The pandemic ushers in a new view of economic activity and innovation policy

Abstract

The pandemic has precipitated a shift of value creation toward economic activity that is ignored in measures of economic growth such as GDP. As a consequence, economic policy is increasingly fumbling in the dark. Not least innovation policies and growth-oriented R & D now lack a relevant yardstick of success. This article provides an overview of the challenge and suggests better ways to measure the impact of innovations. Ultimately this concerns what kind of development nations aim for and how they assess success.