The impact of technological change on developing countries

The accelerating capability of computing power and development of artificial intelligence poses new questions regarding the future of work. Estimates of the potential impact over the coming decades range from around ten percent of jobs being vulnerable to over half of jobs being done by machines. All these studies focus on the USA and Europe, and there has been almost no work undertaken on the implications for the future of work in developing countries and for Africa. Very little is known about the jobs of the future and what the implications of this may be for development pathways and investments in education, skills and government spending. The economic geography of job losses and new jobs, in terms of where new jobs will be created, and the implications for different groups in society, such as women, youth, elderly and the urban-rural divide has also not received attention. The research fellowship will allow for an exploration of the extent to which technology will provide a springboard for growth or lead to widening inequalities, with reference to South Africa and Africa and developing countries more broadly.