Latin American Science: Much Work Remains

Abstract

![Figure][1] CREDIT: ISTOCKPHOTO At a time when remarkably few Latin American countries are improving their research capacity, it seems incongruous to display much enthusiasm about the future of science, technology, and innovation in the region. The Editorial Growing Latin American asserts that the region is swiftly improving its research capacity (C. R. S. Garcia et al. , 30 November 2012, p. [1127][2]). By not clarifying that only a handful of Latin American countries are experiencing scientific growth, the optimism reflected in the Editorial is somewhat misleading. Despite increasing its share of publications from 1 to 4% in the past 30 years, Latin America remains a small player on the world scale, ranking behind Europe, Asia, North America, and the Middle East ([ 1 ][3]). In Latin America, scientific growth is far from uniform. Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Chile, and Colombia combined contribute 95% of all scientific publications in the region ([ 2 ][4]). The remaining countries lag far behind the rest of the world. Insufficient investment in R&D has resulted not only in subpar academic quality, but also in minimal synergy between industry and universities. In 2009, investment in R&D in Latin America was equivalent to 0.69% of GDP, compared to 2.40% in Organization for Economic Co-operational and Development (OECD) countries ([ 3 ][5]). In some countries in the region, meager increases in public spending on R&D reflect an overall increase in spending as the economies grow, rather than a greater ratio in R&D. Although some training fellowships have been established in the region, they are generally limited to the largest economies. To move from scientifically lagging to scientifically proficient, smaller countries need to create a weightier pool of scientists, invest more resources, and strengthen their science programs. Most important, they would benefit from improved science, technology, and innovation strategies to lead them toward knowledge-based economies. Although positive news regarding science in powerhouse nations such as Brazil is encouraging, we shouldn't be blind to the fact that much remains to be done to advance science in Latin America. 1. [↵][6] 1. E. Archambault , Thirty years in science: Secular movements in knowledge creation (Montreal, Quebec, Monograph, Science-Metrix, 2010); [www.science-metrix.com/30years-Paper.pdf][7]. 2. [↵][8] The SCImago Journal & Country Rank ([www.scimagojr.com][9]). 3. [↵][10] RICYT (Network for Science and Technology Indicators), Database of Indicators (2011); [www.ricyt.org][11] [in Spanish]. [1]: pending:yes [2]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.1232223 [3]: #ref-1 [4]: #ref-2 [5]: #ref-3 [6]: #xref-ref-1-1 View reference 1 in text [7]: http://www.science-metrix.com/30years-Paper.pdf [8]: #xref-ref-2-1 View reference 2 in text [9]: http://www.scimagojr.com [10]: #xref-ref-3-1 View reference 3 in text [11]: http://www.ricyt.org