The green technology industry could be worth several trillion dollars by 2030, but developing countries will miss out on the boom unless they jump in now, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said Thursday (16.03.2023) as it launched its Technologies and Innovation 2023 report.
Three years ago the situation was more or less equal, but exports of green technology from the most advanced countries are already outstripping those of developing nations, he warned.
“We are at the beginning of a technological revolution based on green technologies,” said the UNCTAD Director, Rebeca Grynspan. "Missing this technological wave would have lasting negative implications."
According to the report, 17 key frontier technologies, which are at the forefront of green innovation, could create a market worth more than USD 9,5 trillion by 2030, up from USD 1,5 trillion in 2020. Technologies include artificial intelligence, electric vehicles, green hydrogen, biofuels, nanotechnology, 5G, gene editing, robotics, 3D printing, wind energy and blockchain.
This innovation can be used to produce goods and services in a way that leaves a smaller carbon footprint. In this respect, the United States and China currently dominate these fields, with a combined 70% of patents.
Ranking in preparation
In terms of readiness to adopt and exploit such technologies, UNCTAD's ranking is dominated by high-income countries, led by the United States (1), Sweden (2), Singapore (3), Switzerland (4) and the Netherlands (5).
Of the developing countries, China ranks 35th in the ranking of 166 countries. And of the nations of South AmericaBrazil ranks 40th, Chile 48th, Uruguay 63rd, Argentina 65th, the highest in the American subcontinent.
China's lower-than-expected ranking is due to patchy rural internet coverage and slow broadband speeds.
Despite a level start, a gap is already opening up in green technology exports, with developed countries pulling away from the rest with exponential growth.
Namely, total green technology exports from developed countries increased from around USD 60 billion in 2018 to over USD 156 billion in 2021, while during the same period, exports from developing countries, including China, increased from USD 57 billion to around USD 75 billion.
In those three years, developing countries' share of world exports fell from more than 48 percent to less than 33 percent.
Domestic policies + global cooperation
UNCTAD therefore noted that “great efforts are needed on the part of governments” and suggested that governments of developing countries align their environmental, scientific, technological, innovation and industrial policies.
He also invited to prioritize the Your Strategic in greener and more complex sectors, to provide incentives to shift consumer demand towards greener goods and to boost investment in research and development. They must also urgently strengthen skills skills of their workers and increase investments in ICT infrastructure, addressing connectivity gaps between small and large businesses and between urban and rural regions.
“Much of the success of its internal policies will depend on the Global cooperation through international trade, which would require reforms to existing trade rules to ensure their consistency with the Paris Agreement to address climate change,” said the main United Nations institution dealing with trade and development.
UNCTAD's report is a step closer to making that future a reality: a low-carbon world.
Let's do something. (“Technology and Innovation 2023” Report)
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