IV World Manufacturing and Industrialization Summit (GMIS2021)

November 27, 2021

The IV World Manufacturing and Industrialization Summit (GMIS2021) was held from 22 to 27 November in Dubai, UAE. This year, the Summit was held in parallel with EXPO 2020 (previously postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic) under the patronage of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of Dubai. The main theme for this year was “Restructuring Societies: Using Digital Technologies to Thrive”.

GMIS 2021 is a joint initiative of UNIDO and the United Arab Emirates‘ Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology that will bring together again government leaders, policy makers, the private sector, academia and civil society from around the world to collaborate to achieve an inclusive and sustainable future of manufacturing.

The GMIS program included lectures, panel discussions, fireplace talks and interviews with some of the most prominent industry leaders, as well as working groups, interactive workshops, youth sessions and events related to GMIS initiatives such as the Mohammed bin Rashid Initiative (MBR) for Global Prosperity and the Green Chain Decarbonization Initiative.

“GMIS is instrumental in building the strong partnerships, networks and collaborative initiatives needed in the digital age as we accelerate sustainable solutions and transform the world to address the biggest challenge of the 2030 Agenda, including SDG 9. To achieve this digital transformation, we must work closely with private sector partners, governments and academia. GMIS2021 will be a catalyst for transformative ideas and actions, ”said UNIDO Director Lee Yong.

The themes of cooperation and sustainability were highlighted in the keynote speech by the Minister of Industry and Advanced Technologies and GMIS Co-Chair Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber. He spoke about the challenges faced by the industrial and commercial sector during the COVID-19 period and what is now required to resume growth and stimulate opportunities. „For industry leaders, the lesson of recovery from the pandemic is clear: true recovery requires resilience,“ he said, adding that industrial progress „depends on smart partnerships.“

Within the framework of GMIS2021, discussions took place on such topics as “Society 5.0: Building Smart Societies”, “Energy as a Service (EaaS): Digitalization of the Electricity Industry”, “Demystifying the Blockchain: Optimizing Supply Chains” and many others.

With the support of the UNIDO CIIC in the Russian Federation, a section “Cybersecurity: Trust in zero trust” was organized with the participation of Andrey Suvorov, General Director of the NGO Adaptive Industrial Technologies (Aprotech).

Sergey Korotkov, Director of the UNIDO CIIC in the Russian Federation, also took part in the GMIS events. In the section “Managing health and safety in a cyberphysical environment” Sergey Anatolyevich, together with other participants, discussed the possibilities of digital technologies in improving the safety of employees, in particular workers in factories, as well as the importance of human-machine interfaces for new standards and rules of labor protection, issues of increasing competence and staff training in new digital environments.

Participants and guests of the Summit also attended #GMIS2021, which was held at the Dubai Exhibition Center.

GMIS2021 brought together global leaders, business leaders and business executives, civil society representatives and many others to study the leading technological, industrial and political trends that will shape the post-pandemic response to create a more sustainable future.