Mobilizing research for contextualized innovation: scarcity and urgency as drivers during Covid-19 in the South

Abstract Developing countries faced significant challenges during the Covid-19 pandemic, including severe difficulties in importing essential medical supplies and equipment. Domestic production of such devices, often based on blueprints requiring expensive resources, was constrained by widespread shortages. However, many Latin American and other Southern nations successfully mobilized their scientific communities to develop efficient, context-specific solutions to these challenges. This paper explores how conditions of urgency and scarcity acted as catalysts for innovative problem-solving. It examines three pandemic-related innovations in Uruguay by conducting comprehensive interviews with key stakeholders. By examining the lessons learned from these innovation processes, this paper contributes to public policy discussions on leveraging innovation capacities under scarcity and highlights pathways for collaborative responses to future health challenges. Additionally, it contributes to the ongoing literature debate on how to drive innovation—specifically, on directionality and transformative action—by advocating for context-specific, alternative technological solutions across different regions to achieve global health objectives.