Xi Jinping’s speech in defense of free trade and the global economy represents a major shift in the paradigm of the global world order since the end of the cold war, where big countries as the United States and Russia continued to battle, reach agreements, and again, agreeing-disagreeing on partnerships for development. Our beloved Europe is in trouble facing Brexit, the flow of migrants in the old continent and the lack of structures and right organization to find sustainable solutions and jobs for all, unemployment among youth, rising social inequalities, and low productivity continue to be a challenge.
Xi Jinping used many metaphors, including to explain the world economy as an “ocean” saying countries “must have the courage to swim in the global market” saying that countries should not develop the habit of “retreating to the harbor whenever encountering the storm”, for this “will never get us to the other shore of the ocean” he said. In a globalized world, “who locks himself up in a dark room “ is doomed to be soon deprived by “light and air” also, encouraging that countries should not take the easy road of protectionism, but should continue to play the global game, taking into consideration the interest of their regions, not merely their own national interests.
Global issues must be tackled in a glocally-committed way. According to data from the World Economic Forum, over the last 10 years, median household income has stagnated or declined in many advanced economies, resulting in a more vulnerable middle class at risk of falling into poverty. On a positive note, over the next 20 years, technology is expected to improve productivity by 30 % in some industries.
According to the World Bank Global economic prospects, global growth will experience a moderate recovery since the slow global growth of 2016, due to the stall of global trade, deceleration of investment and increase of policy uncertainty. The emerging markets and developing economies’s growth is expected to accelerate to 4.2 percent in 2017 and to an average of 4.7 percent in 2018-19. Growth in Latin America and the Caribbean, and in Europe and Central Asia, is expected to accelerate in 2017, mainly reflecting a bottoming out in activity in Brazil and Russia. Growth in the Middle East and North Africa will pick up modestly as oil prices recover. Low income economies’s external environment is expected to improve gradually, with commodity prices increasing moderately from low levels and global trade regaining some momentum. Growth in low income economies is expected to recover to 5.6 percent in 2017.
This global overview encourages us to critically think about the way we do things and about how the economies are now conceived. Policies need some rethinking, starting from local researchers contributing to the global knowledge and to guide policy makers to make sound policies and politicians to make the right decisions for their countries, and for the economic and social development and progress of their regions, expanding it to the good and ethical behavior of each and everyone of us, for the entire planet. It needs very hard work. Focus and Analytical Observation. Excellent political advisers and devoted economists. We need media that can inform the civil society and makes us aware of what goes on in the world. Scientists who conceive major and new breakthroughs. But above all, we need more humanity and more contacts with our communities, our local neighbors, what the needs are, what makes us who we are, with increased compassion towards the same human problems of everyone of us.
We need encouragement, motivation and constant positivity. If things get worse, we are able to stand up again, we need common engagement towards local and social issues, best practices and stories that keep inspiring us to do good and act good in the world. From our home, to our neighbors, to our community, and to the feeling that we are all part of the human nature and to the world, no matter the complexity and the many interests, we need to act as glocal neighbors, neighbors near and far who can who are part of the same life boat ( or life ocean, to echo the words of Xi Jinping - as the “Pivot to Asia” as part of the Obama’s Administration foreign policy ).
We need better policies for social inclusion and inclusive growth, and wish to share here four great policy and research centers that the United Nations and the Global Development Network put into place to advance research, look for collaborative and cooperative ways to find innovative solutions allowing better social protection policies, decreased inequalities and inclusive growth. These four great platforms can advance studies on South-South cooperation and how to keep the discussion and the exchange of ideas open for stronger voices, from the emerging markets and developing economies, on how to find sustainable ( creative) and a human-centered approach to solve our global issues. Our because we need to care, of all us.
Here below the link, by clicking on each one:
International Policy Center for Inclusive Growth- UNDP, global forum for South-South dialogue on innovative development policies, addressing social protection policies, inclusive growth, population and social policies, based in Brasilia- Brazil
Rio + World Centre for Sustainable Development, a hub for dialogue and action where diverse and divergent perspectives on pathways to equitable and sustainable development can be explored and put into policies and practices: the Centre especially tackles and discusses poverty eradication, the sustainable development goals, inequality, justice and governance, climate change, financing for sustainable development and social protection, based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Global Development Network, an Independent international organization, at the forefront of supporting researchers in developing and transition economies to generate and share applied social science research to advance social and economic development, based in New Delhi, India
United Nations University, a global think tank and postgraduate teaching organization headquartered in Japan and addressing governance, water, urbanization, migration research and working with leading universities and research institutes in UN Member States, functioning as a bridge between the international academic community and the United Nations System.