Scope The evaluation covers lending (investment) and non-lending activities that directly support innovation and entrepreneurship in Bank Group client countries. Following the conceptual framework, four main types of targeted interventions designed and implemented by the Bank Group are considered: • Support to R&D infrastructure: This includes innovation that supports public services such as public research institutions, S&T parks, and public research universities; national quality infrastructure; and regulation including intellectual property rights (IPR). These activities are mainly funded by the World Bank. • Strengthening entrepreneurial capabilities: These comprise building skills and management capabilities of entrepreneurs, with a view to improving their business performance. These interventions also involve efforts to facilitate firm expansion and growth via technological upgrading such as acquisition of new technology through technology transfer and/or diffusion; upgrading of existing products and processes; and introduction of new products, processes, and marketing methods. • Financing support for early-stage start-ups: This consists of venture capital funds providing financing for new and existing innovative small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs). • Foster linkages between actors in the innovation system: These interventions include strengthening interactions among public research institutions, universities, and industry to help bring innovations, in terms of new products and products, to market. Mechanisms such as matching grants and business incubators have been used to provide incentives for entrepreneurs to commercialize R&D products that have been developed in public research systems. These interventions are supported by the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) through initiatives such as infoDev (see Box 3.1). To maintain the focus of the evaluation, IEG did not cover every dimension that could conceivably impinge on innovation and entrepreneurship. Besides looking at country case studies and strategies that support innovation and entrepreneurship, IEG did not assess projects aiming to improve the enabling environment, which may have an impact on all kinds of private sector activities — such as support to basic or higher education or the overall business and regulatory environment. The evaluation’s focus on entrepreneurship is limited to Bank Group support for the development and growth of new enterprises, such as science parks and business incubators
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World Bank Group Support for Innovation and Entrepreneurship