South–South cooperation (SSC) is a term historically used by policymakers and academics to describe the exchange of resources, technology, and knowledge between the developing countries who are also referred to as the Global South because of the different dimensions within their paradigm. One of the key goals of the cooperation is to strengthen and improve economic ties.
Some of the areas which these "southern" nations look forward to improving further include- joint investment in energy and oil. The two continents- South America and Africa- have over one quarter of the world's energy resources. This includes the oil and natural gas reserves in Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Venezuela, Algeria, Angola, Libya, Nigeria, Chad, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.
Representatives from the developing south meet annually at the Global Policy Forum (GPF) making it the most important and comprehensive forum for regulatory institutions from emerging economies with an interest in promoting financial inclusion policy. The forum is focused on developing and improving national financial inclusion strategies and policies, and is used as a platform for senior financial regulators to exchange ideas and engage in peer-to-peer learning activities.
Countries are also co-operating on the basis of bilateral collaboration in science, technology and innovation on a bilateral basis to develop infrastructure and diversify the economy. There is ‘dynamic bilateral collaboration’ between China and the Russian Federation, for instance. This cooperation stems from the Treaty on Good Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation signed by the two countries in 2001, which has given rise to regular four-year plans for its implementation. Dozens of joint large-scale projects are being carried out. They concern the construction of the first super-high-voltage electricity transmission line in China; the development of an experimental fast neutron reactor; geological prospecting in the Russian Federation and China; and joint research in optics, metal processing, hydraulics, aerodynamics and solid fuel cells. Other priority areas for co-operation include industrial and medical lasers, computer technology, energy, the environment and chemistry, geochemistry, catalytic processes and new materials.
In light of its ideological commitment to South-South Cooperation (and motivated by a pragmatic desire to increase food security) China has established a series of Agricultural Technology Demonstration Centers in Africa. These are a highly visible component of agricultural cooperation between China and African countries. The function of these centers is to transmit agricultural expertise and technology from China to developing countries in Africa while also creating market opportunities for Chinese companies in the agricultural sector.
China's overseas SEZs are another example of South-South cooperation. From 1990 to 2018, Chinese enterprises established eleven SEZs in sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East including: Nigeria (two), Zambia, Djibouti, Kenya, Mauritius, Mauritania, Egypt, Oman, and Algeria. Generally, the Chinese government takes a hands-off approach, leaving it to Chinese enterprises to work to establish such zones (although it does provide support in the form of grants, loans, and subsidies, including support via the China- Africa Development Fund (CADF) which promotes these SEZs heavily. Professor Dawn C. Murphy has observed in this regard that these zones "aim to transfer China's development successes to other countries, increase business opportunities for China manufacturing companies and create a positive business environment for Chinese small and medium-sized enterprises investing in these regions."
The 2021 United Nations Day for South-South cooperation also presented the opportunity for stakeholders to highlight concrete follow-up to the twentieth session of the High level Committee on South South Cooperation (HLC) which had taken place from 1 to 4 June 2021 in New York and had reviewed progress made in implementing the Buenos Aires Action Plan (BAPA+40) and other other key decisions on South-South cooperation. The HLC hosted 75 member states – including a Head of State and Ministers from around the world – as well as 23 intergovernmental organizations, 25 UN entities, civil society and the private sector. More than 400 people participated during side events which HLC Bureau Members took the lead in organizing on issues of importance to the South. This HLC session considered follow-up actions arising from previous sessions and hosted a thematic discussion on “Accelerating the achievement of the SDGs through effective implementation of the BAPA+40 outcome documents while responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and similar global crises”.
In 2023 one needs to undertake a careful scrutiny as to whether necessary successful measures are being undertaken to take such South-South Cooperation forward with the help of the United Nations. In this context one also needs to recall the observations made by UN Secretary General António Guterres who reminded us - “South-South and triangular cooperation must have a central place in our preparations for a strong recovery. We will need the full contributions and cooperation of the global South to build more resilient economies and societies and implement the Sustainable Development Goals”.
In 2021, ahead of the opening of the seventy-sixth session of the United Nations General Assembly the UN Day for South-South Cooperation was convened to provide an opportunity to discuss Southern solidarity in support of a more inclusive, resilient and sustainable future while effectively responding to the global COVID-19 crisis across the global South.
