Remarks by MoS Dr. Rajkumar Ranjan Singh at the 19th NAM Summit - Ministerial Meeting

Mr. Chairman
Excellencies’

I am pleased to be among friends in Uganda for this historic 19th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement.

2. I extend my congratulations, to the Government and the people of Uganda, for assuming the leadership of not only our Movement, but also of the G77. I also thank our hosts for their warm hospitality and excellent arrangements.

3. Close on the heels of the African Union’s successful induction into the G20 during India´s Presidency, an African country captaining two important international bodies is clear reflection of the collective strength of this continent. This is clearly Africa’s moment.

4. Excellencies, change and disruption is the new normal. COVID disproportionately impacted the Global South, and it appears to have a tail longer than expected. Geopolitics begets one after-shock after the other. Extreme weather is now a weekly occurrence around the globe, even as the broader Climate Change narrative appears trapped in the vicious cycle of inadequate financing and technology transfers. We are amidst a development deficit delivered by the pandemic, debt crisis, weaponised supply chains, and by out of sync multilateral institutions. The global economy even at its most vulnerable seems to only delivers more to the haves, thus causing a global development crisis.

5. This is a pivotal global moment. Our actions now will define our collective future. We are entrusted with fostering solidarity, envisioning the path ahead, while revitalizing NAM. Our movement has had its moments. A multipolar and complex world requires us to go back to our First Principles. As a founding member, India remains invested in NAM, and hopes that this Movement will voice the hopes and aspirations of our young people.

Excellencies, Mr. Chairman

6. As Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said, "the world is interconnected, as well as interdependent and we are living in the era of multilateralism.” NAM is one of the world’s largest multilateral fora mobilizing support for the Global South. It is crucial that we defend and nurture NAM´s tradition of independence, so that we set our own agenda. We are happy to see Uganda’s focus on some of the key issues of importance to the Global South, especially those relating to our development agenda, human trafficking and drug smuggling and the larger issues of peace and security.

7. As a developing country with a large young population, migration especially of professionals and the skilled is an important part of our global engagement. Migration in transnational, and it requires cooperation at the international, regional and bilateral levels. In this context, India recognised Global Skill Gaps, Gig and Platform Economy and Social Protection with Sustainable Financing of Social Security as global developmental challenges during its G20 Presidency.

Excellencies, Mr. Chairman

8. Global South’s development agenda stares at unfulfilled promises as it bears the pressures of the disproportionate impact of climate change, the pressure of industrializing without carbonizing, and the pressure of lifting millions out of poverty - all at the same time. India utilized its G20 Presidency to redefine the way world looks at development agenda by linking it to each and every major agenda of the world today, be it climate change, energy transitions or digital transformation. While doing so, India remained anchored in the South-South spirit and convened two Voice of the Global South summits to guide our work.

9. India has leveraged technology to transform Governance, to make it more efficient, inclusive, faster and transparent. India’s Digital Public Infrastructure offers scalable, secure and inclusive solutions for global challenges and we stand ready to share its experiences with the world. We offered our CoWIN platform for global good during the Covid pandemic. We have now created the India Stack- an open-source Global Public Digital Goods Repository – which we are ready to share, especially with the Global South for digital transformation and governance purposes.

10. Finally, it is also important to highlight the importance of supply chains resilience as its crucial to our growth and development. We recognize that, in order to guarantee better-integrated trade and production linkages, supply chain systems that are resilient to future crises connected to health, climate change, and security must be built using the 3Ts principle ('transparency, trusted source, and time frame') as stressed by Prime Minister Modi.

11. To achieve the vision set by the NAM chair, we would need to recommit to upholding NAM’s Founding Principles, its working methods, including through our collective revitalization efforts. Only then will NAM be able to address contemporary challenges confronting the countries of the Global South.

12. Let me also express my deepest concern at the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. We have condemned the loss of civilian lives, most of them women and children, in the Israel-Hamas conflict. India has called for restraint, de-escalation and emphasized peaceful resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy. India has condemned the terrorist attack on Israel on 7 October and called for immediate and unconditional release of all remaining hostages. The humanitarian needs of the people of Gaza must be addressed. In this, we have called for timely and continued delivery of humanitarian assistance and welcome the international community’s de-escalation efforts and delivery of humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza. India too has contributed to this effort. India has always supported a negotiated Two-State solution to the Israel-Palestine issue leading to the establishment of a sovereign, independent and viable State of Palestine living within secure and recognized borders, side-by-side in peace with Israel. We reiterate the need for an early resumption of direct and meaningful negotiations. Every effort must be made to create conducive conditions for resumption of these talks.

Excellencies, Mr. Chairman

13. Over the last year, we in India, championed the philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, spelled out as - One World, One Family, One Future - to navigate the complex global challenges. The success of our G20 Presidency also reflected the Global South’s agenda standing for solidarity, respect and human dignity and truly leaving no one behind.

14. We face several historical inflexion points on matters of energy, technology, AI, demographics and the increasing global order dissonance. Contemporary complexities cannot be met by our stock political positions debated on the usual political shortwave frequency. I am confident that under the able leadership of our Ugandan friends, the Non-Aligned Movement will re-emerge as a force for positive change.

15. Finally, Chair, while our focus is on coming together to strengthen NAM collectively, we have been exposed to the unfortunate, misplaced, predictable and blatant misuse of this august platform by Pakistan, as it propagates false and malicious propaganda against my country. Any interference in India's internal affairs is totally unacceptable and we completely reject it.

Thank you

Kampala, Uganda
January 17, 2024