A CATALYTIC AND EVOLUTIONARY APPROACH TO HORIZONTAL TECHNOLOGY POLICIES (HTPS)

This paper presents an evolutionary framework for horizontal technolog y policies (HTPs) especially market-friendly ones involving project-ba sed incentives (e.g, R&D project based grants rather than tax-based in centives to yearly expenditures on R&D). HTPs are a category of techno logical policies whose objective is to promote technological developme nt per se, and associated management and organizational routines, irre spective of industrial branch or technological area. They are being in creasingly adopted by both advanced countries and newly industrialized countries in response to the new opportunities and threats opened up by the technological revolution and by the processes of liberalization and globalization; and they complement the more specific and well-kno wn selective and vertical policies aimed at individual sectors and tec hnologies. The analysis is conducted within a learning-to-innovate fra mework with emphasis on collective, organizational learning; search; a nd market-building. The outcome is a technology policy cycle with dist inct infant, growth, and mature phases, Proactive 'generation' of a cr itical mass of projects for efficient learning and diffusion of innova tion routines becomes the aim of the infant phase; while the mature ph ase of the policy should focus on policy restructuring including drast ic reductions in the support of routine projects and enhanced support of more complex types of innovation. The paper also emphasizes the imp ortance of a neutrality component in incentives in the infant phase of increasing selectivity; and of building policy capabilities for effic ient policy design and implementation.