National Policies to Attract Foreign Direct Investment in Research and Development: An Assessment of Brazil and Selected Countries

Abstract

This chapter examines the main policies employed to attract multinational corporation (MNC) technological activities in China, India, Ireland, Israel, Singapore, and Taiwan in order to analyse the case of Brazil. Foreign direct investment (FDI) attraction policies are part of industrial and development policies and should not be assessed or used in isolation. The methodology applied in this work consists of elaborating country reports which comprised: (i) economic and technological data; (ii) science, technology, and industry (S&T&I) policies; (iii) the development of key technological activities by MNCs; and (iv) the main MNC R&D activities developed in the country. For most countries the selectivity, continuity, and coordination of national policies are the key factors in creating a favourable environment for foreign R&D activities. In Brazil, despite some recent actions to foster innovation and R&D investments-such as the Innovation Law-it is patent that there is a lack of a strong government policy and an absence of a specific governmental structure targeted to the attraction of such investments.