Lectures on Africa Asia and the Middle East

Lecture on Africa, Asia and the Middle East, by Professor Christopher Howe FBA, on 4 February 2014. (venue: The British Academy). We have become accustomed to appreciating the growing weight of China in global economics and politics. In the last decade, however, these advances have been accompanied by evidence of China's new role in research and innovation. Increasing expenditures on research and development, patent registrations and government policies to nurture technology-intensive companies have all been impressive. The lecture seeks to explain the origins of these achievements; to assess the prospects for further Chinese progress; and consider the potential gains and challenges that such progress may offer to the rest of the world. We need to know whether we can all gain from China's technological rise and whether the newly evolving British and European innovation systems have the strength to play a significant role in this new world scene.