BEIJING, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- The global governance system "seriously neglects" the interests and needs of the Global South, said a Xinhua think tank report released on Tuesday.
The robust growth of the Global South is "the most striking feature of our times," said the report titled "Upholding International Justice and Jointly Addressing World Turbulence -- Focusing on China's Solution to Global Governance," released by Xinhua Institute, a think tank affiliated with Xinhua News Agency.
"Today, the Global South accounts for more than 40 percent of global economic output. It contributes around 80 percent of global economic growth, having become a key force in safeguarding international peace, driving global development, and improving global governance," it said. "Amid the unfolding global changes of a magnitude unseen in a century, relations among East, West, North, and South are undergoing historic shifts marked by shifting relative strengths."
Yet for a long time, the global governance system has "severely overlooked the interests and needs of Global South countries in agenda-setting, rule-making, and resource allocation," it noted.
"Development issues of the Global South have been weakened, diluted, or marginalized, resulting in a marked deficit in the system's representativeness and fairness," it said. "In international economic organizations such as the IMF and the World Bank, the voting power and decision-making influence of Global South countries fall far short of their shares of the world's population and economic output."
"Developed countries tightly control the global value chain, locking Global South countries into its lowest segments," it said.
As emerging market economies and developing countries rise collectively, enhancing the representation of the Global South and correcting historical injustices have become "an inevitable direction of our times," it said. ■
