Economic expert Dr. Abdullah Wanees Al-Tarhouni writes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The ability to innovate means being able to exploit new technological combinations. In this context, the Global Innovation Index (GII) is an annual ranking and report published by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), in partnership with Cornell University and INSEAD. It ranks countries according to their innovation capabilities and performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The index was first introduced in 2007. Its organizers have emphasized that innovation is essential to driving economic progress and competitiveness across economies. Many governments place innovation at the heart of their growth strategies, in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Since 2019, the UN General Assembly has recognized the Global Innovation Index as a benchmark for measuring innovation, particularly in the post-pandemic period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 2026 Global Innovation Index was released before the end of September 2026. It assessed the innovation performance of 139 economies worldwide, up from 133 economies covered in the 2024 edition. The index highlights each economy\u2019s innovation strengths and weaknesses and identifies the world\u2019s top 100 science and technology innovation clusters. Its assessment is based on two main pillars\u2014innovation inputs and innovation outputs\u2014and more than 79 sub-indicators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to the 2026 index, Switzerland, a small country with limited natural resources and a population of diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds, retained its position at the top of the global ranking for the 16th consecutive year. Sweden followed in second place, while the United States maintained its third-place position, which it has held since 2023. South Korea also retained fourth place globally, having first reached that position in 2024. Singapore, a small country with limited natural resources, ranked fifth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The United Kingdom fell to sixth place in the 2026 report, while the Netherlands retained seventh place. Finland dropped to eighth, and Denmark remained ninth. China, meanwhile, climbed to tenth place for the first time. Notably, Niger and Chad\u2014two landlocked countries that share borders with Libya\u2014ranked at the bottom of the 2026 index, in 138th and 139th place, respectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Regarding the Arab world, the report covered only 13 Arab economies. Gulf countries continued to lead the regional rankings. The United Arab Emirates retained its position as the Arab world\u2019s leading economy, reaching 25th place globally for the first time. Saudi Arabia ranked second among Arab countries and 42nd globally, while Qatar maintained third place regionally and ranked 47th worldwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the 2026 report, Morocco ranked fourth among Arab countries and 54th globally. Jordan rose to fifth place regionally and 60th worldwide, while Kuwait fell to sixth place among Arab countries and 62nd globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bahrain, Oman and Tunisia ranked seventh, eighth and ninth among Arab economies, respectively. Bahrain placed 64th globally, Oman 69th and Tunisia 71st. Egypt ranked tenth in the Arab world and 83rd globally, while Lebanon climbed to 11th place regionally and 86th worldwide. Algeria ranked 12th among Arab countries and 111th globally, while Mauritania came last in the Arab regional ranking, placing 131st worldwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Economic expert Dr. Abdullah Wanees Al-Tarhouni writes: The ability to innovate means being able to exploit new technological combinations. In this context, the Global Innovation Index (GII) is an annual ranking and report published by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), in partnership with Cornell University and INSEAD. It ranks countries according to their innovation […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":258689,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"iawp_total_views":2,"_asgm_disable_schema":false,"_asgm_disable_faq":false,"_asgm_disable_howto":false,"_asgm_disable_llms":false,"_asgm_llms_description":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[683],"tags":[613],"class_list":["post-258688","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economic-articles","tag-libya"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n