The G8, globalism, and the development emergency

In a world richer than ever before, the sheer scale of absolute poverty is an abomination. Despite the progress that has been made in 25 years, the numbers remain appallingly large. There are nearly twice as many poor people as there are citizens of the G8 nations combined; 2009 will see a number equivalent to the population of France added to them; 2008 saw as many people made newly hungry as currently live in Canada and Italy together.

We live in extremely Hard Times. 2009 will see the first contraction in global GDP since 1945. 30 million more people will have become unemployed, of whom 23 million are in the developing world. Trade, aid and remittance flows are down. The Commonwealth is disproportionately affected by this global crisis, and its share of global GDP is set to decline from 14% last year to 10.5% this year.

To eliminate poverty and to meet the other Millennium Development Goals is to release human potential, and to fulfil the promise of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It is for this reason that addressing what the UN Secretary-General last year called the ‘Development Emergency’ remains the enduring task of the international community. For many of the citizens of the Commonwealth – home to more than half of the world’s poor – it is a matter of life and death. There can be no more important issue for any gathering of international leaders.

So what can those Commonwealth citizens hope for, from the G8 Maddalena Summit?

They well know that no summit, and no single grouping, can solve global poverty and meet the MDGs alone. The world has learned that sustainable growth and poverty reduction require effective partnerships: nationally, between peoples and governments; and internationally, between developing countries and rich partner nations. Within the Commonwealth, these objectives are central to the work we do. We promote democracy and accountability at all levels within our member countries, recognising that there is an inextricable link between this and development. Amongst our members – who range from the smallest to the largest countries in the world – we maintain a commitment to consensus and cooperation.

This year has also shown that increased and wider global cooperation is needed to meet global challenges. The G8 alone certainly cannot create economic stability – but, by virtue of its longevity and its common values, it has a role in fostering wider international cooperation. And in their quest for poverty reduction – as providers of nearly two-thirds of all overseas aid – the members of the G8 matter.

With this in mind, the G8 should look to address the immediate effects of the economic crisis, and to set the course for tackling other, longer-term, global challenges.

In the short term, the poorest people and countries need one thing: delivery on promises.

They need access to trade, with the largest countries honouring promises to expand trade finance; to avoid protectionism in the face of domestic pressure; and to support the poorest through the provision of aid for trade. Meanwhile some might argue that it is too soon to look for a conclusion to the Doha Round which puts development at the heart of trade. Yet I would argue the opposite. The economic crisis has given new strength to multilateralism, and now is the moment for capturing that momentum and applying it to trade negotiations. It is only through a rules-based and equitable trading system, applied to all – coupled with the opening up of hitherto ‘locked’ sectors in affluent markets – that the potential for trade to reduce poverty can be realised.

Poorer countries also need delivery on promises of access to grant and low-cost financing, and especially of financial supports to key social sectors. The current economic crisis has strengthened the case for increasing this for the poorest countries. Before it began, the 2005 Gleneagles targets for aid volumes from the G8 were already at risk of not being met. With needs increasing and the credibility of the G8 as a group at stake, now is also the time to make the effort needed to meet these pledges.

In all this, we need to recognise that the economic crisis is only the latest – not the unique – global challenge for developing countries. The other great challenges facing the world – those, for instance, of climate change, sustainable development, energy scarcity, food supply – have their greatest impact on the poorest. These are existential issues for some of our Commonwealth members. International cooperation and practical solidarity are essential to responding to them, for sustainable outcomes. The G8 must look through the economic crisis, and point the way to meeting these other needs with determination, as well.

How can the G8 help?

First, by reasserting the basic commitment to do everything necessary not just to resolve the economic crisis, but also to work for, and finance, these other needs. The G8 cannot achieve this alone, but it can signal a new intent to tackle these deep-seated problems in sustained partnership with others.

Second, by restating that global solutions require comprehensive global engagement, which in turn requires effective cooperation, especially through more representative and more effective international institutions. They should heed the call of Commonwealth Heads of Government, who have emphasised the need for greater voice in these institutions for the poorest and most vulnerable countries, whose concerns must be heard in all international councils. Global democracy is no less a goal than national democracy.

This Summit – like all summits – takes place at a moment when the developed countries are ever more conscious of the developing and the undeveloped. And this Summit – like all summits – cannot solve all of their challenges in two days. But it can signal that the entire global community needs sustained stimulus, and it can be a milestone on the path towards our shared goal: a global approach to realising a world free of want and hunger, of real and expanding choices, and human solidarity.

ENDS