Modelling the Innovative Performance of Resource Areas: Analysis of 22 Russian Regions

Purpose. Regions with a high share of the resource sector in the economy tend to show weak innovative performance and rely on the exploitation of nature wealth. Transition to sustainable development requires special measures to stimulate innovation activity. The main purpose of our study is to find key drivers of innovative performance for resource abundant regions. Awareness of the essential determinants of innovative activity in “resource regions” is crucial for policy-makers in planning the strategy of regional sustainable development. Methods. We used knowledge production function to create our own model of innovative performance. We tested our model on the empirical data from Russian resource-rich regions to reveal key drivers of innovative performance for resource regions. Results. Regression analysis showed that the same basic patterns of knowledge generation are relevant for resource abundant regions and for developed countries. We also discovered that financial independence of the region and entrepreneurial activity are crucial factors of innovative performance for resource-rich regions. Conclusions. Our findings can be used to form an effective regional policy that ensures sustainable socio-economic development of resource-rich regions through the transition from mining to deep processing based on the use of high technology (innovation)