By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan assumed the chairmanship of the Group of 24 developing economies on Sunday, with Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb pledging to use the platform to press for a more responsive, fair and development-oriented international financial system.
Aurangzeb described the role as a “profound responsibility,” according to a Finance Division handout, and called for “renewed international cooperation, stronger multilateral institutions and reinforced global commitments to address climate shocks, development financing gaps and global economic fragmentation.”
“The future of developing economies is not peripheral to the future of the global economy. It is central to it,” the ministry quoted him as saying. He pointed to the “immense potential of emerging and developing nations as drivers of investment, innovation, entrepreneurship and global growth.”
The G-24 is a coalition of developing countries established in 1971 to coordinate their positions on international monetary and financial issues, particularly at the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Its 28 members include Algeria, Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, India, Iran, Lebanon, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Syria. China takes part in sessions as a special invitee. Nigeria is the outgoing chair, and Aurangzeb acknowledged its leadership and pledged to build on the group’s progress.
Three priorities
Aurangzeb outlined three priorities: placing development at the center of global economic policymaking, strengthening multilateral frameworks, and advancing a development-oriented international financial architecture.
On the first, he said macroeconomic stability must underpin investment, productivity, employment and shared prosperity. That approach, he said, would enable “developing and low-income economies to move beyond crisis management towards sustainable growth.”
On the second, he said Pakistan would advocate for “more equitable and fair governance, meaningful participation in decision-making and greater responsiveness of the Bretton Woods institutions to the evolving needs and realities of their members.”
On the third, he said Pakistan would prioritize affordable and timely development financing, sustainable debt solutions, stronger global financial safety nets, climate resilience and greater mobilization of public and private capital.
“Our task is to ensure that the immense potential of developing economies is not constrained by an international financial architecture that has yet to fully adapt to a changing world,” Aurangzeb was quoted as saying.
He said Pakistan would draw on its own experience with economic stabilization, reform and resilience to align financial stability with long-term development goals, so that reforming economies have the financing and policy space to pursue sustainable growth.
Pakistan’s tenure, he said, would be guided by “G-24’s longstanding principles of consultation, consensus and collective advocacy, working closely with members across Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, alongside the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank and other international partners, to translate shared priorities into practical outcomes.”
He also set a test for the group’s work. “The true measure of our collective leadership will not simply be the strength of our voice, but the difference that voice makes,” the ministry quoted him as saying, adding that effectiveness “must be judged by tangible development outcomes.” Aurangzeb said he wanted to move the G-24 “from collective voice to collective influence, and from collective influence to meaningful progress.”
Political backing
President Asif Ali Zardari welcomed the move in a post on X, calling it an “important” opportunity for “effective” representation of developing countries in global economic affairs. “This opportunity will provide Pakistan with the chance to play a role in developmental financing, climate challenges, and promoting global financial cooperation,” he said.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called it a “significant diplomatic milestone,” according to a statement from his office. He said he hoped it would give Pakistan “an opportunity to play an influential role in advocating for necessary reforms within the global financial system, securing equitable financial support to address climate change and promoting sustainable development opportunities for emerging economies.” Sharif credited Aurangzeb and his team for “tireless efforts, effective diplomacy, and professional competence,” and for “impactful” participation at the recent IMF and World Bank annual meetings, which he said helped Pakistan secure a “prominent position in the economic leadership of developing nations.”
The handover follows a run of international roles for Islamabad. Aurangzeb addressed a meeting of G-24 finance ministers and central bank governors in Bangkok, on the sidelines of the IMF and World Bank annual meetings, as the group’s first vice-chair, and called for timely financial support for countries undertaking difficult reforms while confronting external shocks beyond their control. Separately, Pakistan will chair the boards of governors of the World Bank Group and the IMF in 2027, its first return to the position since 1953.
In an interview with Nikkei Asia, Aurangzeb said Pakistan was looking to diversify its external financing sources, including further issuance of yuan-denominated panda bonds and possibly tapping Japan’s market.
The development comes as Pakistan tries to consolidate its economic standing abroad with help from a $7 billion IMF loan program, and as it seeks closer trade and investment ties with regional countries.
Copyright © 2021 Independent Pakistan | All rights reserved
