In its Trade and Development Report 2017, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development has stressed the need for concerted efforts to crowd in private investment to rev up the engines of growth and help rebalance economies and societies across the world.The report adds that no country can do this on its own without risking capital flight, a currency collapse and the threat of a deflationary spiral in this age of mobile finance and liberalized economic policies. Therefore, there is a need to devise a global strategy to increase public expenditures and all the countries should be offered equal opportunities to benefit from their domestic and external markets.The world economy has been stunted by years of austerity and growing inequalities, with destabilising and dangerous effects on the political, social and environmental health of the planet. An urgent new global deal is need of the hour. The report calls for an equally ambitious effort to tackle the inequities of globalisation to build inclusive and sustainable economies. Special emphasis should be laid down on job creation and the expansion of tax bases to enable redistribution of wealth among various segments of society.
According to the report, the global economy will register a growth of 2.6 percent this year, which will be slightly higher than the 2.2 percent registered in 2016, and below 3.2 percent average seen in the years leading up to the financial crisis. It says the growth in developed countries is expected to tick in at 1.9 percent this year, up from 1.7 percent from the last year. The report holds the sluggish growth in richer nations responsible for limited growth in developing countries, and forecasts a growth of 4.2 percent this year up from 3.6 percent last year.
Pakistan’s economy is facing serious challenges from internal and external factors. A steep rise in fanaticism and jingoism in India has adversely affected regional peace and economic stability. The Indian politics revolves around Pakistan and it has not only threatened regional peace, but also slashed economic growth in the region. The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation has been rendered ineffective deliberately by Indian policymakers, barring any effort to boost regional trade and cooperation. The initiative by United Nations is a welcome step and it is hoped the new global economic order may bring a paradigm shift in people’s lives.
