*Challenges for the Promotion of Innovation and R&D in Latin America: A Territorial Perspective DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.112289*

modern challenge. However, other challenges are linked to political or social factors such as instability, economic, or technological factors, such as the still limited technological infrastructure, and the dependence or rigidity of the productive sectors based on the exploitation and export of raw materials.

All this means that the regions must look for new strategies to reduce gaps. The focus on technological innovation systems can be an alternative since these focus on specific technologies, thus crossing geographical limits. In this way, the actors of a given system can seek extra-regional alliances to promote their regional innovation systems.

On the other hand, universities and actors related to knowledge development play a role that is becoming more important in different regions. This role is especially linked to initiatives to promote startups, the generation of technology companies, and the development of the venture capital market; this may be especially important in regions, where actors related to government sectors have limited leadership to implement initiatives to promote innovation.
