Of progress and men

"We" had a very interesting discussion yesterday. I said something that I have said often. And it goes something like this.
Governments and bureaucracy everywhere believes in one thing: Status Quo. Meaning, everything remains the way it is. That means no progress. That is true everywhere. If you think that it's different in the west, think again. Progress is driven by the academia and the enterpreneurs in the private sector.
Unfortunately in our case, the academia where there is a desire and action to move forward, there isnt quality intake of students. And where there is quality intake of students, there is lack of desire and drive to progress, there is status quo.
We have to step out of this in order to move forward.
As for entrepreneurs, ours want returns before they make any investment. In progressive nations, there is investment in R&D of a product for years before it bears fruit. To our entrepreneurs, salaries are not an investment, but an expense.