Argentine Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Politics with a Federal Approach:

Asymmetries, Territories and Institutional Actors

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to identify and compare local experiences of STI public policies with emphasis on the development of research lines, aimed at strengthening and consolidating local productive systems, during the period 2003-2023. For this, we ask: What are the configurations acquired by innovation and cooperation promotion policies in relation to the local actors involved, asymmetries and territorial demands? Two representative cases are presented: the “Cordoba Clusters Program”, whose objective is to contribute to provincial productive development by articulating the public-private sectors with local STI system organizations, and the San Juan “Strategic Platform Research Program”, which proposes to link the local scientific system with the public and academic sectors and civil society organizations by supporting some lines of research. Both politics are in the execution phase and the following dimensions are taken as parameters of analysis: articulation with the environment, areas of knowledge and territorial asymmetries. The issue will be approached from a combination of a survey of documentary sources and primary data through interviews with government managers. Among the main findings, it is highlighted that the political initiative, focused on territorial specialization, bets on productive diversification, knowledge economy and scientific development with impacts on health, food and environment, among others.