372 results found
This paper highlights the imperatives for India’s G20 Presidency for promoting development cooperation towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Given its unique development cooperation model—more precisely, its development partnership model—India can utilise its G20 presidency to push the sustainability agenda. This will help bridge the North-South divide in sustainable development financing. The paper recommends
PM Narendra Modi has an opportunity to play peacemaker at the most important peace summit since World War II. India’s well-established relationship with Russia is the key.
India is on its way to becoming “the Saudi Arabia of data”. This brief argues that India enjoys unmatched advantages of demography, economy, and geography and could be a hub of the submarine cable network that would facilitate the transport of data across the Indian Ocean. India’s public and private sectors should leverage these advantages to push the country to the centrestage of connectivity across the region and beyond. India’s
New infrastructure built by India in Mauritius demonstrates New Delhi’s commitment to cementing its security presence in the IOR.
Putting New Delhi and Beijing in the same bracket as drivers of South-South Cooperation is incorrect
Lifestyle for the Environment, or LiFE, calls for sustainable lifestyles rooted in responsible consumption, ecological mindfulness, and alignment with nature's regenerative capacities.
The declassified doctrine outlines the framework for planning and execution of amphibious operations by integrating maritime, air and land domains.
Despite growing Chinese interest in financing and building infrastructure, India remains one of Nigeria’s important partners
Women play a pivotal yet often unrecognised role across all stages of the agricultural value chain, spanning production, processing, marketing, and distribution. In India and many developing economies of the Global South, women constitute a large proportion of the agricultural workforce as farmers. However, despite this centrality, systemic barriers—including limited access to land, credit, technology, training, and markets—continue to hinder
Progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the Global South is being threatened by the mounting challenges facing developing countries due to the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic and the prolonged Russia-Ukraine war, and receding aid from traditional donor countries. As the achievement of the SDGs remains more relevant than ever, this brief proposes the creation of a Global South Development Assistance Committee (D
Amongst India’s stated priorities in its G20 Presidency are reforming multilateral institutions, climate action alongside energy transition, digital transformation and governance, sustainable economic growth, and women’s empowerment. In many of these concerns, countries in the Global North and Global South have serious divergences, thereby hampering progress towards consensus and unified action. To remove some of the deadlocks
Isolation from the West has forced Russia to reach out to the Global South. Its trade with India, for example, saw a remarkable rise in FY2024-25, driven by increased imports by India, primarily of crude oil. To work around US, UK, and EU sanctions imposed on Russia, the two countries have resorted to the rupee–ruble settlement facilitated by the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) decision in July 2022 to allow export and import operations in Indi
Alternatively, for India, BRICS remains a non-West platform as reiterated by PM Modi at the Russia summit that the organisation must not foster a notion that it seeks to replace international institutions.
Development partnerships between countries are crucial in addressing policy challenges in the developing world. Cooperation between countries in the Global South, in particular—such as those that India engages in, under its Development Partnership Administration (DPA)—is heightening conversations around the demands of sustainability. Yet, India continues to lack an appropriate framework by which to assess its development partnerships
Blue carbon ecosystems, despite covering less than 2 percent of the total ocean surface, account for nearly 50 percent of carbon burial in marine sediments. They provide many other co-benefits too, especially for Global South countries where they aid in food security, income generation, and disaster risk reduction. However, blue carbon ecosystems are rapidly degrading, and financing for their protection and restoration remains insufficient as the
The techno-political needle has shifted the focus to people. Safety and risks matter, but what has been made clear in India’s approach is that these are not all
As global geopolitics shift towards more flexible, interest-based partnerships, India and Armenia present a compelling partnership model for such engagements. Initially spurred by defence cooperation, the India-Armenia bilateral relationship holds promise for further development in deep technology. Armenia’s legacy of tech education, paired with its emerging AI startup ecosystem, complements India’s growing prominence in global tech manufactu
The 2024 advisory opinion issued by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), recognising GHG emissions as marine pollution, marks a pivotal intersection in maritime and climate governance. The opinion, while non-binding, establishes legal obligations for states to mitigate climate-induced marine impacts, including acidification, warming, and sea-level rise. It emphasises due diligence, transboundary impact assessments, and adher
In a world increasingly being shaped by rapid technological advancements, environmental crises, and deepening inequalities, the dominant models of quality education offer a narrow and inadequate vision. This paper makes a case for a multi-dimensional and adaptable capability approach (CA) that offers a transformative lens for guiding future policy reforms. It offers policy directions for India and other Global South contexts, advocating for a red
The multilateral order, built on the debris of the Second World War, is no longer fit to address this situation. Global institutions are missing in action just when they are needed the most
In its bid to dodge the American economic bullet, Uganda is seeking new strategic and trade partnerships beyond Beijing. In India, it may see one such opportunity
India’s membership in the Australia Group since 2018 and consistent diplomatic support for the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) give it significant credibility, particularly among countries of the Global South. But in what ways is Delhi well-positioned to champion the diverse needs of the Global South and push for a modern, resilient BWC? See infographics for quick key insights.
