In the spirit of collaboration

It was another usual day at the APMC market in Navi Mumbai. Truckloads of potatoes were reaching the market in the wee hours. Farmers were negotiating prices. Suddenly, the market was abuzz with the news that more trucks of potatoes from Uttar Pradesh (UP) are reaching. Everything changed in a flash. There were no takers for potatoes in the market. The trucks from UP reached the market as scheduled and after waiting for more than a week, the farmers decided to throw the potatoes in the sea rather that wasting more time in Mumbai.

This is the story of about 47 per cent of the total work force in India, the farmers.

The median income of farmers is abysmally low to sustain. So there is a demand for “structural reforms”.

On a global scale, the demand for “structural reforms” in various socio-economic domains has grown manifold. Beneath this demand remains the fundamental flaw in our economic model — a gross mismatch between aspirations and resources.

The predominant economic model of development that we see today was evolved in the West when European economies collapsed in the aftermath the World War II. France and Germany forged an economic alliance to revive their economies. In due course of time, it proved a catalyst in international trade. It was developed in a particular context to meet a particular exigency. This model, though outlived its mandate, still serves as a template for many economies. This model is based on a fundamental principle of “exploitation” rather than on “empowerment”. It places greater emphasis on products rather than on relationship relevance. Such convenient models, however, have not been sustainable and environmentally responsible in the longer run. As such models failed to address many a demand of today’s globalised economy, the need of an alternative arose.

It is imperative that Alternative Development Model (ADM) should be based on empowerment of economies and thereby of the people, the primary stakeholders. The operating system of the ADM needs to be based on relationship relevance and not on an opportunistic alliance of some powerful economies dictating terms to others.

The difference in order of priorities between the old and the new models of development sets them apart. The product is on top of the priority list in the old model. The means employed and the ideological framework under which the task is undertaken to achieve the goal remains only secondary. In contrast, the new model accords top priority to ideological framework while mechanism to achieve the goal comes next. The end product, though ultimate goal of the entire process, figures at the end. This means ideology and mechanism cannot be compromised for achievement of the goal. In other words, means justify the ends and not vice-versa. This difference, though sounds minor, changes the very dynamics of development.

The concept of ADM is embedded in the India-Japan Global Partnership (IJGP) conceptualised and adopted with a single-minded determination to ensure a better and more responsible world. The India-Japan Global Partnership declaration was signed in 2000 between the then Indian Prime Minister AB Vajpayee and his Japanese counterpart Yoshiro Mori during the latter’s historic visit to India, catalysed by India Centre Foundation (ICF), a not-for-profit organisation instituted to work on nation building mission.

As India-Japan partnership flourished, the IJGP managed to impact the prevalent development narrative. The mantra of the IJGP initiative was simple — “What India can do for Japan, what Japan can do for India and what India and Japan together can do for the rest of the world”. This partnership has now has evolved into Global Partnership. Thus, the Global Partnership makes it incumbent on India and Japan to strive, along with their “global partners”, to serve the rest of the world by putting their respective strengths together and empower one another.

Rather than writing off the old development model altogether, the ADM endeavours to change its operating system into an inclusive model that draws strengths from the past to secure a better future for humanity. It envisions creating dialogue about the Alternative Development Model (ADM), a concrete development framework for sustainable development. The objective of the ADM is to catalyse the economies of global partners by scaling projects through new socio-economic framework based on empowerment.

The Global Partnership Summit (GPS) 2017 to be held in New Delhi provides a micro view of this grand vision where thought leaders, opinion makers and leading policy influencers will interact to establish the Alternative Development Model. The GPS has evolved from the India Japan Global Partnership (IJGP) initiative and is a platform to integrate ideologies, ideas, initiatives, projects, processes, people and policies. It allows for global partners to share knowledge, expertise and resources and work towards a common objective of establishing an Alternative Development Model (ADM) framework. Through core values such as co-operation, collaboration and inclusivity, the GPS aims to establish models of development that will focus on empowerment and sustainability. It intends to converge the needs of today into the viability of tomorrow, thus becoming a formidable platform to take forward the mission of an all-encompassing, holistic development framework.

Various initiatives including National Electric Vehicle, Smart Knowledge & Agriculture Corridor, Trans-Asian Buddhist Circuit, Renewable Energy and Smart Cities, Healthcare will be announced at the Summit. These initiatives will usher in new integrated thought process that will place India as a socio-economic lab for other global partners.

At a time when majority of nations are caught in a development dilemma, India as a Vishwaguru can once again lead the change through the ADM for a world that is sustainable and empowered that can match aspiration with resources in a more balanced manner.   

The author is founder-chairman of the Global Partnership Summit