South-South Cooperation
Historically, South-South cooperation was promoted only by the governments as a model to exhibit “South-solidarity” for collectively influencing the international political and economic order
This traditional model has now evolved into a more dynamic one, motivating innovation and knowledge driven industrialization in the South by linking multiple stakeholders, including the private sector firms, universities, R&D institutions and civil society organizations to name a few. The United Nations General Assembly in 2003, formally opted to use the term South-South (instead of ECDC/TCDC) in describing cooperation among developing countries.
The rich diversity of the South provides an excellent opportunity for forging mutually beneficial partnerships to work towards the common goal of economic growth, industrial development and poverty reduction. The trends in South-South Cooperation have been quite encouraging. Developing countries are now increasingly investing in each others’ economies, with FDI rising from US$ 14 billion in 1995 to US $ 47 billion in 2003. These investments accounted for 37% of the total FDI in all of the developing countries in 2003. Trade within the South has also risen significantly from US$222 billion in 1995 to US$ 562 billion in 2004; or representing 26% of their global trade. Talking of Asia; South and East Asian countries in 2005 accounted for 70 percent of the total manufacturing value-added in developing countries in 2005, an increase from around 50 per cent in 1990. During the period 2002-2004, average annual intra-Asian investment flows amounted to US$48 billion, i.e. more than four-fifth of all intra-South FDI in the period.
Although the progress is being seen, the potential of maximizing gains through leveraging of capacities, networking of institutions and making timely technological interventions still remains largely untapped.
UNIDO, a specialized UN agency of the UN mandated to promote industrial development and international industrial cooperation, plays a pivotal role in giving a stimulus to South-South Cooperation by bringing forward its expertise and time-tested field experience in support of developing countries, particularly the LDC’s.
