Green Industrialisation Must Serve Development Goals of the Global South, Economist Argues

Green industrialisation — the transformation of economies toward higher-productivity, lower-carbon manufacturing — offers developing countries a rare opportunity to unite decarbonisation with structural economic transformation, according to Ilias Alami, Assistant Professor of Political Economy at the University of Cambridge. In a conversation with the Centre for Science and Environment's Carbon Politics podcast, Alami outlined the challenges and opportunities for the Global South in pursuing this agenda.

Alami defines industrialisation as the structural shift of an economy from agriculture toward higher-productivity industrial and manufacturing activities that diversify economic output, create stable employment and raise incomes. Green industrialisation adds the dimension of ensuring that this transition happens through low-carbon production methods, renewable energy and resource-efficient technology. For developing countries, this combination is particularly significant because it potentially allows them to industrialise without following the high-carbon path taken by today's wealthy nations, while simultaneously building the industrial base needed for sustained development.

The agenda faces significant headwinds for the Global South. Access to clean technology is constrained by intellectual property barriers and high upfront costs. Financing conditions for developing country green industry projects are far more expensive than for equivalent investments in rich countries. Global trade rules and carbon border mechanisms, such as the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, risk disadvantaging developing nations whose industries are still transitioning, creating new forms of green protectionism.

Alami argues that developing countries need to pursue green industrialisation not as a concession to rich-country climate demands but as a strategy aligned with their own long-term economic interests. State-led industrial policy, strategic use of development finance and South-South technology cooperation are identified as critical tools. For India, with its large manufacturing base and significant renewable energy potential, the green industrialisation agenda offers an opportunity to capture competitive advantage in global clean technology supply chains if the right policy architecture is established.

Key figure — Green industrialisation discussed in episode 11 of CSE's Carbon Politics podcast