Structural transformation and the changing geography of manufacturing employment

As countries develop over time, the structure of their economy (and thus employment) changes, as seen in Chapter 1. This chapter looks at the spatial shifts in manufacturing employment between regions and countries, as well as within countries, stemming from the structural transformation or change. With developed countries becoming richer and many less developed countries being lifted out of poverty, recent decades have seen an important shift in the distribution of manufacturing around the globe. Although North America, Industrialized Europe and Japan still account for around 40 percent of global manufacturing value added, the rise of value added in East Asia and the Pacific, particularly China, over the last few decades has been dramatic – a shift even more prominent than in manufacturing employment (World Bank 2013b; for a list of countries see Annex 8)

Sustainable Development Goals:

Decent Work and Economic Growth

Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure