Presentación del Prof. Zayani Khemaies (Director de programas y estructuras de valorización de la Investigación de Túnez) en la jornada CMN de Investigación en el Mediterráneo, celebrada en la UPCT el 26 de noviembre de 2012.

1. Promoting Economic Development
by Research & Innovation
Prof. Khemaies ZAYANI
Director of Programs and Structures of Research Valorization,
Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research-Tunisia
November
26,
2012
:
Murcia-­‐Spain

2. “If a man empties his purse into his head, no one can take it from
him. An investment in knowledge always pays the highest return”.
Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790)
 Natural resources can help economic development but are not
sine a qua non condition for inducing technological
breakthrough.
 The secret of the development lies in the momentum given to
research and innovation. According to Schumpeter, economic
development revolves around innovation, entrepreneurship and
market.

3. Global Competitiviness Index (GCI): Source : World Economic Forum, 2012
Country Rank in 2012 Rank in 2011 Trend
Switzerland 1 1
Singapour 2 2
Finlande 3 4
Sweeden 4 3
Netherlands 5 7
Germany 6 6
USA 7 5
United Kingdom 8 10
Hong Kong SAR 9 11
Japan 10 9
France 21 18
32/109 in 2010
Tunisia n/c
40/142 in 2011
High 5,51 < GCI < 7,0 Very High 5,51 < GCI < 7,0

4. 12 Pillars of Competitiviness (Source : World Economic Forum, 2012)
Global Competitiveness Index
Basic requirements Efficiency Innovation and
subindex enhancers subindex sophistication
Pillar 5. Higher education factors subindex
and training
Pillar 1. Institutions
Pillar 6. Goods market
Pillar 2. Infrastructure efficiency Pillar 11. Business
sophistication
Pillar 3. Macroeconomic Pillar 7. Labor market
environment efficiency Pillar 12. Innovation
Pillar 8. Financial market
Pillar 4. Health and primary
development
education
Pillar 9. Technological
readiness
Pillar 10. Market size
Key for Key for Key for
Factor-driven efficiency-driven Innovation-driven
economies economies economies

5. Tunisia at glance
1. General informations
Area = 163 610 km2 Population = 10 430 200 inhabitants
GDP = 4376 US$ per capita (2009 ) Life expectancy = 75.24 years
Birth rate = 17.4 per 1000 persons (2011) Literacy = 74.3%
2. Higher Education and Scientific Research HESR (2010-2011)
193 public high institutes, faculties and
16486 faculty members
engineering school
42 private high institutes 35 research centers
346876 students enrolled in public 15054 students enrolled in private
institutions (61.2% female) institutions,
Enrollment rate of students = 36.9%, 6.1% of GDP to HESR
2032 foreign students from 61 83215 new students in university in
nationalities, 2010 versus 86035 graduates

6. National System of Research and Innovation (SNRI)
1. Main challenges
 Redirect the national economy to growth regime based on
knowledge and expertise,
 Improve the competitiveness of industry to alleviate harsh
international competition resulting from globalization,
 Accelerate the pace of start-ups’ creation to improve the
growth of the national economy and provide enough jobs for
youth, particularly higher education graduates,
 Search of positioning in niche markets with high added value,
 Increase the attractiveness of foreign direct investment (FDI).
Policy of Modernisation and decentralization
of industrial sector + innovation

7. National System of Research and Innovation (SNRI)
2. Policy and outlines
 Guiding scientific research towards national priorities,
 Stimulate innovation and technological development,
 Generate innovative projects resulting from valorization of
research results,
 Foster scientific and technological positioning of the country,
 Set up a basic advanced infrastructure for the benefit of R&D
sector,
 Develop a high level scientific and technical expertise,
 Increase investment for R&D activities.
Researchers are encouraged to cluster within laboratories or units.
To acquire critical weight and more competitiveness, research
structures are encouraged to merge into consortia.

8. At the end of 2010: Number labs = 147 and Number of
research units = 609
The typology of these research structures was as following :
Labs Research Units
Law, Economy
Law, Economy &
Basic Science
& Basic Science Management Humanities &
29%
10% Social Science
Management 18%
10% 13%
Humanities &
Social Science
4%
Engineering
Engineering 10%
8% Life Science &
Life Science & Biotechnology
Biotechnology 49%
49%

9. 0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
1967
4000
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1967
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1987
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
Basic outcomes of Tunisian Research
2001
2002
2007
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
30515 Tunisian publications in the Web of Science (Ref: Thomson Reuters)
2011

10. Citations / article
0
5
10
15
20
25
Agronomy
Biology and
Biochemestry
Chemistry
Clinical medecine
Computer Science
Economy and Busienss
Engineering
Environnement /
Ecology
Geoscience
Immunology
Particularly
high impacts
Materials science
Mathematics
Microbiology
Genetic and Molecular
biology
22+
Neuroscience and
12+
behavior
Pharmacology and
Toxicology
Physical Sciences
Animal and Plant
sciences
Psychiatry /
Psychology
Social Studies
Impact of Tunisian Research (Ref: Thomson Reuters)
Space science

11. Tunisian publications are cited in more than 110 000 indexed
publications in the Web of Science (Ref: Thomson Reuters)
Which countries cite these publications?
Spain 3.8%
USA 13.3% France 13.1%
Italy 4.3% Tunisia Japan 2.3%
England 4.3% China 4.6%
Turkey 2.2%
International recognition of Tunisian Research

12.  Innovation:
The concept of innovation is often defined in
compliance with Oslo Manual (2005) :
“Innovation is the implementation of a product (good or
service), a new or a significantly improved process, a new
marketing method, a new organizational method in business
practices, the organization workplace or external relations”.
There is a certain amalgam in the public mind between
innovation and novelty or the assertion "for first time in
Tunisia". Even though this definition of novelty restricts the
added value to local market, it can be adopted temporarily
as it helps support the companies’ strengthening.

