Industrial Development Report 2018

The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) launched its 2018 Industrial Development Report (IDR) on Demand for Manufacturing: Driving Inclusive and Sustainable Industrial Development, at an event held on the sidelines of the seventeenth session of the UNIDO General Conference. The main findings of the report were presented and discussed with a panel of leading experts in the field of industrial development. Although industrial development has typically been studied from a supply-side perspective, by placing demand at the centre of attention, this year’s Report acknowledges the role of manufacturing industries as major providers of new and improved goods. It considers the importance of demand as an important driver of industrial development and what policies can be implemented to steer demand towards the achievement of inclusive and sustainable industrial development. From a demand perspective, the importance of industrialization can hardly be overestimated. Manufactured goods account for up to 60 per cent of household consumption worldwide. Moreover, industrial goods tend to become cheaper over time, reaching a growing number of consumers. The IDR 2018 highlights the fact that the consumption of manufactured goods is an important catalyst for the achievement of SDG 9. Without a critical mass of consumers, industrialization cannot take off and be sustained over time.

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