Cooperation between the Global South countries has the potential to solidify the base of future trade, Indian Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said at the 2nd Voice of Global South Summit on Friday.
"The Global South needs to discuss ways and means for countries to cooperate and act together to make supply chains open, secure, trusted, stable, and equitable, thereby making them more resilient," Goyal stressed, according to a press release shared by India's Commerce Ministry.
The minister pointed out that the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing military conflicts in the Middle East and Eastern Europe have resulted in global supply chains going for a toss.
Furthermore, he underlined that these disruptions in supply chains have created mammoth problems in Global South nations, particularly in the sphere of food and energy security, as prices of essential commodities, crude, and gas have soured.
Among other things, Goyal emphasized that in such a scenario, achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has become a monumental challenge.
Against this backdrop, he asserted that it was necessary to "strengthen the voice of the Global South" with the help of increased collaboration between South-South sovereign states.
Furthermore, he underlined that these disruptions in supply chains have created mammoth problems in Global South nations, particularly in the sphere of food and energy security, as prices of essential commodities, crude, and gas have soured.
Among other things, Goyal emphasized that in such a scenario, achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has become a monumental challenge.
Against this backdrop, he asserted that it was necessary to "strengthen the voice of the Global South" with the help of increased collaboration between South-South sovereign states.
"For example, the phenomenal nine-fold increase in South-South trade from 600 billion US dollars in 1995 to 5.3 trillion US dollars in 2021 had a major impact on economic growth and resilience of many countries," he summed up.