Energy Equity and Innovation in Emerging Countries

Mr Sebastián del Hoyo, University of Buenos Aires

The ability to produce innovation on a large scale is one of the key factors behind the creation of a developed economy: an economy of knowledge.  When considering most of the countries in the emerging world, it is seen that many of them rely heavily on natural resources to develop their economies and societies. The main argument is that those countries have competitive advantages in doing so – think oil in the Middle East or agriculture in Latin America. There are some other countries that are more aware of the importance of industrialization for the development of their economies. Energy is one of the most important levers in human development and, as such, acts as a key factor in determining the economic development of all countries. In addition, the inequality within and across countries between those who have access and those who do not is on the increase. This paper is aimed at answering how could emerging economies will be able to play by the rules in terms of property rights and at the same time create more innovation-based economic growth instead of the traditional paths.