Recognising glocal actions for global goals

‘Glocal’ actions are those that consider both local and global factors and variables.
Recognising glocal actions for global goals

Dr B K Mukhopadhyay

(The author is a Professor of Management and Economics, formerly at IIBM (RBI) Guwahati. He can be contacted at m.bibhas@gmail.com)

Dr. Boidurjo Rick Mukhopadhyay

(The author, international award-winning development and management economist, formerly a Gold Medalist in Economics at Gauhati University)

'Glocal' actions are those that consider both local and global factors and variables. In recognition of the imminent challenges in international development - ranging from the lack of healthy food and poorly managed agricultural systems on the one hand to excessive consumption and food waste on the other - the tendency of modern times to borrow from tomorrow in order to live 'more' today has invited an unprecedented threat to global food security. Is it still not the fact that a vast majority of the world's population is living close to the perilous borders of bare subsistence?

Over 1.2 billion people continue to lack access to clean drinking water. Better not to forget - water scarcity involves water stress, water shortage or deficits, and water crisis.

Development of developing block is not an option but a compulsion.

Better late than never - the developed countries have been motivated to accept the growth of less developed countries as an important goal and to help in its realization for humanitarian, political and economic reasons – the political motivation has probably been dominant. The interest of the United States in South America, parts of Africa, is some of the glaring examples. Further notions and examples could be found in the Chinese interest and growing colonization of several African states. The global business scenario has been undergoing changes at a speedier rate than ever before – unprecedented transformation indeed. The reality is the fact that this transformation itself has also been causing turbulences.

At this juncture, the main point is that the developed block, to serve their own interests should see that the laggards are coming up. They get the market. They park the fund. They get the places to bolster international business ventures.

But the big question looms large.

Some useful statistics to remind ourselves – the world population is at 6.8 billion and is increasing by 77,000,000 or 1.2 per cent each year. 82 per cent live in developing countries, where the population increases by 1.4 per cent per year. More than 1 billion people do not have adequate food with at least 1.4 billion living on less than $1.25 a day; almost half the world population live on less than $2.50 a day; the price of food has risen dramatically. 642 million people are suffering from chronic hunger in Asia and the Pacific; 265 million in Sub-Saharan Africa; 53 million in Latin America and the Caribbean; 42 million in the Near East and North Africa and 15 million in developed countries, as per assessments.

Asia is home to two-thirds of the world's poor: every fifth person lives on less than $1 a day. In India, Bangladesh and Cambodia, more than around 30 per cent of people live on less than $1 a day and most poor people live in areas where the land is marginal and ecosystems are fragile.

Today, the poverty in which the great mass of people lives stands at the very top and world economic problems demand a lasting solution. Though the impoverished countries, no doubt, themselves place economic development first on the priority list, yet it has come to be widely believed that half of the world's population is suffering from deprivation and seething with discontent, while the remainder of the world lives in relative affluence. Higher commodity prices have been hampering further growth of these economies in particular.

It is, of course, a crucial point to note that developed countries, individually and collectively, through various international organizations, have joined the battle and declared the intention to help raise the standard of living of the poorer countries. The statistical notion of living standard is intended to make comparable the economic well-being of households of different sizes and composition.

The global goals are not just about achieving numbers.

Studies also claim that the developing world cannot sustainably achieve same living standards as the developed counterparts, also the fact the latter should substantially reduce resource use as planet doesn't have enough to maintain highest quality of life for everyone. In order to, for example, achieve life goals that looks beyond basic needs for everyone - universally high levels of life satisfaction would require between two and six times the sustainable level of resource use. These will inadvertently affect the planet's safe space and resource boundaries. So, regardless of the big promises around the UN global goals, there are practical impediments and serious trade -offs when it comes to development choices and pathways.

Evidently, a global-friendly-environment encompassing bold leadership, good governance and disciplined multi-lateral trade framework is yet to emerge, though of crucial immediate requirement. It is thus to be agreed upon that health of the global economy hinges too heavily on how these emerging economies perform in the days to come especially when a number of European economies are still limping and the US economy has a lot still to do to weather the possible storm of recession recurrence.

Arguably, the last financial crisis stemmed from the growing disruptions to the order established after the Second World War and the WTO had rightly been calling for a reform in the entire global economic governance system. After 60 years of erosion of coherence and governance, a number of major deficiencies occurred both within the international system and between national systems and the global system. The WTO chief under laid full employment of human resources, development, social progress, a stable monetary system, open trade and environmental sustainability to be the shared objectives for the new order while simultaneously stressing on the need for "a greater degree of explicit renunciation of national sovereignty" to establishing the minimum level of collective restraint and governance.

The instruments designed to ensure transparency, legitimacy, coherence and efficiency is also of vital importance. The IMF rightly said that it can provide around billion to help stabilize countries' economies but the bulk of financing will need to come from the international community. The Japan crisis had pushed the hitherto ongoing efforts to go on back foot. In a very recent report the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said the external financing needs of oil-importing countries in the Middle East and North Africa would be registering further rise.

Also, the G8 leaders promised aid to Tunisia and Egypt and held out the prospect of billions more to foster the Arab Spring and the new democracies emerging from popular uprisings. Though (with aid to Arab states dominating) the G8 also issued a special declaration saying it stood side-by-side with Africa, yet the actual need is to intensify its efforts to achieve peace and stability, economic development and growth, regional trade and investment.

A study conducted by the University of Bonn researchers elucidates that the number of malnourished people has been consistently increasing worldwide. More than two billion people suffer from a lack of micronutrients. Infant mortality rates are unacceptably high. Against this background, there is a need for the global pooling of research efforts, more research funding and an international body for food security and agriculture that prepares policy decisions. Although a large body of scientific knowledge on nutrition and hunger is already available, increased international cooperation is required to close knowledge gaps.

Equally at the local level, non-governmental organizations can support this commitment with expertise in programme design and delivery, continuing research, advocacy, and the procurement of products. International donors – governments and philanthropic groups alike – help across the board, by assisting with large-scale procurement, boosting global supplies, and covering implementation costs. The successful delivery of large-scale interventions requires broad-based partnerships.

So, enormous tasks scheduled for the road ahead! A lot depends on to what extent global cooperation could forge ahead. Massive international support would be required for economies knocked out of kilter by the popular uprisings against long-serving authoritarian leaders, where even tourism in particular, had been hard hit. 

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