5 Days, 4 Honours: How PM Modi Has Emerged As The Trusted Voice Of Global South

Last Updated:November 21, 2024, 09:44 IST

PM Narendra Modi has been vocal about the issues of the Global South at all multilateral forums and has sought an approach to solve these issues.

PM Modi received a warm welcome from the President of Guyana, Irfaan Ali, as he broke all protocols and received the Indian Prime Minister on the tarmac along with his other cabinet ministers. (Image: AP Photo)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emerged as the most trusted voice of the Global South. The Prime Minister has been vocal about the issues of the Global South at all multilateral forums and has sought an approach to solve these issues. His foreign policy has ensured India became a credible voice of the Global South.

PM Modi being conferred with the highest honour of three countries and the second-highest honour by one in just five days proves that he is the most trusted voice of the Global South.

Earlier, PM Modi received a warm welcome from the President of Guyana, Irfaan Ali, as he broke all protocols and received the Indian Prime Minister on the tarmac along with his other cabinet ministers. Later, Prime Ministers of Grenada, Dickon Mitchell, and Barbados, Mia Mottley. Four ministers from Guyana also greeted PM Modi at a hotel in Georgetown.

Ahead of the visit and during his visit, four countries have announced the highest honour to Prime Minister Modi. The first one is Dominica, which had announced an award to honour PM Modi’s contributions to Dominica during COVID-19. India had sent 70,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines during the COVID-19 Pandemic in 2021. The award was also for PM Modi’s leadership in promoting climate resilience-building initiatives and sustainable development on a global level.

Nigeria on Sunday conferred the national honour of Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON) during PM Modi’s official visit. The only foreign dignitary to have received the award was Queen Elizabeth II in 1969. Ahead of PM Modi’s visit, India sent 20 tons of humanitarian aid for flood relief. More than 200 Indian companies are working and generating jobs in Nigeria. India is helping Nigeria in fighting terror groups like Boko Haram. India offered developmental assistance through concessional loans ($100 Million) and by offering capacity training programmes.

Guyana has conferred its highest honour ‘The Order of Excellence’ on PM Modi. The discovery of oil reserves estimated at 11 billion barrels makes Guyana one of the world’s newest energy powers. India and Guyana signed an agreement for cooperation in hydrocarbons covering crude oil sourcing, exploration and refining. Guyana has sought Indian expertise to expand its oil industry. Guyana has an Indian-origin community constituting 40 per cent of its population. Both President Irfaan Ali and Vice President Bharat Jagdeo are of Indian descent.

Beyond energy, India has enhanced defence collaboration with Guyana by delivering two Dornier 228 aircraft to the Guyana Defence Force and has trained its defence personnel under the ITEC Scheme. The two aircraft were delivered as part of a $23.37 Million Defence Line of Credit (LoC) from the Indian Government.

Barbados will confer the ‘Honorary Order of Freedom’ award on PM Modi.

Why PM Modi is Popular Amongst Global South

After coming to power for the third time in 2024, PM Modi made his first visit to Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin and then to Ukraine to meet President Volodymyr Zelensky so that both sides can return to dialogue and diplomacy and find solutions to end the war. The one reason which India has been citing from the very beginning is the impact that war has on developing economies. Even at multilateral forums, PM Modi spoke about the most negative impact war has on countries from the Global South.

India assumed the G20 Presidency in the midst of a scenario of slowing growth and productivity worldwide. PM Modi used the Indian G20 Presidency to put in his concept of human-centric globalisation, his vision of one Earth, one family and one future and his emphasis on digital public infrastructure. One of the key achievements of India’s presidency was its ability to amplify the voices of the Global South, particularly through the inclusion of the African Union as a permanent G20 member.

Brazil, in its presidency, launched the Global Hunger and Poverty Alliance that aligns closely with the legacy of India’s G20 Presidency. India has set a new baseline for wider engagement with the Global South. India has leveraged five different modalities of engagement with countries from the Global South, which are capacity building, technology sharing, trade and development, grants, and concessional finance.

India’s emphasis is on Lifestyle for Environment (LiFE), re-energising SDGs and promoting renewable energy through rooftop solar panels and solar farms. India has also given emphasis to ‘Arogya Maitri’ under the concept of ‘One World One Health’. The assistance India provides to Africa and the Pacific Island countries by building hospitals, Jan Aushadhi Kendras. India has emerged as the first responder in humanitarian crises, be that in Papua New Guinea, Kenya, Gaza, Turkey, Nigeria or Ukraine. India is promoting financial inclusion and last-mile connectivity to be achieved through UPI and digital public infrastructure.

A special fund for capacity building with $2.5 million and $1 million for training in trade policymaking has been announced. India has also announced the setting up of a Social Impact Fund with an initial contribution of $25 million. According to an RIS study, India currently extends around $7.5 billion annually to various partner countries in the Global South.

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