and EU research center in
  agriculture can be made.

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• Innovation policies in both public and private
  sectors should focus on needs of society.
• Innovations in private sector should be regulated
  by a national authority as private sector look
  for increasing their incomes in a very fast way
  without looking sometimes to the side-effects of
  their inventions. Therefore, governance of
  innovation of the private sector and as well as
  the public sector will help in defining the
  unlikable things.

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• Before introducing something, adequate and
  trustfull information should be offered to people
  (i.e. biotechnology). Therefore, risk evaluation,
  risk administration, risk communication should be
  evaluated.
• A better way for supporting innovators in the
  public sector can be made by giving them a part
  of the benefits as private sectors can sell their
  inventions.

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• In Syria there were different bodies working on
  agricultural researches. About two years ago they
  were united in one research body i.e. General
  Commission for Scientific Agricultural Research.
  This helps in uniting efforts towards solving
  problems or improving situation.
• More cooperation with abroad organizations should
  be made in term of agricultural policies. Gradual
  launching of self-dependant organizations is
  another issue for reducing the risk innovation.

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• Adapting new technologies needs to be funded.
• As an example, the drip irrigation system proved
  to be good in water saving for irrigation but it
  requires capitals for initiations, good
  equipments, and good experiences. The same is
  true for biological control, natural pollination,
  etc. Government has been supporting adapting drip
  irrigation by making many field days and
  financing this technique (loans of 60 of the
  cost, subsidies is not yet applicable). In Syria
  about 5,500,000 ha is the cultivated area but
  only 1,266,282 ha is irrigated (23). Drip
  irrigation is applied to only 46,368 ha mainly of
  vegetables and fruit trees.

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• Therefore enough information about the proper way
  of using it, the benefits, the financial aids
  (loans), strict regulations for digging and
  pumping water have to be addressed properly. If
  that is not done there will be a problem of
  deficiency of water and a lot of areas will be
  out of use (desert) and people will abandon it.
• Promoting reliable techniques or new products has
  to be well studied.

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• In Syria, in the agricultural sector, there are
  many extension units spread over the rural areas.
  These were done to help developing rural areas in
  offering information and knowledge in agriculture
  to farmers and sometimes to social knowledge to
  rural women. But those units should be modified
  by up-dating the knowledge of agronomists working
  in extension and by providing them with
  telecommunication systems for this purpose
  (network for agriculture information). This
  matter needs funding, knowledge and training.

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Role of foresight

• 1- To provide society with scientifically based
  confidence in new-technology. Society must have
  trustworthy, credible and impartial re-assurance
  in relation to the environment and food safety
  risks that may be associated with developments in
  agricultural sciences. 
• 2- Build up a network for communications and
  exchanging information related to innovation
  between developed and developing countries (EU-
  and neighboring countries). Building links
  between EU countries and Mediterranean countries
  to cooperate at all levels will help in managing
  future policies and evaluating new innovations.

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• 3- Helping in setting up common policies,
  regulations, legislations between EU and
  neighboring countries (i.e. food safety
  standards, environments, etc.).
• 4- To build up the awareness of the society of
  undesirable outcomes of an invention.
• 5- Improving the execution of innovation system
  in the Mediterranean region by financing some
  research bodies in the neighboring countries
  (Mediterranean) to improve their research
  facilities and building capacities so that they
  can cope with the new technology.

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• 6- Improving methods for identifying and
  considering all of a project's environmental
  costs and impacts throughout a project's life
  cycle.
• 7- Creating programs to provide hands-on-help,
  share knowledge and provide assistance on
  technically viable, commercially feasible and
  socially sustainable projects in developing
  countries.
• 8- As a conclusion a national, or regional
  foresight on the future of agriculture can made
  by the help of the EU.