THE INTERACTION OF POLICY-MIX INSTRUMENTS CONDUCIVE TO INCREASING R&D INVESTMENT IN ROMANIA

The “policy-mix” is a relative new concept in research-development and innovation literature and policy. It has been introduced some years ago, as a new model of resources mobilization through the coordination of different policies, having in view the accomplishment of the objective of allotting 3% of GDP for research and development (R&D) in the European Union countries. This concept refers to R&D (research programs, grant schemes or human resources programs) and non-R&D (legal, fiscal, monetary incentives) “packaged” instruments conducive to increasing investments in research and development activity. Adjusting the R&D agenda to the requirements of integration in European Research Area, Romania adopted during 2005-2007, a “package“ of instruments and policies that have had a beneficial effect on the R&D and innovation activities, especially in terms of increasing the public R&D financing. In view of the present context of the big challenges of Lisbon Agenda 2020 and the recent budgetary restriction in Romania, this paper is a pleading for re-setting the “policy-mix” among the priorities of different policies, as a main solution for increasing R&D investment. The analysis of how the different sectoral policies and instruments should interact in order to reach the main objective of the policy mix is another aim of this paper.