Strengthening the Nexus: Policy and Legislative Reforms for University-Industry Collaboration in Kazakhstan
Abstract
The aim of this study is to examine the synergistic benefits that arise from collaborations between universities and industrial companies, examining the mutual advantages that both entities have. This research evaluates the government's efforts to cultivate such partnerships through a comprehensive documentary analysis of current policy documents and legislation. The findings indicate that a recently established ministry in Kazakhstan is actively developing proposals for legislative amendments to enhance the framework for collaboration between universities and industry. It is noteworthy that the government is providing tax preferences and incentives to industrial entities that collaborate with academic institutions, with the expectation that these measures will lead to beneficial outcomes. Despite these positive measures, the study revealed significant obstacles that prevent effective collaboration, such as legislative gaps and a general apprehension among industrial companies to set partnerships, due to the ineffectiveness of certain laws. The state's limited capacity to motivate participation from these corporations is what makes this reluctance a bigger challenge. This analysis highlights the necessity of strengthening political and legal frameworks to support more effective and productive collaborations between the university and industrial sectors. To bridge these gaps and improve the innovation ecosystem and drive socio-economic progress, this paper calls for a renewed approach to policymaking and legal reforms.
References
[2] Alexander, A., Martin, D.P., Manolchev, C., and Miller, K. 2020. University–industry collaboration: using meta-rules to overcome barriers to knowledge transfer. Journal of Technology Transfer 45(2): 371–392. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10961-018-9685-1
[3] Altynbassov B. et al. 2017. Organizational and legal aspects of fee-based education in the republic of Kazakhstan. Journal of Advanced Research in Law and Economics, 8.7 (29): 2072-2077.
[4] Altynbassov, B. et al. 2022. Academic Tourism as an Emerging Tourism Industry in Kazakhstan. Journal of Environmental Management and Tourism, 13.6: 1646-1657.
[5] Altynbassov, B. et al. 2021. The establishment of international university campuses as a key factor in the development of local tourism in the Turkestan region in Kazakhstan: Economic and legal aspects. Journal of Environmental Management and Tourism, 6 (54): 1454-1464.
[6] Ankrah, S., and Omar, A.T. 2015. Universities–industry collaboration: A systematic review. Scandinavian Journal of Management, 31(3): 387-408.
[7] Awasthy, R. 2021. A Framework for Evaluating and Improving University-Industry Collaboration.
[8] Bayanbayeva, A., et al. 2023. The Transformational Role of Entrepreneurial Universities in Fostering Tourism Sector of Kazakhstan: Legal Documentary Analysis. Journal of Environmental Management and Tourism, 4(68): 2046 - 2055. DOI: 10.14505/jemt.v14.4(68).16
[9] Benneworth, P., Charles, D., and Madanipour, A. 2007. Building Localized Interactions Between Universities and Cities Through University Spatial Development. European Planning Studies 18: 1611 - 1629. DOI:10.1080/09654313.2010.504345
[10] Bowen, G.A. 2009. Document Analysis as a Qualitative Research Method. Qualitative Research Journal 9(2): 27–40. DOI: 10.3316/QRJ0902027
[11] Bramwell, A., and Wolfe, D. 2008. Universities and regional economic development: The entrepreneurial University of Waterloo. Research Policy 37: 1175-1187. DOI: 10.1016/J.RESPOL.2008.04.016
[12] Braun, V., Clarke, V., Hayfield, N., and Terry, G. 2019. Thematic analysis. In Handbook of research methods in health social sciences.
[13] Cowan, R., and Zinovyeva, N. 2013. University effects on regional innovation. Research Policy 42: 788-800. DOI: 10.1016/J.RESPOL.2012.10.001
[14] Cunningham, J., and Link, A. 2015. Fostering university-industry R&D collaborations in European Union countries. International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal 11. DOI: 10.1007/S11365-014-0317-4
[15] Draghici, A., Baban, C.F., Gogan, M.L., and Ivascu, L.V. 2015. A knowledge management approach for the university-industry collaboration in open innovation. Procedia Economics and Finance, 23: 23-32.
[16] Drucker, J., and Goldstein, H. 2007. Assessing the Regional Economic Development Impacts of Universities: A Review of Current Approaches. International Regional Science Review 30: 20-46. DOI:10.1177/0160017606296731
[17] Englmann, F., and Walz, U. 1995. Industrial Centers and Regional Growth in the Presence of Local Inputs. Journal of Regional Science 35: 3-27. DOI: 10.1111/J.1467-9787.1995.TB01397.X
[18] Etzkowitz, H. 2013. Anatomy of the entrepreneurial university. Social science information 52(3): 486-511.
[19] Etzkowitz, H. and Leydesdorff, L. 1995. The Triple Helix--University-industry-government relations: A laboratory for knowledge based economic development. EASST review 14.1: 14-19.
[20] Guerrero, M., Cunningham, J., and Urbano, D. 2015. Economic Impact of Entrepreneurial Universities' Activities: An Exploratory Study of the United Kingdom. Research Policy 44: 748-764. DOI:10.1016/J.RESPOL.2014.10.008
[21] Guimón, J. 2013. Promoting university-industry collaboration in developing countries. World Bank (2013): 12-48.
[22] Harman, G. 2010. Funding of University Research. DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-08-044894-7.00878-2
[23] Hausman, N. 2020. University Innovation and Local Economic Growth. Review of Economics and Statistics 104: 718-735. DOI: 10.1162/rest_a_01027
[24] Heaton, S., Siegel, D., & Teece, D. Universities and innovation ecosystems: a dynamic capabilities perspective. Industrial and Corporate Change. DOI: 10.1093/ICC/DTZ038.
