State-driven resilient and environmentally sustainable GVCs? The case of medical products and pharmaceuticals in the EU

This paper identifies a dichotomy between two different approaches in current debates on how to restructure GVCs in the face of multiple crises that call for greater resilience and sustainability. Accordingly, a stylized distinction can be made between a “Market-driven global Resilience” approach (MgR) and a “State-driven regional Resilience & Sustainability” approach (SrRS). This paper examines the strategies of state institutions at different spatial scales in the EU that promote sustainability and resilience in GVCs. The research is based on case studies of medical products and pharmaceutical GVCs. Our empirical research shows that current policy strategies are complex, combining some elements of MgR and SrRS approaches, but are nevertheless and cum grano salis attributable to one of the two ideal types of post-COVID-19 GVCs. Moreover, the case studies highlight the revival of state power and industrial policies aimed at influencing GVC structures and dynamics to promote resilience and sustainability.