‘Global South must cut dependence on single markets, build fair economic order’

New York: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has urged Global South countries to reduce dependence on any single supplier or market by building resilient supply chains, alongside promoting fair economic practices,

and boosting South-South trade and technology collaborations.

Addressing a high-level meeting of Like-Minded Global South Countries on the sidelines of the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly here on Tuesday, Jaishankar said, “We meet in increasingly uncertain times, when the state of the world is a cause for mounting concern for member states.”

The Global South, he said, in particular, is confronted with a set of challenges, from pandemic shocks and wars in Ukraine and Gaza to extreme climate events, volatile trade, uncertainty in investment flows and interest rates, and the “catastrophic” slowing down of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) agenda.

“In the face of such proliferation of concerns and multiplicity of risks, it is natural that the Global South would turn to multilateralism for solutions,” Jaishankar said.

However, “unfortunately”, he noted, “there too we are presented with a very disappointing prospect”, with the “very concept of multilateralism under

attack” and international organisations being rendered ineffective or “starved of resources”.

“The building blocks of the contemporary order are starting to come apart. And the cost of delaying much-needed reforms is today starkly visible,” Jaishankar said.

He said the Global South must present a united front in demanding a level

playing field in the international system.

For the economic security of the Global South, developing nations must build “resilient, reliable and shorter supply chains that reduce dependence on any single supplier or any single market”, Jaishankar said.

He asserted that the developing countries must “democratise” production through fair and transparent economic practices, ensure a stable environment for balanced and sustainable economic interactions, including more South-South trade and investment, and push for an urgent

resolution of conflicts that are impacting food, fertiliser, and energy security. with agency inputs