Global voices from Jordan

The world is facing an unprecedented economic crisis. World leaders have been meeting on and off to discuss this crisis and to evolve viable solutions. Two significant summits taking place this week in Jordan will focus on the economic meltdown and the global response.

Several Lower Middle-Income countries (G11) will begin their third Summit today at the Dead Sea while the World Economic Forum (WEF) began on Thursday. The G 11 group was launched on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York in 2005. President Mahinda Rajapaksa is leading Sri Lanka's delegation.

Croatia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Georgia, Honduras, Indonesia, Morocco, Pakistan, Paraguay, Jordan and Sri Lanka have one thing in common - they are developing countries which are striving to avoid the fallout of the global economic crisis. The world will look forward to their response to the economic problems. These G 11 member states are scheduled to sign a framework agreement on cultural, commercial and economic cooperation. It is the latter that will attract the most interest globally.

It is likely that the G 11 will strive to adopt a set of common goals to make foreign aid responsive to local needs and to shift from loans to grants to keep countries from reaccumulating debt. The G 11 should also lobby wealthy countries to open their markets to developing countries' exports, especially in the agricultural sector. They should also form partnerships with the G8 and other regional blocs. With Sri Lanka and Pakistan already represented from the SAARC region, the G 11 and SAARC should be able to form a viable partnership.

At earlier G 11 Summits, the Member States identified four priority areas for international support and cooperation, namely debt burden alleviation, investment promotion, trade development and targeted grant assistance. In this context, it is important that Bretton Woods institutions and donor countries should consider loans and grants purely on a financial basis, without attaching other conditions. Countries such as China, Japan and Iran do not apply such yardsticks to their loans and it is time that others followed suit. It is also important to ensure that a few rich countries are not able to dictate terms at the World Bank and the IMF.

'Trade not aid' is a popular slogan, but one that is rarely put into practice by certain rich countries with their protectionist schemes and subsidies for local production. These countries should open their markets to the Third World, again without any preconditions. Trade has the potential to ease the aid and debt burden on poor countries. Thus investment and trade links between the developed and developing worlds is essential to end the current inequalities on the economic front. Targeted grant assistance - such as aid for infrastructure projects - should also receive priority. There would hopefully be a robust dialogue on these and other important issues at the G 11.

Restoring economic growth is on the agenda of both the G 11 and the WEF. While the WEF meeting is not a place where decisions are made, important regional and international government and business leaders share their ideas and experiences to find a way to restore economic growth. The focus this time will be on the Middle East and rest of Asia.

The statement by Chey Jae-won, Co-Chair of the World Economic Forum on the Middle East sums up the only way to respond to the present challenges: "All great achievements start from small possibilities. In order to discover (these possibilities), we have no choice but to co-operate with each other, to share our resources and strengths and understand each other's limitations."

Sri Lanka has shown its resilience in the face of the economic crisis. Its economy was also assailed by high oil prices, high food prices and other volatile factors in the world economy. With the imminent defeat of terrorism in the North and the dawn of peace, Sri Lanka will be in a position to accelerate its economic growth. More investors are also likely to come to Sri Lanka when peace is established, thus rejuvenating the economy.

Sri Lanka should look for more exports and trade to take its economy forward. International cooperation, as espoused by the G 11 and the WEF, will be essential to ward off the current crisis. Intra-SAARC trade is very low at the moment. This should be a starting point to develop trade links.

Similarly, G 11 countries should enhance trade and economic links. Urgent action is needed to save the world economy and regional and geopolitical blocs such as the G 11 should make a start now.