Brazilians might be creative, but can they innovate?

Brazilians are proud to talk about their creativity. Brazilian art – from music, to architecture, to advertising – is a testament to the country’s ability to come up with successful concepts. Resourcefulness is another undeniable trait common to Brazilians, to the point that the country was considered the G20’s top-ranked nation in the 2010 Global Entrepreneurship Rankings. But when it comes to advancing new ideas, the picture appears far less rosy. The Global Innovation Index (GII) – an annual report undertaken by Cornell, INSEAD, and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) – ranks countries in terms of their capacity to innovate. In 2017, Brazil came in 69th out of 127, trailing not only behind other developed nations but also four Latin American countries: Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, and Uruguay.

The report, which was supervised by Brazil’s National Industrial Confederation (CNI) and SEBRAE, highlights Brazil’s heavy bureaucracy and excessive taxation. It also addresses the country’s educational problems, which impact productivity and limit the possibilities for innovation. But there are some silver linings in the GII report. One of Brazil’s strengths...