Realistic and committed action needed for developing nations to survive the global credit crisis

“Collapse of Western excess is creating a crisis for developing countries caught in the tailwind. ” 2.8 billion survive on less than two dollars a day. After significant gains in the last decade, which saw GDP growing across Africa at an average of 5%, latest figures indicate this is dropped to less than 3%. The solutions are complex, will be incremental, and require action at both macro (intergovernmental) and micro-levels (individuals and NGOs assisting economic development on the ground). There is no silver bullet, but only realistic and committed action at all levels.

This was the message of Dr Ben Thirkell-White (Senior Lecturer in International Relations, VUW), speaking at the second DO SOMETHING! seminar, ‘We sneeze –they get terminal illnesses: the credit crunch and global poverty’.

One of the major blockages to effective assistance to the poorer nations is an attitude – particularly prevalent in the IMF – that the since the poorer nations aren’t macroeconomically significant, and their problems originate in the West, then the best thing to do is spend bail-out money in the West to stimulate the global economy and kick-start recovery.

In answer to the question, “If over-consumption has produced the problem, will more consumption be the solution?”, Dr Thirkell-White’s answer was “yes and no … and yes.” The reality is, that poorer nations are dependant on rich nations for both export and capital technology transfers, so if the Western economy collapses, the suffering of poorer nations will be immense. On the other hand, for recovery to be sustainable, both for the global economy and ecologically for the planet, the issue of what sort of growth, and who for, needs to be addressed. Reform of the banking sector also needs to be given attention, with banks being made to hold more risk capital. Meantime, there are practical things that individuals and communities of interest can do:

• lobbying their MP, and the ministers of finance and foreign affairs to live up to our national commitments to contribute 0.7% of GDP in Aid. The main reason NZ doesn’t currently live up to this is politicians’ perceived lack of public interest in the issue.


• choosing an NGO working efficiently in an area that interests you, supporting them financially and getting involved in their activities.


• becoming better informed about the issues involved and taking courage to express your opinions to friends and relatives may seem ineffective, but in fact, the more people doing this, the more groundswell for change is created.

For audio (the whole meeting) and a video interview with Dr Thirkell-White, go to www.dosomething.org.nz

ENDS