The global Covid-19 pandemic crisis is the gravest global disaster of modern times. Above all it is important to reflect on the sustainability of the mode of hyper globalization of the past three decades, which was witnessed through multiple interconnectedness of global-regional-national-local value chains, enabled by the internet digital economy, offshoring, outsourcing, rapid urbanization and a borderless world of travel and commerce. It is Globalization that enabled the rapid ‘warp like’ spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, destroying over 2 million lives and disrupting every nation and economy. Humanity was presented with a unique opportunity to cooperate with the United Nations (UN) around a common historical crisis. Sadly, it rapidly descended into a mostly rabid nationalistic form of vaccine nationalism and selfishness, which became the moniker of international relations, especially with regards to the Covid-19 vaccine development, starkly divided by geopolitics and mistrust. In this context, the latest publication COVID Reset 2021, is timely as it provides thought provoking expert insights on the varying and structural impacts in a Covid world order and contours of a global post-Covid economic recovery. The report further elucidates that options to boost growth performance & economic recovery are better known (i.e. addressing basic distortions), yet new approaches will have to be found as the manufacturing-led development model is fast losing its power with the advent of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
