Industry, innovation and infrastructure

Due to tariffs and trade tensions between the world’s dominant economies, global manufacturing growth was already in decline before the COVID-19 pandemic. When it struck, the movement of people and goods was restricted, disrupting global value chains, as well as global manufacturing and transport industries. Small-scale industries in particular have been severely affected. The lack of resilient infrastructure, information and communication technologies, and basic services limits a country’s ability to perform and adjust to shocks. For the global community to achieve Goal 9, industrialization, improvements in infrastructure, and the promotion of technological innovation by increasing investment in research and development are key. The development and production of vaccines against COVID-19 in record time is one example of the power of technological innovation, which has given the world cause for hope.