[25] Issabekov, Baurzhan, et al. 2022. University-Business Cooperation as a Key Factor in Innovative Economic Development in Kazakhstan. Theoretical and Practical Research in Economic Fields 13.1: 86-101.
[26] Jumakulov, Z., Ashirbekov, A., Sparks, J., and Sagintayeva, A. 2019. Internationalizing Research in Kazakhstan Higher Education: A Case Study of Kazakhstan’s State Program of Industrial Innovative Development 2015 to 2019. Journal of Studies in International Education 23(2). DOI:10.1177/1028315318786445
[27] Lai, W. 2011. Willingness-to-engage in technology transfer in industry–university collaborations. Journal of Business Research 64: 1218-1223. DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2011.06.026
[28] Lee, Y. 1996. 'Technology Transfer' and the Research University: A Search for the Boundaries of University-Industry Collaboration. Research Policy 25: 843-863. DOI: 10.1016/0048-7333(95)00857-8
[29] Lee, Y. 2000. The Sustainability of University-Industry Research Collaboration: An Empirical Assessment. The Journal of Technology Transfer 25: 111-133. DOI: 10.1023/A:1007895322042
[30] Leydesdorff, L., and Meyer, M. 2003. The Triple Helix of university-industry-government relations. Scientometrics 58: 191-203. DOI: 10.1023/A:1026276308287
[31] Monobayeva, A., and Howard, C. 2015. Are post-Soviet republics ready for the new public management? The case of educational modernization in Kazakhstan. International Journal of Public Sector Management 28(2): 150-164.
[32] Mowery, D., Mowery, D., Sampat, B., and Sampat, B. 2004. The Bayh-Dole Act of 1980 and University--Industry Technology Transfer: A Model for Other OECD Governments? Journal of Technology Transfer 30: 115-127. DOI: 10.1007/0-387-25022-0_18
[33] Plewa, C., Galán-Muros, V., and Davey, T. 2015. Engaging business in curriculum design and delivery: a higher education institution perspective. Higher Education 70: 35-53. DOI: 10.1007/S10734-014-9822-1
[34] Powell, W., Owen-Smith, J., and Colyvas, J. 2007. Innovaton and Emulation: Lessons from American Universities in Selling Private Rights to Public Knowledge. Minerva 45. DOI: 10.1007/S11024-007-9034-2
[35] Quetglas, G., and Grau, B. 2002. Aspects of University Research and Technology Transfer to Private Industry. Journal of Business Ethics 39: 51-58. DOI: 10.1023/A:1016375832641
[36] Rothaermel, F., Agung, S., and Jiang, L. 2007. University entrepreneurship: a taxonomy of the literature. Industrial and Corporate Change, 16: 691-791. DOI: 10.1093/icc/dtm023.
[37] Rybnicek, R., and Königsgruber, R. 2018. What makes industry–university collaboration succeed? A systematic review of the literature. Journal of Business Economics 89. DOI: 10.1007/S11573-018-0916-6
[38] Saunders, D.B. 2010. Neoliberal ideology and public higher education in the United States. Journal for Critical Education Policy Studies 8(1): 41-77.
[39] Scandura, A. 2016. University–industry collaboration and firms’ R&D effort. Research Policy 45: 1907-1922. DOI: 10.1016/j.respol.2016.06.009
[40] Sjöö, K., and Hellström, T. 2019. University–industry collaboration: A literature review and synthesis. Industry and Higher Education, 33(4): 275-285.
[41] Tartari, V., and Breschi, S. 2012. Set Them Free: Scientists' Evaluations of the Benefits and Costs of University-Industry Research Collaboration.
[42] Uyarra, E. 2010. Conceptualizing the Regional Roles of Universities, Implications and Contradictions. European Planning Studies, 18: 1227-1246. DOI: 10.1080/09654311003791275
[43] Yessimova, Sh. et al. 2023. The influence of University-Business Cooperation in the development of local tourism in Kazakhstan: documentary analysis. Journal of Environmental Management and Tourism, 14.6: 2626-2640.
[44] "15 National Universities with the Biggest Endowments." Accessed from US News. https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/the-short-list-college/articles/10-universities-with-the-biggest-endowments
[45] Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated December 27, 2017 No. 125-VI "On subsoil and subsoil use" (with amendments and additions as of July 1, 2023) / https://adilet.zan.kz/kaz/docs/K1700000125
[46] Concept of development of higher education and science in the Republic of Kazakhstan for 2023-2029. March 28, 2023 of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan
[47] OECD. Higher Education in Kazakhstan 2017, Reviews of National Policies for Education. OECD Publishing, Paris. In OECD Publishing, Paris.
[48] OECD. University-Industry Collaboration - New Evidence and Policy Options. OECD Publishing Paris, May 2019.
[49] "On the Approval of the State Program for the Development of Education and Science in the Republic of Kazakhstan for the Years 2020-2025." Decree No. 988 of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan, December 27, 2019.
[50] "The Concept for the Development of Higher Education and Science in the Republic of Kazakhstan for 2023 – 2029." Decree No. 248 of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan, March 28, 2023. Accessed via: https://adilet.zan.kz/kaz/docs/P2300000248
Non-Exclusive License under Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC BY 4.0):
This ‘Article’ is distributed under the terms of the license CC-BY 4.0., which lets others distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon this article, even commercially, as long as they credit this article for the original creation. ASERS Publishing will be acknowledged as the first publisher of the Article and a link to the appropriate bibliographic citation (authors, article title, volume issue, page numbers, DOI, and the link to the Published Article on ASERS Publishing’ Platform) must be maintained.