How Emerging Economies can benefit from Innovations - Education, Collaboration and Leap frogging

This paper reflects concepts based on the authors' experiences and observations to improve the innovative and entrepreneurial environment in Finland and Namibia, respectively. We take a constructive approach to bridging the gap between developing and developed economies with a focus on three approaches. Firstly, foster coexistence and cooperation of industry and academia in real projects providing a stimulating atmosphere where all parties benefit. The means of choice are innovation centers, where active dialogue, information exchange and project cooperation strengthen the innovative and entrepreneurial spirit of students.\nSecondly, encourage regional centers to identify their potential strengths and make the experts and regions cooperate in a focused way to reach the commonly set goals. The objective is to counter the tendency which affects particularly sparsely populated countries, of people moving to cities thus relegating the countryside to under-development. A model initiative in this respect has become the regional Centers of Expertise Programme, which has been successfully applied in Finland. Finally, provide the new and low-cost infrastructure needed to communicate, run small businesses, support education and provide other needed services in remote locations. This measure requires leapfrogging to the digital wireless environment.