13. Instruments for funding innovation
APII, BANKS
& SICAR
FOPRODI
MESRS
MIT
VRR
RICTIC
MESRS BMN
PIRD
PRF
SAGES - PMN
BMN IN’Tech BMN
ITP - MAN
Ikdem BMN
Management Seed Funds
PHENICIA - ACP
ITP -
Creation
Service APII
checks
APII Patents
MESRS
PNRI - MIT
Rechearchers’
MIT Mobility
MESRS
(Source: Projet Assistance technique pour l’étude, l’évaluation et l’optimisation
des instruments financiers d’incitation à l’innovation et la création d’entreprise,
Projet No2010/256944, Programme ENPI)

14. Instruments for funding innovation
A large panoply of instruments to fund innovation. One counts
14 instruments operated by 5 institutions. They can be split into
3 layers:
Individualized support (one to none): Directed to a single recipient.
Their objectives and eligibility criteria go beyond the framework of
innovation (PMN, ITP, FOPRODI, DRIC, Service checks).
Incentives for collaborative research: these instruments are intended
to encourage R&D and the reconciliation between Research and
Industry (VRR, PFR and PNRI).
Financial support of own funds: Oriented to support innovative
enterprises’ creation by funding certain stages of innovation process.
Provision of own funds or consolidation of the financial structure of
“young shoot” through bank credit.

15. Research Valorisation Bridge between academia and industry
Until now, 84 were funded by VRR projects with a total budget
of 8.8 Millions of Dinars
The research preceding valorization is collaborative and
intended to promote technology transfer and patents’ licenses
from labs to industry. It is also targeted to leveraging the
available expertise to meet national needs as well as promoting
the development of prototypes within research structures.
Industrials are requested to contribute up to 10% of the project
cost. The subsidy provided by the government is not capped.
The funding agreement is subjected to the favorable opinion of
a panel of experts who evaluate the submission.

16. Importance of the funded VRR projects
according to the disciplines
Water & Biotechnology
Environment 10.70%
13.10%
Humanities
1.20%
TIC
13.10%
Agriculture &
Fisheries
25%
Health &
Pharmacy
16.70%
Industry &
Energy
20.20%
The relatively small number of submitted VRR projects
may be ascribed to the following reasons:

17.  Absence of valorization cells within research
structures
 Scarcity of valorization experts within research
structures (engineers, lawyers, etc.)
 Weakness of partnership between research and small
and medium companies
 Lack of valorization culture amongst researchers
 Reluctance of researchers to leverage their own
research results,

18. Intellectuel property
The current legislation is not stimulating as it provides
authors with 25-50% of the patent's dividends, after
deduction of all costs.

19. The disproportionality between publications and patent
numbers is attributable to:
 Scientific articles are recognized in the career evolution
of researchers but patents, particularly those filed in
Tunisia, are less so
 Net patents revenues are small: Researchers perceive
only 25-50% of the patent income after deduction of all
gross outlays
 Absence of specialized intellectual property office close to
the major research poles, to help patenting and
marketing operations
 Culture of intellectual property is not widespread and
only few researchers are abreast of relevant mechanisms
and regulations

20. To alleviate these cons, the following
measures are undertaken :
Training on Intellectual Repeal of binding
Property with WIPO & regulation & proposal of
INNORPI a more incentive one
Link and interface structures: BUTT, CRT
(within technopoles) & 42 Business incubators
Ph.D Fellowship in companies =MOBIDOC, etc.

21. Technopoles as a lever of development
The main objectives of technopoles are:
 Strengthen the synergy between the triptych research,
training and industry, promoting thereby generation of new
projects
 Encourage the establishment of firms engaged in high
technology and services and polarize economic projects based
on research and development
 Provide the region with a conducive environment for carrying
R&D activities oriented towards advanced industrial fields
that are attractive of foreign direct investment
 Improve the competitive capacity of Tunisian companies
 Promote the entrepreneurial spirit and encourage the
establishment and incubation of start-ups

22.  Stimulate job creation, particularly for higher education
graduates
 Foster scientific research in fields related to national priorities
and economic needs
 Develop highly qualified human resources capable to manage
innovative projects
 Promote partnership between public and private sectors
Right now, there is one functional technopopole (El Ghazala)
and six ongoing (Sidi Thabet, Borj Cedria, Bizerte, Sousse &
Monastir, Sfax).
These projects are burdensome and request huge investments
into the intangible. Their usufruct is not immediate as they
require long time for implementation.

23. Mobility of researchers
 Researchers eager to valorize their findings can take
advantage of full-time mobility to create their own companies.
They may also request part-time mobility to contribute to the
implementation of innovative projects either in public or in
private companies.
 Mobility is intended to upgrade the productive sector by
leveraging highly qualified human resources. Nevertheless,
the regulation in force is rather binding since it requires
researchers to fulfill all their teaching and research duties
without any incitation in return.
Need to repeal the ongoing decree and
propose a more challenging regulation

24. Things are moving now !
 Because of the current transitional phase, things are
moving and some strategies may be adjusted
according to new policies.
 A national consultation will be organized by the
Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research
to draw new priorities and foster R&D to serve as a
lever for economic and social development of the
country.

25. THANKS
FOR YOUR KIND ATTENTION