PCNS at the Raisina Dialogue

The Policy Center for the New South is taking part in the ORF Raisina Dialogue 2024, held under the theme Chaturanga: Conflict | Contest | Cooperate |Create, on February 21 -23, 2024, in New Delhi, India. The Raisina Dialogue, organized and hosted by the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) in collaboration with India’s Ministry of External Affairs, stands as the country’s premier conference on geopolitics and geoeconomics, bringing together global leaders in politics, business, media, and civil society, and fosters multi-stakeholder discussions on pressing global issues, involving heads of state, cabinet ministers, and thought leaders.

Dr. Karim El Aynaoui, Executive President at the Policy Center for the New South, will be taking part in a panel discussion titled: Talking Heads: Solutions from the South, which will take place on Wednesday February 21st from 6:40pm to 7:30pm. This panel discussion will delve into the growing differences between the Global North and South that have arisen, on questions that range from relations with Russia to the availability of vaccines to the treatment of conflicts outside Europe. As these have caused a clamor for a more just system, this panel will look at the propositions from the South on this system’s structure and on solutions to these problems. This panel will deliberate on whether there are realistic and workable solutions the Global South could offer to four big questions:

Global Security: The South has avoided taking sides on Ukraine, and largely viewed The West’s support of Israel’s action in Gaza as hypocritical – so what solutions does it propose to preserve sovereignty, protect vulnerable populations, and deal with terrorist sanctuaries?  

Climate Action: Even without supportive public finance from the West, are there South-centric development and adaptation paradigms that deal with a climate problem the developing world did not cause?    

Governance and Finance: Post-War institutions from the United Nations to the IMF have denied billions in the South access to finance, to debt restructuring, and to public health – so if a new world order were created from the ground up, what would it look like?   

Reconciliation and Reform: How can these divisions between North and South be reconciled, and who should take the lead in this effort? 

Ms. Sara Mokaddem will be taking part in a panel discussion titled: The Africa Files which will be taking place on Friday February 23^rd from 12:30 to 14:30. This panel discussion will examine the continental growth story and the pivotal roles its countries play in emerging narratives about geopolitics and security. In a few years, the cumulative GDP of the African continent will reach $5 trillion. The countries in Africa have some of the youngest populations in the world and are urbanizing and industrializing rapidly. The region is also moving swiftly towards economic integration. The panel will tackle the following questions:

• How can economic integration change the nature of economic growth and development in Africa?
• What infrastructure investments are needed to leverage trade agreements?
• How are African nations dealing with demands on their capacity that come with playing a leading role in global policy conversations? 
• How do countries in Africa increase their agency when it comes to determining the security of their supply chains -for example of food or fuel? 
• How can they achieve independence from decisions made in the Global North, such as sanctions, that may constrict these supply chains? 
• What does the rest of the world make of opportunities in Africa’s growth story?  

Lieu: New Delhi, India