Ebook: Looking back to move forward: A forty-year retrospective of the Science and Technology Policy Instruments (STPI) project

The fortieth anniversary of the STPI project identification meeting provided an
opportunity to examine the long-term impact of the first large-scale, international
policy-oriented research initiative in science and technology policy for development;
to evaluate the ways in which the knowledge acquired through the project helped to
shape policy and decision making; to assess how it affected the professional and
personal development of those who participated in the project; and to explore its
implications for the future.
Most of the country coordinators are still professionally active, and although some
have moved to other fields, several are working on science and technology policy
issues. Members of the STPI network have frequently acknowledged the influence
that the STPI project had on their professional careers, on the advice they have
provided and decisions they made, and on their contributions to the field of science
and technology policy for development. Sadly, some of the country coordinators are
no longer with us, but a sufficiently large number of STPI network members
participated in the STPI+40 event, which looked back at the experience of STPI.
The first part of this report contains one chapter summarizing the background,
organization, methodology, results and dissemination of the STPI project, and is
based primarily on material produced during 1973-1979 available at the STPI+40
website.1
The second part consists of two chapters. The first is a report prepared by Geoffrey
Oldham based on a questionnaire answered by participants in the STPI research
network, which examines its impact on the development of science and technology
capabilities of the participating countries and on the members of the country teams.
The second chapter was prepared by Juana Kuramoto takes a look back at the results
of STPI, presents an overview of the main changes that have taken place in the policy
environment for science and technology during the last four decades, and outlines
new research issues on policy implementation.
The third part comprises six short chapters. The first provides a brief account of the
dissemination efforts and the influence of the STPI project over time, and the second
offers an overview of the evolution of science and technology capabilities in STPI
countries. The third contains a contribution from Tran Ngoc Ca, which indicates the
STPI project influenced a review of science and technology policy in Vietnam. The
fourth and fifth chapters present the main conclusions of the STPI+40 meetings in Paracas and Lima that took place in August 2013. They incorporate contributions by Francisco Sercovich, Alberto Araoz, Carlos Contreras, Mónica Salazar and Sussan
Cozzens outlining possible agendas and future initiatives in the field of science,
technology and innovation policies for development.

This report gives readers a long-term perspective on the opportunities and constraints
faced in the design and implementation of science and technology policies. We hope
it will contribute to improve efforts to build science, technology and innovation
capabilities in developing countries.