Factors of Regional Innovation Activity in Russia

Relevance of this work is determined by the need for Russia to enter the innovative path of development in order to gradually remove the country's economy from dependence on raw materials and strengthen its potential in the innovation sphere. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to identify the main factors affecting the innovative activity of the regions of Russia. To do this, panel data were taken for 76 regions of the Russian Federation for the period from 2010 to 2018 and analyzed using three specifications: pass-through regression, fixed-effect models (FE), and random-effect models (RE). The dependent research variable is the share of organizations that have carried out technological, marketing and organizational innovations in the total number of organizations surveyed in Rosstat. Independent research variables were divided into 5 groups according to their semantic interpretation. The result of the regression analysis was the identification of the positive impact of patent activity and the release of innovative products and services, as well as the dependence of the innovative activity of the regions on the socio-economic situation, including GRP, investment in fixed assets and the amount of labor in the region. A positive relationship was also found between international trade expressed through exports and the share of innovatively active companies. Based on the results a number of recommendations were put forward that could increase innovative activity in the regions of Russia.