Reforms, WTO and Manmohanomics

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said that developing countries should get a "fair deal" at the tough World Trade Organisation negotiations at Geneva to make globalisation "sustainable, more inclusive and equitable".

The group of 20 developing countries, which include India, Brazil, China, Egypt and South Africa has been working to "remove distortions in the international trade in agriculture caused by massive subsidies in the developed world and to ensure a fair deal for developing countries in these negotiations through effective special and differential treatment," Singh said in an interview to a leading Thai daily The Nation.

The G-20 was established in August 2003 ahead of the Cancun Ministerial of the WTO to counter the EU-US proposal on agriculture, which was heavily loaded towards the developed countries to the detriment of the developing countries.

The group has since taken a tough stand on agriculture, which has ensured that EU-US did not have its way on the agriculture negotiations so as to protect the livelihood concerns of millions of subsistence farmers in the developing countries.

The group has been a major force in achieving unity of purpose amongst developing countries and works closely with other developing nations groups, like the Africa Group and the Least Developed Countries.

"For globalisation to be sustainable, It should be more inclusive and equitable," he said.

Elaborating on the Indo-Thai relationship, Singh said the two countries share age-old bonds of cultural affinity, commercial interest and common perceptions on various issues.

"Our ties continue to expand, covering the full range of economic, technical, social and cultural fields that are of importance to our respective people.

"A shared will at the highest levels in both countries has given substantial content and new dimensions to our multifaceted ties. Our exchanges in recent years have helped to lay a strong foundation for building up a vibrant partnership," he said in an interview to the Thai daily.

The signing of the Framework Free Trade Agreement with Thailand was a landmark in the development of our relations. "Our bilateral trade recently crossed $1-billion mark. We are hopeful that the FTA will further deepen our economic interactions to mutual benefit," he said.

Singh had said on Thursday that the United Progressive Allaince government would have a hard look at all FTA agreements but this did not mean there would necessarily be changes.

To operationalise the early harvest provisions in the Indo-Thai FTA framework agreement by September 1, the rules of origin for about 80 items would have to be worked out.

There are reports that differences between the two negotiating teams in nearly 40 per cent of the items have been narrowed down.

There are certain areas of concern like automobiles where some of the Indian automobile manufacturers feel there could be cheaper imports from Thailand to India.

Turning to economic reforms in India, the prime minister said economic empowerment was essential for their success.

"We cannot have meaningful reforms while neglecting those who are on the margins of economic growth. This is one of the guiding principles in our government's Common Minimum Programme. We are allocating more resources and improving the delivery of services to the poor."

The Indian bureaucracy is also going through a change of mindset like Indian businessmen, youth and consumers have undergone.

"We have been fairly successful in removing a large number of bureaucratic procedures that were obstacles to reform and liberalisation. We need a partnership between government and the people between the state and private sector and between opportunity and entrepreneurship."

In a bid to advance information technology in the Asian region, Singh said India has offered cooperation to Asian countries to share its expertise in IT.

"We are also discussing the possibilities of establishing IT training institute for Asian countries with technical assistance from India," he told the Thai daily.