Innovation activity

National Statistical Institute

Statistics on Labour costs, Research and Development, Innovation and Information Society Department

Nadia Katerinkina

State expert

2, P. Volov Str.; 1038 Sofia, Bulgaria

[email protected]

+359 2 9857 167

The statistical survey on innovation activity is conducted every even year and the observation period covered by the survey is the three-year period.

The survey provides internationally comparable information on product and business process innovations introduced in the enterprises in Bulgaria.

· Classification of Economic Activities (CEA-2008, for international use NACE.BG-2008);

· Classification of territorial units for statistical purposes in Bulgaria (NUTS).

Units of observation are all enterprises of non-financial and financial sector with 10 or more persons employed engaged primarily in the following economic activities (NACE.BG-2008): Mining and quarrying; Manufacturing; Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply; Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities; Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles; Transportation and storage; Information and communication; Financial and insurance activities; Architectural and engineering activities; technical testing and analysis; Scientific research and development; Advertising and market research.

An innovation is a new or improved product (good or service) or business process that differs significantly from the enterprise’s previous products or business processes and that has been implemented on the market or brought into use by the enterprise.

An innovation-active enterprise is an enterprise, which during the observation period is engaged in one or more activities to develop or implement new or improved products or business processes.

A product innovation is a new or improved good or service that differs significantly from the enterprise’s previous goods or services and that has been implemented on the market. It includes significant changes to the design of the goods. Simple re-sale of new goods and changes of a solely aesthetic nature are excluded.

A business process innovation is a new or improved business process for one or more business functions that differs significantly from the enterprises’s previous business processes and that has been implemented within the firm. Business process innovations include new or improved methods for:

· producing goods or providing services;

· logistics, delivery or distribution;

· information processing or communication;

· accounting or other administrative operations;

· business practices for organising procedures or external relations;

· organising work responsibility, decision making or human resource management;

· marketing methods for promotion, packaging, pricing, product placement or after sales services.

Innovation co-operation is active participation with other enterprises or institutions in innovation projects. Pure contracting out of work with no active co-operation in innovation projects is not considered as a co-operation.

Innovation activity includes all developmental, financial and commercial activities undertaken by the enterprise that are intended to result in innovations.

Enterprise.

The Innovation survey is exhaustive and the statistical population includes all non-financial and financial enterprises with 10 or more persons employed engaged in the economic activities (NACE.BG-2008) referred to in item Sector coverage.

The data refer to the activities of non-financial and financial enterprises carried out in the country.

Since 2004 - the last reference year (only the even years).

Not applicable.

Statistical survey on innovation activity of enterprises.

Every even year.

Exhaustive survey of all enterprises of non-financial and financial sector with 10 or more persons employed. Data are collected using an electronic (on-line) questionnaire included in the annual reports on the activities of enterprises.

Data validation is done through arithmetic and logic control of input data and comparison of the output data with the results of previous surveys and data from administrative sources.

The Innovation survey is exhaustive survey and no estimates are made.

Not applicable.

Statistical practices used to compile the data on innovation activity of enterprises are in compliance with Oslo Manual recommendations.

Performed by standard criteria for quality assessment - relevance, accuracy and reliability, timeliness, comparability and coherence.

Main users of the data on innovation activity of enterprises are ministries, research institutions and other users in the country, as well as Eurostat and other international organizations.

Not conducted the satisfaction survey.

In accordance with Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/1092 the required data completeness is ensured for all variables.

Data are produced in all required breakdowns for the obligatory variables according to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/1092. Additional data breakdowns are also compiled in order to satisfy user needs.

The statistical data are of good accuracy and reliability.

The survey is exhaustive and there are no sampling errors.

The survey is exhaustive and there are no sampling errors.

Not applicable.

There are no indications for coverage errors.

There is no over-coverage.

Not applicable.

In order to minimize the measurement errors, because of misunderstanding of the respondents, the questionnaire on innovation activity of enterprises is attended with methodological explanatory notes in line with Oslo Manual recommendations.

Actions to reduce the non-response include sending the reminder letters, supplemented if needed, by telephone calls and/or direct contact with the respondents for collection of data.

Unit non-response error is 7%.

There is not item non-response error.

Processing errors are negligible due to extensive arithmetic and logical checking control of data.

Not applicable.

Not applicable.

Not applicable.

Not applicable.

Not applicable.

Not applicable.

Data are published 18 months after the end of the reference period.

Final data - 18 months after the end of the reference period.

Deadlines for the data delivery on innovation activity of enterprises, specified in the Release Calendar, are strictly followed.

Data on innovation activity of enterprises are published at the date specified in the Release Calendar presenting the results of the statistical surveys carried out by the NSI.

In order to ensure comparability across countries, Eurostat, in close cooperation with the EU Member States and other countries developed a standard core questionnaire for each CIS, with an accompanying set of definitions and methodological recommendations which are adopted by all countries and are fully consistent with the definitions in the methodological manual 'Oslo Manual'.

Not applicable.

Data are comparable over time.

Data obtained from the Innovation survey are coherent with R&D data.

Not applicable.

Not applicable.

Not applicable.

Regular press release

· Statistical Yearbook;

· Statistical Reference book.

Data are available for all users on the NSI website and on NSI information system INFOSTAT under the heading R&D, Innovation and Information Society. 

According to Rules for provision of anonymised individual data for scientific and research purposes of the National Statistical Institute.

Information service on request, according to the Rules for dissemination of statistical products and services of NSI.

Methodological manual 'Oslo Manual' (Guidelines for collecting, reporting and using data on innovation - Oslo Manual, 2018).

Quality reports on Innovation statistics.

Not applicable.

· Law on Statistics;

· Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 on European statistics (recital 24 and Article 20(4)) of 11 March 2009 (OJ L 87, p. 164), stipulates the need to establish common principles and guidelines ensuring the confidentiality of data used for the production of European statistics and the access to those confidential data with due account for technical developments and the requirements of users in a democratic society.

The individual (primary) data are confidential according to the Law on Statistics and European legislation. To ensure their protection and inability to be identified, the aggregated indicators are also defined as confidential when the indicator is calculated from one or two enterprises or one enterprise formed more than 85% of the total value of this indicator.