PM questions West on globalisation

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday said the approach of developed nations in managing global affairs was not acceptable and questioned the subsidies given by the West in WTO regime to the detriment of developing countries.

"Old ways of managing global affairs, wherein a single digit group of nations could constitute themselves into a global board of management, are over. "There are of course, a few big powers, and these will continue to exercise global influence. But we must learn to work with nations big and small," Singh said inaugurating a seminar by FICCI and Shri Ram Centre for Industrial Relations.

Hitting out at developed countries for giving subsidies that were coming in the way of Doha round of the World Trade Organisation, he said, "We cannot continue to live in a world of 'butter mountains and rivers of milk', liberally funded by government subsidies when the poor starve in the villages of the Third World."

Even the United Nations, which could have been a political instrument to manage globalisation, had not succeeded, he said and regretted not much attention has been paid to politics of globalisation.

He cautioned that the UN would not be able to succeed unless it reforms as an institution and its own management is more democratic and more representative. The increasingly multi-polar world required global "rules of the game", not just for trade and capital flows but for the management of peace and security, he added.

 The Prime Minister said there was as yet no framework for movement of people and the focus of globalisation had so far remained on movement of goods, capital and financial and logistical services.

"Developed countries are becoming more restrictive with respect to immigration and movement of labour... Even in the area of trade, we have still not been able to find an acceptable basis for making globalisation more development oriented," he said.

Referring to the stalemate in Doha Round, Singh said WTO talks must remain focused on development issues. "If the Doha Round has to have a successful outcome, and we sincerely wish this, then it must remain true to its original mandate of being a Development Round," he said.

"We must find ways in which trade aids its development to ensure that globalisation works for all. This is the challenge before the leadership of developed world."

The Prime Minister said globalisation in an increasingly multi-polar world requires global rules of game, not just for trade and capital flows but also for management for peace and security, environment and natural resources.

Making a strong case for state intervention on behalf of the weak in the globalised economy, Singh said in democratic societies people expect the government to deliver on their basic economic and social needs.

"While private sector will increase its role and bring prosperity to newer generations of entrepreneurs, professional workers, the government will be expected to step in and provide a range of services," he added.

The Prime Minister said the government must be able to mobilise and deploy financial and administrative resources to provide a range of services.

"People expect governments to invest in public goods. Official development assistance must be extended to bridge development gap between world's haves and have-nots," he said.

Singh said the idea of bridging democratic deficit in global governance needed careful consideration. The political, economic, intellectual and cultural consequences have to be managed in a democratic manner, he added.

"When we talk of democratising global governance, we must also accept the obligation of democratising national and local governance," he said. The intellectual and political leadership of the developed world had not yet shown a willingness to grapple with these issues, he added.