You are here

Belgium is one of the top 20 hotspots for innovative ideas

Consultancy firm PwC's 2019 Global Economy Watch indicates that Northern Europe and East Asia are global hotspots where the most innovative ideas are generated. Belgium, of which Flanders is the northern region, ranks in the top 20. The intensity of ideas is measured by the number of patents issued per million inhabitants.

Ideation

Patents increase

The number of patents in Belgium increased remarkably between 2010 and 2017, allowing the country to climb from 17th to 15th place on the worldwide list. In 2010, Belgium granted an average of 345 patents per million inhabitants, which has steadily increased to 537 patents per million inhabitants in 2017.

Strong ecosystem

“This focus on idea generation is good news for the global economy,” says Didier Delanoye, partner at PwC Belgium: “Life sciences are the driving force behind Belgium’s strong results, and the country’s solid R&D ecosystem and innovation support explain why the country is among the world’s leaders in idea generation. Furthermore, ideas lead to the creation of new businesses offering innovative products and services. They enhance our competitiveness, increase productivity and, ultimately, improve our living standards.”

These findings are based on PwC’s analysis of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) data on patents from 2017, with adjustments for population size.

About Belgium and Flanders

With Dutch as its official language, Flanders (Dutch: Vlaanderen) is the autonomous northern region of Belgium. The capital of both Belgium and Flanders is Brussels.

More info

PwC Belgium
Reported by
www.belga.be
25 October 2019

More news about Flanders?

  • Regular updates
  • No spam

Interested in doing business in Flanders?

Let us help you!

  • We can introduce you to other companies, banks and regulators
  • We organize site visits to real estate locations
  • We assist with all legal aspects of setting up a business
  • We're an official government agency
  • Our services are completely free
  • We are a team of international experts

Receive our handbook to growing your business in Flanders

  • It's completely free.
  • Get an overview of all incentives relevant to your company.
  • Tax system explained in-depth.
  • Learn how to set up your business quickly.
  • Discover the benefits of Flanders (in addition to the chocolate).

In addition to the ebook, I agree to receive one or two follow-up emails