The Global Innovation Index (GII) which ranks the innovation performance of countries and economies around the world, based on 79 indicators, has ranked Sri Lanka at 85th place out of 141 countries.

The GII 2015 explores the impact of innovation-oriented policies on economic growth and development. High-income and developing countries alike are seeking innovation-driven growth through different strategies. Some countries are successfully improving their innovation capacity, while others still struggle.

Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Sweden, the Netherlands and the United States of America are the world’s five most innovative nations, according to the  Index , while China, Malaysia, Viet Nam, India, Jordan, Kenya, and Uganda are among a group of countries outperforming their economic peers.

India remains at the top of the regional ranking of Central and Southern Asia this year, followed by Kazakhstan and Sri Lanka, which has significantly improved its position.

“The GII underlines the steady outperformance of India on innovation relative to its level of development”, says Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).  “We applaud the new innovation policies put in place by the new Indian government, which are not effectively captured by the data used in the GII. Some of these measures have already had a positive impact on the build-up of innovation momentum and entrepreneurial mood in the country, and we expect this trend to grow in the coming months and years.”

Central and Southern Asia has yet to reach its full potential: Most countries in the region remain outside the top 100 of the GII. However, the economies at the top of the regional rankings can serve as models of good innovation policies with stronger institutions that will help stimulate higher levels of innovation-driven regional development in the coming years.