EMPLOYMENT
Looming tsunami of automation will threaten job creation
High-quality education in key disciplines from science to sociology will provide skills that complement technology and sidestep the impending global jobs rout, writes Trudi Makhaya
Over the past year, many institutions have sounded the alarm about the coming technological wave characterised by robotics, machine learning and automation. Like the US government report released in December, many address the opportunity and threat to livelihoods posed by these developments. For perspectives on the developing world, the World Bank’s World Development Report weighs in on what it frames as the race between skills and technology. The history of economic science is strewn with examples of fine minds misestimating the effects of technology. Malthus thought the pace of agricultural production would always be slower than that of population growth, and this would act as an upper bound on human population. He did not foresee how technology would transform agriculture. Though the modern world knows famines and extreme deprivation, on a global scale, there is notionally enough food to sustain the world’s population. In 1930, Keynes predicted that due to new modes of production...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.