Cluster Assessment of European Countries in Terms of Digitalisation and Sustainable Development

Abstract

The world economic development nowadays is characterised by the significance of digital innovations and sustainable development in all areas of production and management. However, the existing literature still cannot explain how environmental, economic and social factors of sustainable development corresponding to these innovations affect the new global ecosystem, based on the introduction and adaptation of digital technologies and achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the national level. The article presents the results of the authors’ assessment and classification of countries according to the achievement of the SDGs and implementation of digital innovations in the national and global economy. The empirical analysis utilises the data on the digitalisation performance indicators of the Global Innovation Index (GII) and the Sustainable Development Goals Index (SDG Index). The country assessment matrix was classified in terms of digitalisation and sustainable development and tested on a sample of European countries. Cluster analysis of 39 European countries identified four homogeneous clusters, which have distinctive systemic characteristics: advanced countries, catching-up countries, locomotive countries and leaders in sustainable and digital development. The identified clusters expand the possibilities for substantiating socio-economic and technological strategies at the country — region — industry level. Russia is revealed as one of the eleven catching-up countries. The paper specifies the directions of the strategy to achieve the target digitalisation and sustainable development in the process of integration of the SDGs into national indicators. The proposed assessment can be used to adjust the state policy for the co-development of digital innovations and sustainable development indicators.