It is generally accepted that education, research and innovation make the knowledge-based society that strives for comprehensive human development. Hence, improvement of the quality of education and learning at all levels is needed. In the case of Macedonia, the populism of the main political parties, week culture of entrepreneurship and the fragile capacities of local communities have been undermining the road to KBS for decades. Main question is how to build the culture of respect for the educated.
Published in Chapter:
Digital Social Innovation for Better Connected Government: The Case of Republic of Macedonia
Natalija Najdova (University Ss Cyril and Methodius in Skopje, Macedonia), Jasmina Belchovska Tasevska (United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Skopje, Macedonia), Smilka Janeska Sarkanjac (University Ss Cyril and Methodius in Skopje, Macedonia), Branislav Sarkanjac (University Ss Cyril and Methodius in Skopje, Macedonia), and Dimitar Trajanov (University Ss Cyril and Methodius in Skopje, Macedonia)
Copyright: © 2021
|Pages: 26
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4570-6.ch007
Abstract
Social innovation (SI) refers to new products, processes, and methods that, in a creative and sustainable way, offer a better solution to social demands, which often requires changes in the practices of existing social systems. Digital social innovation (DSI) is ICT-based SI that uses digital technologies to invoke such changes. This chapter presents an insight into DSI in the Republic of Macedonia and reports the results of a survey to show the level of understanding, awareness, and knowledge of DSI in the country. Although the idea of DSI is to bypass the governments, motivate people to self-organize, and solve their societal problems, results suggest that without a good strategy, enough funding, and suitable societal governance, it is difficult to tackle the challenges of raising the awareness of an individual or a community that it is they themselves who are the change-enablers as members of a social network.