OECD Forecasts Global Change in Economic Development Activities

Megatrends like ageing societies and digitization are expected to shape future research and development agendas across the globe, according to a recent report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).  A broader distribution of science, technology and innovation are expected around the world due to the fast pace of economic development in emerging economies, and global competition for talent and resources will most likely intensify according to the OECD Science, Technology and Innovation Outlook 2016. Such megatrends, and others highlighted in the report, require policy responses that will likely face major constraints, including high public debt, international security threats, a possible erosion of social cohesion and the rise of influential non-state actors, the report maintains.

While developments in science, technology and innovation may offer solutions to challenges in fields like communications, transportation and health, such developments and emerging technologies also carry risks.  Advances in artificial intelligence and robotics raise concern over future jobs; big data around privacy; 3D printing around piracy of intellectual property; synthetic biology around biosecurity; and, neurosciences around human dignity.  Public sector science is creating new fields of research and funding issues – including the decline in public funding of universities – will continue to evolve and new funding sources will need to be found, the study maintains.

Many countries have emphasized supporting firms’ capacity to innovate, but the picture differs across countries and the gap between low-growth and high-growth countries is widening. The study notes that even within Europe, differences in investment profiles signal a growing threat to the cohesion of the European Union.