Covid And The Sentiment Against Globalisation

The pandemic will permanently change the contours of globalisation. India needs to understand that and work towards making its manufacturing industries self-reliant

- Prosenjit Datta

Covid-19 may permanently alter the contours of globalisation and Indian policymakers need to be aware of both the opportunities and the threats. Before Covid-19, the anti-globalisation sentiment was driven largely by leaders who had promised to create more jobs for their countrymen. Now it is being spurred by supply side concerns, especially in a few critical areas.

Last year, supply chain disruptions were caused by lockdowns in different nations. China’s lockdown of Wuhan created the initial disruption. But as other countries too closed their borders to reduce the pandemic, freight movement globally was thrown out of gear. The need to stockpile healthcare essentials such as PPEs and sanitisers also caused countries with production facilities to clamp down on exports to other countries. The natural by-product of this was that all countries looked for local manufacturing options for these.

Many experts thought this would be temporary. The unprecedented global cooperation to search for vaccines and drugs seemed to show that globalisation would increase rather than decrease. Vaccine research and development saw scientists, research laboratories, pharmaceutical firms, clinical trial organisations and contract vaccine manufacturers across the world work closely together.