In this regard one needs to at this time deliberate as to the significant role that needs to be played by the United Nations for agreeing on concrete ways to enhance the role and impact of the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation, as well as the key measures that need to be taken to improve the coordination and coherence of UN support not only for South-South development cooperation but also as an effective response to emergencies. This is required to support countries’ national development priorities, alignment with the SDGs, and the acceleration of achievement toward the 2030 Agenda. South-South cooperation has also been recognized as an effective approach to accelerate and deepen the efforts to build back better, healthier, safer, more resilient and sustainable.
It needs to be emphasized here that over the past decade, the world has witnessed the increase in the scale, scope, and diversity of approaches of South-South and triangular cooperation. Countries of the Global South have strengthened institutional capacities for cooperation by formulating and implementing national development policies, strategies, and agencies, and by developing information and performance management systems for data gathering, expertise and technology mapping, and impact assessment.
With the strengthening of national capacities on South-South and triangular cooperation there is opportunity now to collect and exchange evidence of how much South-South and triangular cooperation is being done, how it benefits people, and how to create institutional mechanisms to help countries align South-South collaboration with their national and regional agendas.
As the world fights the COVID-19 pandemic and strives to build back better, international development organizations must offer innovative, timely responses to remain relevant. This includes new forms of coordination based on more “coherent” and “integrated support” capable of unleashing change on the ground. The COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare severe and systemic inequalities. The pandemic has also highlighted the importance of the digital revolution. Recovery from pandemic requires additional support, innovative development solutions and arrangements between public and private sectors.
We must facilitate opportunities to expand development cooperation and its processes and to improve the effectiveness of multilateral cooperation. Fostering multi-dimensionality and multi-stakeholders approaches is the way forward to enhance development impact.
Building institutional capacity in sub-Saharan Africa and LDCs through South-South and triangular cooperation is essential for countries to fully harness digital transformation and recovery. Triangular cooperation is a flexible platform where partners can mobilize different funding capacities in support of developing countries’ priorities. Triangular cooperation demands horizontality and shared governance approved by all parties. It is based on a clear respect for national sovereignty and the seeking of mutual benefit in equal partnerships.
Traditionally, South-South and triangular cooperation has taken place among governments on bilateral terms. As development becomes more dynamic in nature and unprecedented in scale, South-South and triangular cooperation is now used to source innovation from wherever it is.
Also highlighted was that South-South and triangular cooperation is increasingly recognized as an important complement to North-South cooperation in financing for sustainable development.
UNOSSC will continue to promote, coordinate and support South-South and triangular cooperation globally and within the UN system. It will also continue to support governments and the UN system to analyse and articulate evolving and emerging trends, dynamics and opportunities in South-South cooperation. Given UNOSSC’s mandate to support South-South and triangular cooperation globally and within the UN system, the Secretary-General has correctly requested UNOSSC to coordinate the preparation and launch the required engagement with the help of the UN Inter-Agency Mechanism for South-South and Triangular Cooperation, and other stakeholders.
The Strategy’s objective is to provide a system-wide policy orientation to UN entities in order to galvanize a coordinated and coherent approach to policy, programmatic and partnership support on South-South and triangular cooperation and increase impact across UN activities at all levels: national, regional and global. Implementation is governed by each entity individually, based on its own mandate and programme of work.
UNOSSC is also currently developing its 2022-2025 Strategic Frameworks. It is an opportunity for the Office to catalyze the use of South-South and triangular cooperation to accelerate the speed and scale of action towards achieving the SDGs. For example, the Office aims to offer a platform whereby: (i) countries of the Global South can exchange knowledge, develop capacities, and transfer technologies to address their own development priorities as well as coordinate and co-design solutions to shared development challenges and (ii) UN agencies, programs, and funds can strengthen their support to SSTC at the global, regional and country levels.
No country is too poor to contribute to South-South cooperation for development, and no country is too rich to lean away from the South. All partners have important elements to contribute. So, it follows that triangular cooperation is an important element of our work.
Muhammad Zamir, a former Ambassador, is an analyst specialized in foreign affairs, right to information and good governance