DEVELOPMENT OF THE KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY IN SELECTED EUROPEAN

Abstract

The knowledge economy is directly based on the production, distribution and use of knowledge. It involves significant investment in education, research and development, the use of digital technology, the creation of a business environment that stimulates the advancement of innovation and the creation of institutions that link education, science and the economy. The creation and use of new knowledge valorized in innovation is essential in the global competition in the market. In the new business conditions, the digital technology sectors have become the most important drivers of economic growth, productivity improvement, as well as environmental protection. Countries that use knowledge resources more efficiently are more competitive on the world market compared to other economies. Countries that use knowledge resources more efficiently are more competitive on the world market compared to other economies. Companies that dominate their own business on the use of knowledge, in the broadest sense are squeezing out of the market competitors who use less knowledge in the production of goods. Individuals who possess more applied knowledge get paid jobs. Today, there are a number of concepts of the knowledge economy, of which the World Bank's approach is particularly important for the policy-making process. It contains 38 indicators classified into four pillars: a) innovation institutions, b) innovation skills, c) innovation system and d) ICT infrastructure. The paper analyzes these four indicators for seven countries of Southeast Europe (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Northern Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania and Serbia) in 2018. The paper first presents a comparative overview of the level of the knowledge economy index for OECD countries, the entire a group of countries in Southeast Europe and individually all selected countries in Southeast Europe. It was stated that the observed countries of Southeast Europe lag far behind the countries of the OECD Group in 2011 and 2018. In all dimensions of the knowledge economy. This suggests that the sustainable development of these countries implies the simultaneous improvement of all dimensions of the knowledge economy. In short, progress in any domain is not enough to eliminate the obvious gap in the development of the knowledge economy if there is no progress in other areas.
Serbia and Bulgaria recorded the greatest progress in the development of the knowledge economy in the period 2011-2018. among the observed European countries. Romania and Montenegro are countries that have made relatively high progress in the development of the knowledge economy in 2011-2018. years. The country that is still at a low level of development of the knowledge economy, but developed rapidly in this time interval, is Albania. Bosnia and Herzegovina and North Macedonia are countries facing low levels of knowledge economy development and low progress in this area.