“The Gender Gap in Innovation: Why the Global Innovation Index Needs a Rethink written by Priyanka Garodia and Shivani Singh has been published in the Global South Forum.The article argues that while the Global Innovation Index (GII) has is a key benchmark for assessing innovation – its patent-driven and formal-economy metrics reflect a male-dominated framework. It sidelines women and undervalues frugal, social, and community-based innovation. In Southeast Asia, where much innovation happens in MSMEs and informal settings, this bias skews policy priorities and funding flows.
The authors call for the gendering of such indices to inclusion of informal and frugal innovation while understanding the presence of women in such fields. They stress on providing institutional incentives that help women translate ideas into protected, commercialised outcomes beyond mere representation. To measure innovation fairly, they argue, we must rework the definition of innovation in the first place and ensure that indices like the GII reflect the full creative economy of the Global South – not just its formal and male-centred fragment. Read more at : Innovation and the Invisibilisation of Gender: What the Global Innovation Index Misses? | Global So…
