A world upside down

The international conference circuit is currently abuzz. Two weeks ago, trade ministers or their representatives met in Geneva, Switzerland for the World Trade Organization’s Twelfth Ministerial Conference. A few days ago, leaders of the Commonwealth wrapped up their sumamit in Kigali, Rwanda. This week, the leaders of the Group of 7 (G7), comprising the world’s wealthiest democracies, met in Schloss Elmau, Germany, for their annual meeting.

Leaders of the North Treaty Alliance also held their Summit from June, 26-28 in Madrid, Spain.

As far as the circuit of global conferences goes, things appear to be back to normal in the aftermath of the border closures occasioned by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

However, the world as it is now, is anything but normal and the hive of global meetings belies the upside down nature of the world.

Hyper-inflation, high energy prices, soaring food prices, backsliding on climate commitments, war on the European continent with the potential to morph into the biggest conflict since the end of World War II, conflict hotspots dotted throughout the world, collapsing economies and agitated citizens the world over, have created a powder keg which could blow at any time. Rarely has the world seen such a confluence of crises, all happening simultaneously.

The often quoted Murphy’s Law states that “If anything can go wrong, it will.” What the world is being served right now is Murphy’s law on steroids.

What is making things worse is the huge geopolitical fissure which exists between world-leading economies and militaries. There seems to be a total breakdown in global diplomacy between the major economic and military powers, with countries choosing to remain entrenched in their world views and behaviours.

My concern continues to be about the collateral damage that the current state of the world is inflicting on especially those that have “no skin” in the game of the conflicts, tensions and decision-making of others. The war in Ukraine for instance is exacerbating food insecurity in many parts of the world. In similar vein, those who renege on their climate commitments leave others increasingly defenceless against the climate onslaught.

We all deserve to live in a world that is right side up more often than it is upside down.

However, this also requires political courage on the part of world leaders to do what is right for the citizens of the world.

Unfortunately, courage seems to be in short supply. What we have instead is an overabundance of ego parading as leadership on the global stage.

It takes courage to give diplomacy a genuine chance to succeed when ego dictates that bombs must be dropped. It takes courage to engage in confidence building measures even when ego demands that tensions must be ratcheted up.

Apart from courage, it also takes conviction. When Russia started its war in Ukraine, the international community raised US$16 billion in one month to assist Ukraine. In the face of suffering and destruction, conviction dictated that this was the right thing to do. However, comparatively speaking, the international community has only managed to raise US$93 million to assist with the developing hunger crisis in East Africa. Lack of conviction in this case brings about a much more subdued response.

The world is largely upside down due to political failure. Some leaders lack the courage to do what is right, some lack the conviction to act justly and some lack both courage and conviction.

Joel K Richards is a Vincentian national living and working in Europe in the field of international trade and development.
Email: joelkmrichards@gmail.com