Selected problems and roles of innovation development in the Slovak Republic

In the current conditions of globalization, the importance of innovation is growing. Innovation is a key to sustainable growth, a tool to increase the competitiveness of companies, regions, states and integration groups, a means to address societal challenges. The European Union pays great attention to innovation efforts - f.e. through the group-wide strategies of competitiveness such as the Lisbon strategy and the Europe 2020 strategy. The aim of the paper is to evaluate the fulfillment of the Europe 2020 national goals for Slovakia in the field of smart growth, to analyze selected issues of innovative development in Slovakia and to propose possible measures for its improvement. As the subject matter is extremely complex and multitangular, the paper discusses only selected issues and questions.