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Working together important for inclusive development: PM | The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, here at the BRIC Summit said that people of our countries expect us to work together so as to bring the benefits of inclusive social and economic development to them.
During his opening statement at the Plenary Session of the BRIC Summit, Prime
Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, said: “We are four large countries with abundant
resources, large populations and diverse societies. We together account for almost
one-fifth of the world’s GDP. We aspire for rapid growth for ourselves and for
an external environment that is conducive to our development goals. The people
of our countries expect us to work together so as to bring the benefits of inclusive
social and economic development to them.” Mentioning that the first BRIC Business
Forum was held a few days ago, and several other side events have taken place,
Dr. Singh said: “The holding of the second stand alone BRIC Summit represents
the growing multi-polarity in the world. In the short period of 10 months since
our last Summit in Yekaterinburg we have made good progress. Our Foreign Ministers,
Finance Ministers, Agriculture Ministers, National Security Advisers and Governors
of Central Banks have met.” “ Brazil has taken impressive strides in social inclusion
under President Lula’s leadership, from which we can all learn. We, in India ,
have put in place massive schemes for social intervention such as the enactment
of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and the Right to Education Act.
We can each benefit by sharing our experiences in the field of inclusive growth,”
said Dr. Singh. “Energy and food security are two specific areas where we can
work together. Our grouping includes two of the largest energy producers and two
of the largest consumers in the world. We can cooperate in both upstream and downstream
areas, and in the development of new fuels and clean energy technologies,” Dr.
Singh said. He added that similarly, BRIC countries are both large producers and
consumers of agricultural products. The meeting of our Agriculture Ministers is
a welcome initiative. “We should consider putting in place an architecture of
food security that focuses on increasing agricultural productivity, better land
use, sustainable farming practices and agro-processing,” said Dr. Singh. He added:
“Besides this, there is vast potential for cooperation in areas such as science
and technology, trade and investment, pharmaceuticals and infrastructure. Investments
in human capital will create new sources of growth.” He mentioned that the BRIC
countries have an important role to play in the shaping the pace, direction and
sustainability of global economic growth. “I am glad to note that our Finance
Ministers and Central Bank Governors have been meeting regularly. At our last
Summit we had decided to commission a BRIC Study on which way the world economy
will move in the period ahead. India has circulated the draft terms of reference
for the study and we would be happy to carry this idea forward,” Dr. Singh said.
Dr. Singh, on this occasion, said while it appears that the immediate global economic
and financial crisis is behind us, it is still early to say that we are on the
path of long term recovery. “A lot will depend on how the developed economies
fare. Sustainable recovery will also depend on several factors such as enhanced
investment for infrastructure development, stable capital flows to the developing
markets, appropriate macroeconomic adjustments, and avoiding complacency in the
area of financial sector reforms. Financial inclusion will be a major determinant
of success,” he said. “We should prepare for the forthcoming G 20 Summits in Toronto
and Seoul . Their outcomes need to be supportive of the post crisis-phase of the
recovery process. This requires the avoidance of protectionism in all its forms,
commitment to a fair and rule-based trading system, reform of international financial
institutions and better regulation and supervision. Capital adequacy of international
institutions should be ensured to fund development needs. Our Finance Ministers
should be in regular touch with each other,” he said. Dr. Singh said that the
BRIC nations represent an important voice in the global climate discourse. Despite
its shortcomings, the Copenhagen Conference did generate a broad understanding
on several contentious issues. “Our approach to the Cancun Conference should be
anchored within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the
Kyoto Protocol and the Bali Roadmap,” he added. Speaking on the issue of climate
change, Dr. Singh said: “Technology will be a key element in our strategy to meet
the challenge of climate change. Each of us has our own strengths in climate-friendly
technologies. If we pool our best scientific and technological resources, BRIC
nations can set a fine example in promoting collaborative development, deployment
and dissemination of clean energy and renewable technologies.” Dr. Singh also
spoke on the need for reforming the United Nation bodies, when he said: “BRIC
countries are uniquely placed to contribute to reforming the architecture of global
governance. A genuine reform of the Security Council by expansion in its permanent
membership as well as non-permanent membership and improvement in its working
methods is essential to make the United Nations reflective of contemporary realities.”
On the issue of terrorism, Dr. Singh said: “Terrorism poses a special challenge
to our development efforts. We should unite in our efforts to combat this scourge.
We should also step up our cooperation in addressing other non-traditional threats
to security.” “I am particularly glad that the scope of our activities is expanding,
with a focus on greater people-to-people contacts. We should simultaneously strive
for greater convergence of views on key global challenges,” he said. |
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