On September 1, 2017, the Center for New Structural Economics (CNSE) and the Institute of South-South Cooperation and Development jointly held the 18th International Development Forum at Peking University. The topic of the forum was “Structural Transformation in Developing Countries: a UNCTAD Perspective”. Dr. Richard Kozul-Wright, Director of the Globalization and Development Strategies Division of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), delivered a keynote speech on emerging economies in the era of hyper globalization. Dr. Jiajun Xu, Executive Deputy Director of the CNSE, hosted the forum.

According to a recent UNCTAD research, hyper globalization has exerted a skewed and uneven impact on developing countries. Dr. Kozul-Wright emphasized, therefore, that the status quo required a reassessment of the current rules and practices of the international economic game, with much greater accommodation of active macroeconomic policies as well as industrial policies. Based on data collected from the Southern countries since the 1990s, Dr. Kozul-Wright concluded with several points on industrial policies, including targeting diversification and upgrading to foster strong productivity growth; bringing together macroeconomic, financial trade and industrial policies to create synergies.

The UNCTAD Flagship Trade and Development Report 2017 will be launched in the upcoming 20th International Development Forum on September 14, 2017. Please stay tuned!