Issuing their first-ever communiqué at a G20 finance ministers' meeting, Brazil, China, Russia and India have called for a bigger voice on international bodies - signalling their growing political resolve to influence global affairs. On the eve of the official G20 meeting for the preparation of the London summit on 13 March the group released the following statement. WDEV documents the communiqué in full length.
1. We, the Finance Ministers and their representatives of Brazil, Russia, India and China held our meeting in Horsham, the United Kingdom, on the eve of the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting. We reverted once again to the current situation in the global economy and its latest trends, as well as fiscal and monetary policy responses in BRIC countries. We also discussed the forthcoming G20 Leaders' Summit agenda and the expected outcomes ... ... this article comes up in WDEV 2/Mar-Apr 2009 and is for subscribers only. For direct log in >>> click here.If you have no subscription >>> pick your option or >>>
After decades of isolation - imposed by major OECD countries out of concern for the country's human rights violations - Myanmar is emerging as a new darling of the "West" - judging by the accelerating succession of visits by senior officials and gurus. New groups of investors are waiting to enter the country as soon as possible.
Persistent high unemployment, the euro area debt crisis and premature fiscal austerity have already slowed global growth and factor into the possibility of a new recession. Now the United Nations have downgraded significantly its forecasts for the world economy in the next year.
Eastern European states are in for a new round of the crisis. The external control of the banking sector and high reliance on external credit has landed the countries of Eastern Europe in a vulnerable position. Now, credit flows from Western banks are drying up again. Hungary has been the first country in the region to ask for IMF support again.
While the G20 efforts to manage global aggregate demand, exchange rate management and stronger regulation of the international financial sector have not worked out quite as planned, in Cannes the Group was further solidifying its role in directing the system of multilateral institutions.
In November 2011, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) is celebrating its 50th anniversary.The new Minister, Dirk Niebel of the (neo)-liberal FDP has launched a 'radical change of course'. In the recent edition of the Reality of Aid shadow report the change is analyzed.