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Interview with Andrea Carapellese, International Expert on Investment & Technology at UNIDO

Here is the interview of the month with Andrea Carapellese, International Expert on Investment & Technology at UNIDO. Enjoy the reading!

Sustainable industrial development also passes through interventions that identify a second life for the many mass-market products that reach developing countries: how can entrepreneurs reconcile the need to guarantee high sales volumes with the need to innovate in an environmentally responsible manner?

The winning rationale is to radically change the model of the economy from linear to circular, even if the goal appears very challenging, even in developing countries. The transition must also be tackled at the cultural level, changing reference models and exploiting existing potential at the local level. The main areas to focus on in my opinion are three:

– INNOVATION > with the design of eco-friendly products, thinking of objects that can be dismantled and repaired, creating autonomous local supply chains to reduce waste, reuse materials or integrate technologies that make systems more efficient, especially those that are very energy-intensive and polluting.

– CIRCULAR MODELS > somewhat like many sectors already do, industrial manufacturing can also be made more responsible for the supply chain by acting on consumption patterns. Today, retail also sells services, not just property, designing interesting rental and leasing schemes that facilitate circular dynamics.

– EDUCATION AND AWARENESS > it is also necessary to focus on value communication to make people understand that there is a real win-win in thinking in a circular way, also focusing attention on the intrinsic value of second-hand or remanufactured products, while defining norms, common standards and guidelines to promote sustainability in mass consumption.

To fight world hunger, how could public institutions act alongside private ones? In other words, what kind of partnership would be really effective?

First of all, there is the mutual benefit. The strength of this public-private tandem can be appreciated above all in the financial and technological aspects and in the valorisation of innovation. This is especially true in emerging economies, particularly in the area of food security, where the challenges are so wide-ranging that it facilitates the presence of different kinds of actors. The best partnerships are those that work on product and process innovation, assisting local supply chains, as in the case of improving the cold chain or food storage. Right now, despite the high number of people suffering from hunger, the technologies to feed everyone on the planet exist and must be implemented, not forgetting the important contribution of the digital revolution applied to the agricultural sector. We need to go beyond ‘business as usual’ by combining local knowledge and technology.

Supply chains are at the centre of ESG analysis and progress: how can entrepreneurs be asked to have an in-depth understanding of the behaviour of all their suppliers, especially along global supply chains and/or supply chains?

The higher the quality (and sustainability) of the product, the more it is in the interest of the manufacturing company to be aware of an ever larger part of the supply chain. Innovation also helps in this. UNIDO works hard on this, and it is no coincidence that our payoff is ‘Progress by Innovation’. Technologies such as blockchain can for example accompany important reforms as happened in the case of Rwanda through the experimentation on property titles to combat land grabbing, or by facilitating the access of small producers to the market and the decentralisation of trade. Innovation applied to traceability will make a strong contribution to sustainability if it is accompanied by policies geared towards greater transparency and accountability in the various supply chains.

What are the drivers that, in UNIDO’s ten-year experience, work best to rebuild the industrial capacity of a country in the aftermath of an armed conflict?

I answer by giving the example of UNIDO’s work in IRAQ, where within the Investment Promotion for Iraq project funded by Italy we focused on three aspects.

– REGULATORY AND LEGAL ENVIRONMENT > giving support for the drafting of appropriate laws, as in the case of the intervention on industrial zones.

– BUSINESS SKILLS > after complicated periods, trade restarts before industry, which needs time, technology, infrastructure and knowledge. This is why we have set up Entrepreneurship Development Centres in Basra, Nassirya and Erbil – in Iraqi Kurdistan – in Iraq, as well as activities that are still in progress to accompany a Business Centre in Baghdad within the Iraqi Federation of Industries, where we are working on vocational training and networking to create investment and training opportunities.

– INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGICAL TRANSFER > are two other key components to prepare the ground for the exchange of best practices aimed at enabling local industry to see its role in the region improved. For example, Iraq used to be a net exporter of foodstuffs, now it imports many goods. The challenges, however, go beyond the individual sector, as is the case, for example, with the absence of a strong domestic packaging industry, one of the bottlenecks – among others – in reactivating the agri-food sector for export.

If you had to name 3 global challenges on which to focus the efforts of the international community, what would they be and why?

All global challenges are interlinked, so an increasingly holistic approach is needed. The first one, however, would definitely be action on climate change adaptation and mitigation as this is the cause and effect of many other contemporary challenges. I would then add access to food and, as a result of the first two points, the great challenge of humanitarian crises and ongoing conflicts. They are all part of a changing world that needs more than ever an integrated approach involving governments, international organisations, civil society and the private sector in a truly multilateral perspective, in which international cooperation can concretely contribute to ensuring a sustainable and inclusive future for all.

NOTE: the interviews here are not part of any paid commercial services. They have the sole purpose of sharing ideas, projects and reflections (released at personal level) for the benefit of the subscribers to De-LAB’s newsletter.