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Science, technology and innovation (STI) policies increasingly operate in a multilevel policy governance structure. This paper analyzes the variety of local authorities’ innovation support mechanisms for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Japan, drawing on a unique data set of 241 local SME research and development (R&D) subsidy programmes at the prefecture and city/municipality levels. The variation of SME R&D subsidy programmes in terms of institutional forms and coordination practices of multilevel innovation support mechanisms is analyzed as manifestations of the complex territorial adaptability. The institutional co-evolutionary processes between different levels of governments help both vertical and horizontal coordination in a highly centralized system.
Okamuro et al. (Tue,) studied this question.