EVIDENCE AND PATTERNS OF COOPERATION ON SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION IN LATIN AMERICA

Thispaper aims to provide preliminary evidence about cooperation network in science, technology and innovation, amongst selected Latin American countries. The analysis is based on information gatheredfrominternational treaties of cooperation between the countries. The methodology was anchored in the networks centrality measures, offered by the graph theory. Comparing the levels of hierarchy in the Latin American in science, technology and innovation cooperation network, it is possible to identify different patterns and notable cases. The study reveals the more or less central role played by different countries in the region, which to a certain extent, stands related to its level of development. However, a National Innovation System establishing a relatively large amount of institutional channels for cooperation in science and technology does not necessarily do so, concerning cooperation for technological innovation. The paper therefore stresses the qualitatively distinct character of these forms of cooperation, offering insights for the debate on institutional and policy initiatives aiming at promoting these processes.