The Fourth Industrial Revolution or Industry 4.0 has become a commonplace term on the minds of politicians, industry leaders, academics and people alike. It represents a future which holds the promise of accelerated disruption and the birth of new technologies that stands to revolutionise our daily lives.Translating such buzzwords into actionable initiatives that will forever reshape the economy is no simple feat.
Less than two weeks ago, Alibaba Group co-founder Jack Ma revealed that he was in discussion with the Indonesian government regarding the possibility of opening an institute to train tech entrepreneurs in the country. This, he said, would help Indonesia meet the skill demands of Industry 4.0, also known as the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR).
The Singapore government has hailed small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) as being the driving force behind its economy, saying they make up 99 percent of all enterprises in the country and employ 65 percent of the country’s workforce.
Singapore’s Education Minister Ong Ye Kung recently revealed that the government there intends to bring in foreign talent in areas critical to Industry 4.0. Ong said that meanwhile, the country will work on rebalancing its education system to meet future demand.
As the world moves into the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution or Industry 4.0, governance at regional and global levels is a key issue to contend with. Effective governance is necessary to adequately manage public issues that cut across national borders such as cybersecurity, cross-border terrorism, international trade and climate change.
While Industry 4.0, also known as the Fourth Industrial Revolution, presents a great many challenges to less developed frontier economies like Cambodia and Lao PDR, more developed countries in the region have not been spared as well.
It’s a given that while Industry 4.0 or the Fourth Industrial Revolution opens windows of opportunity for some countries, it provides challenges to others, forcing them to play catch-up. In Cambodia, people still rely heavily on agriculture for their livelihoods.
The rusty supply chains of the past have little to no bearing on the future as Southeast Asia shifts towards realising its vision for Industry 4.0. The world over, operational processes are becoming more digitised, transparent, connected and highly efficient.A digital supply chain (DSC) relies on several key elements like integrated planning and execution systems, autonomous logistics and smart procurement.
The impact new technologies have when it comes to initiating change in the world has never been more apparent than during the last two decades. Ever since the advent of Web 2.0 in the early 2000s, technology has advanced rapidly. Within that time span new technologies have revolutionised all aspects of our lives. People are now more connected, work has become a lot easier and transactions have become seamless.
