Tok Mat: Developing nations left vulnerable to inequality, debt and climate crisis
NEW DELHI: Malaysia has called for urgent reforms to the global governance and multilateral system, warning that the current framework is no longer sustainable in addressing mounting global challenges affecting developing nations.
Speaking at the BRICS Partners’ Foreign Ministers’ Meeting here, Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said the existing global governance system is “creaking under the weight of humanity’s most pressing worries”, including widening inequality, unsustainable debt burdens, climate crises and unilateral trade measures.
He said these challenges have eroded trust in multilateralism and international cooperation over the years and have reached a point that is “simply unworkable”, Bernama reported.
Mohamad said countries in the Global South have long faced gaps in representation, access and influence within the international system, but stressed that multilateralism remains the foundation of a rules-based global order where all nations, regardless of size or power, should have a fair voice.
“We have seen what a world driven by power rather than rules looks like. Developing and smaller nations are left vulnerable to exploitation, exclusion and isolation,” he said.
He also warned that without meaningful reform, trust in the global system would continue to deteriorate, particularly in relation to the international financial architecture and debt crisis.
“The Bretton Woods institutions are still based on gross domestic product quotas and are therefore out of step with their own methodology,” he said, referring to the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.
Mohamad noted that the Covid-19 pandemic and other interconnected global challenges had worsened debt burdens, with nearly 40% of developing countries facing severe debt-related problems.
“About 3.4 billion people live in countries that spend more on debt servicing than on essential services like healthcare and education,” he said.
He added that the growing debt burden continues to hinder developing countries from achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, underscoring the need for a fairer financial system with effective debt relief and restructuring mechanisms.
The two-day meeting, which began on Thursday, serves as a key preparatory platform ahead of the BRICS Leaders’ Summit later this year.
On the sidelines of the meeting, Mohamad also held bilateral talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.
During his meeting with Lavrov, both sides discussed Malaysia-Russia ties and developments in the Middle East, including the need to prioritise dialogue, diplomacy and de-escalation efforts to preserve regional peace and stability.
Meanwhile, discussions with Jaishankar focused on enhancing cooperation within the BRICS framework, Malaysia-India relations, and regional and international issues.
