SPOTLIGHT
Learning from lockdowns
W
ith most economies under full or partial lockdown and with trade and investment
contracting, the future of moving out production from industrialized economies to lower wage, labor abundant developing countries remains uncertain. Although manufacturing activity bounced back after the initial COVID-19 shock, UNIDO statistics anticipate an unprecedented decline of 8.7 percent in global manufacturing for the year 2020. Recent UNIDO survey results indicate that the majority of African policymakers expect industry revenues to drop by more than 25 percent in 2020, with some suggesting it could be over 50 percent. Similarly, in Asian emerging economies, half the firms surveyed by UNIDO expect a drastic decline in company profits by 50 percent or higher for 2020. The UNIDO 'Industrial Development
Report 2020' notes that, even before the outbreak of COVID-19, advanced digital production technologies were giving rise to opportunities to reorganize international production. This trend is now reinforced through the pandemic, which could lead to a further diversification of supply sources in order to avoid future risks of supply chain disruptions. The supply chain and travel disruptions might also undermine regional economic integration and encourage self-sufficient economic systems, at least in strategic sectors such as personal protective equipment.
AfCFTA provides immense potential for increased
industrialization, diversification and job creation in Africa
PHOTO: Katiekk/
Shutterstock.com
No single country or entity can achieve all the development goals alone
T
he international community must be committed to working in partnerships to mobilize the
knowledge, expertise, technology, and financial resources to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 goals. The necessity of this global partnership is even more pronounced now, as no one can overcome the pandemic alone or address the myriad of consequences on its own. Governments set the national
development agenda and targets, while UN specialized agencies – such as UNIDO – bring in the technical know- how and expertise to support public and private stakeholders in building the capacities to achieve their (industrial) development goals, which can also take on a regional dimension. For this, UNIDO works in multi-stakeholder partnerships
and in synergy with regional entities and their partners, including financial institutions that enable developing countries to invest in large-scale industrial infrastructure projects. As a neutral party, UNIDO and other UN entities also facilitate dialogue between governments, financial institutions, private entities, civil society and other development actors, for coordinated actions, including at the regional level. UNIDO and the OPEC Fund, for
instance, enjoy a long-standing relationship and have collaborated to promote stustainable development, for example, through a regional initiative to enhance the productivity and competitiveness of the fisheries sector in Latin America and the Caribbean. In the environmental sphere, an
Access to energy is a pre-condition for countries and regions to industrialize, and is vital for economic growth and development
initiative was launched recently bringing together governments, and relevant global networks and organizations, to promote transitions toward a circular economy, sustainable consumption and production patterns, and inclusive and sustainable industrialization. Set up by the European Union (EU), the UN Environment Programme and UNIDO, the ‘Global Alliance on Circular Economy and Resource Efficiency’ is joined to date by the EU and 11 countries across the globe, and builds on existing initiatives and cooperation with regional alliances (such as the African Circular Economy Alliance, and the Regional Coalition on Circular Economy of Latin America and the Caribbean).
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PHOTO: UNIDO
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