The world is facing a climate-change challenge that requires nothing short of atechnological revolution to address. Yet the current patterns of technology development anddiffusions are not transformative enough; nor are they happening at a pace, rapid enough.Actions at multiple levels engaging different actors are needed to reduce emissions whilemeeting the developmental needs of the global south. This paper summarises the mostinnovative ideas s
The India AI Impact Summit 2026 signals Delhi’s intent to shift the global AI conversation from abstract anxieties to the politics of impact — who benefits, who is excluded, and who sets the rules
Thinking about the future of global food systems has now become more critical than ever. Climate change impacts—among them, shifts in soil quality, precipitation, pest regimes, seasonal growth patterns, along with land degradation and reduction in biodiversity—have impacted agricultural and aquatic food production systems across the world. Indeed, the causal links between climate change and food security are manifesting more clearly, particul
The G7’s future relevance will depend on its ability to stay united, share space, and shape the agenda with rising powers like India.
The United States (US) and the European Union (EU) have shifted beyond market-led climate action toward state-backed green industrial policy, driven by competitiveness, economic security, and technological leadership concerns. Despite differences in approach, Atlantic strategies share an inward focus that positions the Global South primarily as a consumer market or supplier of intermediate inputs. Such models are politically unsustainable for dev
This paper highlights the likely impact that the Trump energy policy reset may have on Washington’s approach to energy transitions domestically and globally. It seeks to identify any recalibration that this changed approach may have triggered in the long-term agenda of US partners. The paper focuses on the United Arab Emirates (UAE)—a country that has substantiated its commitment to clean energy pathways with sizeable investments of political
India is also looking to share its own developmental experience with other nations placed at different levels of the developmental trajectory but facing common challenges
The failure of global finance to create a bridge between savings that earn low returns in the global north and the projects that would create much-needed infrastructure in the global south has caused a crisis that needs the attention of global regulators. Among the multiple causes of this crisis is the stringent regulatory response to the 2008 financial crisis, including new lending norms for banks; the tardy response of institutional investors t
Limited liability partnerships among nations will constitute the geometry of politics. This is a gritty, realist world. We may not like it, but it’s here to stay
Port cities are playing an increasingly vital role in driving economic growth within the blue economy. This paper examines how these cities, particularly in the Global South, can strike a balance between economic development, social equity, and environmental sustainability. It emphasises the imperative of integrating local contexts—especially the needs of indigenous peoples and local communities—as well as cultural heritage into urban plannin
At least 4 billion people around the world are yet to be covered by any form of social security, and therefore vulnerable to economic, social, and environmental shocks. This paper examines the state of social security in the Group of Twenty (G20) economies—home to 63 percent of the global population. It finds gaps in social security financing in these countries: between universal coverage and actual coverage, and between countries of the Global
The question of making manufacturing more climate-conscious has become central to trade policy debates, and environmental standards as non-tariff barriers are no longer just a subset of the larger trade and environment discourse. This brief defines environmental standards contextualised with international agreements and rules. It unpacks global conversations around environmental standards and measures, and how they impact small and medium-sized e
