Jostein Hauge

Biography

Jostein Hauge is a political economist and Associate Professor in Development Studies at the University of Cambridge, based at the Centre of Development Studies and the Department of Politics and International Studies. He is also a Fellow of Magdalene College.

His research lies at the intersection of international political economy and development economics.

He is the author of The Future of the Factory: How Megatrends are Changing Industrialization, a book which investigates how industrialization pathways are shaped by recent technological developments, new forces of globalization, and the threat of ecological collapse, & charts new pathways for industrial policy and global governance.

Jostein's recent research has been published in various academic journals, including African Affairs, Development Policy Review, Geoforum, New Political Economy, Third World Quarterly, and World Economy.

Beyond academia, he has worked with several international organisations, including the UN Economic Commission for Africa, the UN Industrial Development Organisation, and the World Economic Forum. His work has appeared in media outlets such as The Guardian, The Economist, and Bloomberg, and he has been a guest on news channels and talk shows including Al Jazeera.

Prior to his current post, Jostein was an LSE Fellow in International Political Economy at the London School of Economics and Political Science, and, before that, a Research Associate at the Centre for Science, Technology and Innovation Policy at the University of Cambridge.

Jostein teaches development economics, international political economy, and the political economy of development in Africa

He writes Global Currents, a Substack newsletter on international political economy.

Education

Ph.D., University of Cambridge

M.Sc. Development Economics, SOAS University of London

B.A. Economics, Norwegian University of Science and Technology

Doctoral Supervisor

Ha-Joon Chang

Fields

Political Economy

Development Economics

“For centuries, industrialization and factory-based production have been core ingredients in economic growth, development, and innovation. This symbiotic relationship between industrialization and economic prosperity is now changing. 'Megatrends' - trends within the domains of technology, economy, society, and ecology that have a global impact - are changing the ability of the manufacturing sector to serve as the engine of growth, changing traditional ideas of technological progress, and changing growth and development opportunities in both the global South and the global North.

Four megatrends are particularly worthy of note: the rise of services, digital automation technologies, globalization of production, and ecological breakdown. In this book, Jostein Hauge provides a novel analysis of how these megatrends are changing industrialization, and charts new pathways for industrial policy and global governance. He also offers a wide-ranging account of the role of technology, globalization, and ecology in shaping the world economy. The Future of the Factory shows that industrialization remains a cornerstone of economic prosperity, but that power asymmetries in the world economy create uneven opportunities for achieving economic growth, development, and industrialization.”

Journal Articles

  • Hauge, J., Houtzager, B. and Hoermann, A. J. (2025). The new economic nationalism: industrial policy and national security in the United States, China, and the European Union. Geoforum, 166 (2025): 104382.

  • Hauge, J. and Hickel, J. (2025). “A progressive framework for green industrial policy”, New Political Economy, 1-18.

  • Schaefer, S. and Hauge, J. (2023). “The muddled governance of state-imposed forced labour: multinational corporations, states, and cotton from China and Uzbekistan", New Political Economy, 28 (5): 799-817.

  • Hauge, J. (2023). "Manufacturing-led development in the digital age: how power trumps technology". Third World Quarterly, 44 (9): 1960-1980.

  • Castañeda‐Navarrete, J., Hauge, J., López‐Gómez, C. (2021). “COVID‐19’s impacts on global value chains, as seen in the apparel industry”, Development Policy Review, 39 (6): 953-970

  • Hauge, J. (2020). “Industrial policy in the era of global value chains: Towards a developmentalist framework drawing on the industrialisation experiences of South Korea and Taiwan”, World Economy, 43 (8): 2070-2092.

  • Parschau, C. and Hauge, J. (2020). “Is automation stealing manufacturing jobs? Evidence from South Africa’s apparel industry”, Geoforum, 115 (Oct 2020): 120-131.

  • Hauge, J. (2019). “Should the African lion learn from the Asian tigers? A historical-comparative perspective on FDI-oriented industrial policy in Ethiopia, South Korea and Taiwan”, Third World Quarterly, 40 (11): 2071-2091.

  • Hardy, V. and Hauge, J. (2019). “Labour challenges in Ethiopia’s textile and leather industries: no voice, no loyalty, no exit?”, African Affairs, 118 (473): 712-736.

Book Chapters

  • Hauge, J. and Chang, H-J. (2019). “The role of manufacturing versus services in economic development”, In P. Bianchi, S. Labory, and C. Duran (eds.), Transforming Industrial Policy for the Digital Age, pp. 12-36. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.

  • Hauge, J. and Chang, H-J. (2019). “The concept of a ‘developmental state’ in Ethiopia”, In F. Cheru, C. Cramer and A. Oqubay (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of the Ethiopian Economy, pp. 824-841. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

  • Hauge, J. (2017). “Africa’s industrial policy challenge: does the expansion of global value chains call for new approaches?”, In C. Denzin and C. Cabrera (eds.), New Approaches to Productive Development: State, Sustainability, and Industrial Policy, pp. 162-193. Mexico City: Friedrich Ebert Foundation.

Policy Reports

  • Hauge, J., Chan, K., Donnely, C., Haraguchi, N. and Lavopa, A. (2025). The future of industrialisation: harnessing megatrends for sustainable growth. UNIDO Policy Brief Series, Issue No. 21.

  • Gebreluel, G., Hauge, J. and Woldemariam, M. (2020). COVID-19 in the Horn of Africa: Political and Economic Impacts. Hateta Policy Research.

  • Hauge, J., Kenward, M. and Wightman, S. (2020). The future of the manufacturing workforce. Cambridge: University of Cambridge Engineering Department.

  • Hauge J. and O’Sullivan, E. (2019). Inside the black box of manufacturing: conceptualising and counting manufacturing in the economy. Cambridge: University of Cambridge Engineering Department.

  • Chang, H-J., Hauge J. and Irfan, M. (2016). Transformative Industrial Policy for Africa. Addis Ababa: United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA).