Romania has generated twice fewer new patented inventions and innovations in the last 25 years compared to the last 25 years of the communist era, according to a research by financial consultancy firm KeysFin.

“Although we feel that we live in the era of innovation and research, we are far behind the fellows from the Ceausescu era,” reads the study, according to Mediafax.

Romania recorded almost 95,000 patent applications between 1965 and 1989 and granted almost 60,000 patents. In the 25 years after the Revolution, the number of applications dropped to almost 40,000, and the granted patents totaled some 26,500, according to official data from the State Office for Inventions and Trademarks – OSIM.

In 2014, Romania's OSIM granted fewer patents than in 1920.

The capitalist era’s economic freedom increased the import of technology and brands from the western world, which have replaced the traditional research, according to KeysFin.

The results may seem surprising, but they fully reflect the lack of investments in research and development in Romania. A recent study on the EU member states’ innovation performance places Romania on the last place, even behind Bulgaria.

The study is available here.

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editor@romania-insider.com