The Global Manufacturing and Industrialisation Summit, GMIS, the pioneering cross-industry forum launched in the UAE in 2017, announced that Russia has secured the rights to host its 2nd edition in 2019 in the city of Yekaterinburg, the fourth-largest city in Russia.

The announcement was made by Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation, during his plenary session at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, SPIEF, alongside Emmanuel Macron,, President of France, Shinzo Abe, Japan’s Prime Minister, Wang Qishan, Vice President of the People's Republic of China, and Christine Lagarde, International Monetary Fund, IMF Managing Director.

Commenting on the announcement, Suhail bin Mohammed Faraj Faris Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Industry, said, "In 2019 the UAE and Russia will, together, build on the platform the groundbreaking 2017 Summit provided to ensure manufacturing adapts, evolves, advances, and retains its place at the vanguard of global economic prosperity."

He also highlighted the UAE’s commitment to driving efforts that support the realisation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the country’s growing role as a global capital for 4IR applications and its endeavour to build prosperity at a global, as well as a national, level.

For his part, Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, Group Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director of Mubadala Investment Company and Chairman of the Advisory Board for the GMIS, said, "Russia’s successful bid to host GMIS2019 is a recognition of the important role GMIS is playing in shaping the future of manufacturing and industrial innovation. This summit will address ways in which manufacturing is reshaping the world and creating new opportunities in markets around the globe. We are pleased to be partnering with the Russian Federation to host GMIS2019 - a country that is synonymous with manufacturing and has the ambition to turn new innovation into reality."

A joint initiative by the UAE and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, UNIDO, GMIS bridges the gap between manufacturers, governments and NGOs, technologists, and investors in harnessing the 4th Industrial Revolution’s transformation of manufacturing, to enable the regeneration of the global economy.

The first edition of the GMIS was held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, at the Paris Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi in March 2017.

It brought together over 3,000 governments, business, and civil society leaders from over 40 countries to advance manufacturing and industrial development globally, and to identify key trends and opportunities across the themes that can support the manufacturing sector of the future.

Uniting key stakeholders, including world leaders, industry CEOs, and specialist researchers and academics, the GMIS has placed manufacturing at the core of economic transformation and government policy-making, promoting it as a tool for global cooperation and collaboration, and is committed to ensuring the sector supports to the objectives of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).

In his opening statement, President Vladimir Putin added, "I urge everyone to participate in the 2nd edition of the GMIS. The focus will be on the use of advanced, promising technologies in the economy, industry and other spheres."

The 2nd edition of the summit will intensify the impact of innovation and 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies on the global manufacturing sector through the worldwide dissemination of knowledge, best practices, and standards.

The summit, which will be staged in conjunction with the 10th International Industrial Fair, INNOPROM, that will be held in July 2019, promotes the development of a roadmap for the future of manufacturing across the world, with economic and social development at its core.

The theme of the 2019 edition of the summit in Russia will be 'nature-like technologies’, otherwise known as biomimetic design and biomimicry.

It will focus on how, in a world of disruptive change, the role of manufacturing has evolved into a global cornerstone of economic and social prosperity that can be maximised by channeling and capitalising on the transformative, regenerative opportunities that the 4th Industrial Revolution presents.

A global audience of government and business leaders, as well as representatives of nongovernmental organizations, will engage during the summit in debates, sessions and workshops, and launch global initiatives designed to empower and inspire the next generation of manufacturing entrepreneurs, innovators and pioneers.

LI Yong, Director General, UNIDO, GMIS Co-Chair, said, "GMIS2017 has already shown what can be set in motion, and what can be achieved, when the global community comes together as one to address the greatest challenges facing our world. The 2019 edition of the Summit in Russia will build on this, and intensify our combined efforts and our shared vision to reshape manufacturing through the power of technology and, in doing so, build a stronger and more sustainable world."

(WAM)