Whereas economic growth is recognized as the most important instrument for the decline in global poverty levels in the past 50 years, not all countries have been equally successful at reducing poverty, and income inequality has risen considerably within and among countries. Moreover, current production processes cannot be sustained within planetary boundaries: resource depletion, climate change, massive increases in waste production and pollution are challenges that have endured. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development calls upon countries to pursue a different kind of growth, one that is socially inclusive and environmentally sustainable.

The driving force of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, or Industry 4.0, will be innovation – experimenting with different ways to make use of a range of emerging physical, digital and biological technologies that transform how we produce, consume, and interact and, ultimately, how it meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). New technologies include remarkable advances in artificial intelligence, robotics, automation, the Internet of Things, 3D printing and additive manufacturing, nanotechnology, and biotechnology.