UNIDO Publications
2025 | Author(s): C. Donnelly & A. Lavopa
#Policy Brief
Industrialization is widely acknowledged as a powerful driver of inclusive and sustainable development. This policy brief summarizes new empirical findings applying Causal Mediation Analysis to assess how industrialization contributes to selected Sustainable Development Goals. The results show that indirect effects can account for up to half of the total impact of industrialization on socioeconomic and environmental outcomes, thus underscoring the importance of considering these effects in industrial policymaking.
Circular Economy and Digitalization
2025 | Author(s): GACERE
#GACERE #Circular economy
The Circular Economy and Digitalization working paper is developed in collaboration with the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). Its purpose is to provide action-oriented recommendations for mainstreaming digitalization technologies to support circular economy and enhance collaboration among policymakers, businesses and relevant stakeholders to overcome barriers.
2025 | Author(s): Colette van der Ven & Sanvid Tuljapurkar, Virpi Stucki, Stefan Pahl & Helena van Thiel
#Policy Brief
International trade has brought significant opportunities for economic diversification and development. Global supply chains, however, have also long been associated with environmental degradation and human rights abuses. Since voluntary commitments have proven insufficient to end harmful practices in their entirety, countries around the world are adopting sustainability-driven regulations, imposing mandatory requirements for more sustainable production and trade. Adapting to these new requirements comes at a cost, both for businesses and at the country level and there are increasing concerns, particularly in industrializing countries, about the burden that these costs may represent. This policy brief contextualizes current discussions, by distinguishing between different types of sustainability-driven supply chain regulations and associated costs of compliance.
IID Policy Brief 21: The future of industrialization: Harnessing megatrends for sustainable growth
2025 | Author(s): J. Hauge, K. Chan, C. Donnelly, N. Haraguchi, A. Lavopa
#Policy Brief
The global industrial landscape is undergoing transformative change, driven by megatrends such as the energy transition, artificial intelligence and digitalization, global value chain reconfiguration, and demographic shifts. These trends present unique opportunities for developing countries to foster sustainable and inclusive industrial growth. However, foundational challenges, including deficits in infrastructure, skills, and technological capabilities, must be addressed. This policy brief highlights the potential of targeted industrial policies to harness these megatrends while overcoming barriers.
2025 | Author(s): F. Hartwich, A. Ruhe & D. Tezera
#Policy Brief
Developing countries face an urgent need to provide more and better food for their growing populations. These countries currently only process very little of their own agricultural output, resulting in widespread malnutrition among their citizens. A large share of processed food consumed domestically is still being imported, while little value is added to locally produced food, which is often exported in its raw form. Although developing countries are the largest producers of primary food products, it is developed countries that dominate global food exports due to their processing capacity. Agroindustry presents a significant opportunity for developing countries to substitute imports and add value to their agricultural products, thereby improving their food security and generating jobs and income. The barriers to value addition in food production across developing countries are explored and policy recommendations to overcome these challenges are presented.
2025 | Author(s): R. Asiama, E. Avenyo, A. Habiyaremye, P. Ncube, F. Tregenna, C. Donnelly & A. Lavopa
#Policy Brief
Africa stands at a crucial juncture, with both significant challenges and a vast potential for transformative growth through industrial development. Despite progress, the continent faces substantial gaps toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly in access to energy, economic growth, job creation, industrialization, and innovation. Future-ready industrial policies that are rooted in Africa’s unique context and resources can catalyse SDG progress by creating economic resilience, driving innovation, generating decent jobs, and spurring structural transformation. This policy brief explores how African countries can engage with and leverage global megatrends such as the energy transition, digital transformation, and regional integration to unlock sustainable development opportunities.
The Multilateral Industrial Policy Forum (MIPF) - Outcome document
2025 | Author(s): UNIDO
The second edition of the Multilateral Industrial Policy Forum (MIPF) 2024, organized jointly by UNIDO and the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources (MIM) of Saudi Arabia, took place from 23-34 October in Riyadh. The Forum brought together high-level Member State representatives, industry stakeholders and experts to explore innovative approaches and solutions for advancing inclusive and sustainable industrial development aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), centred around three key themes—artificial intelligence and automation in manufacturing, the energy transition, and resilient supply chains.
2025 | Author(s): B. Tse, F. Hartwich
#Policy Brief
With the recent expansion of the BRICS the organization is becoming an important platform for cooperation between emerging markets. As of end-2023, BRICS already represents a population of almost four billion people and a combined economy of over USD 28.5 trillion, or 27 per cent of the world’s economy, and is expected to grow rapidly. Against the backdrop of an increasingly influential BRICS this policy brief examines what the BRICS bloc has achieved, how it has shifted global trade, and how developing countries can better benefit from their BRICS membership and relations.