Inclusive Innovation for Development


What is Inclusive Innovation?

While the technological frontier is advancing at a fast pace and innovations abound across all fields, a large share of the global population remains excluded from this prosperity. More than 40 percent of the world population still lives under US$2 per day, based on purchasing power parity (PPP). Such inequality is leading to a rising global need and interest in promoting inclusive innovation, i.e., innovations in products (goods and services) and/or processes and product delivery systems, which address the needs and improve the welfare of the excluded due to poverty, handicap or location. Inclusive innovations may foster inclusion in production, in consumption, in the innovation process itself and by promoting the agency of the excluded. Inclusive innovations are gaining momentum in some emerging markets such as India and China, with governments having declared it a policy priority. While many examples have been presented, most inclusive innovations have not reached enough scale to make a significant impact.

Printer-friendly versionPDF version
Inclusive Innovation for Development

Table of Contents