New International Economic Order
the struggle of the people for political, economic, cultural and social liberation
“The struggle to eliminate the injustice of the existing international economic system and to establish the New International Economic Order is an integral part of the struggle of the people for political, economic, cultural and social liberation," declared the assembled Heads of State and the Government of the Non-Aligned Movement assembled in Havana almost 50 years ago.
That vision of a world transformed was first laid out in 1974 as the nations of the Third World, having won their independence from colonialism, came together to propose a vision for sovereign development and international cooperation in trade, finance, and technology — and won a UN Declaration for the Establishment of a New International Economic Order at the General Assembly.
Fifty years later, we are again in a moment of rapid geopolitical transformation — both ripe with the possibility for a more just order to emerge and fraught with the risk of its violent fragmentation. How will we confront the crises of climate change, viral pandemics, extreme poverty, and escalating war that threaten billions of lives and livelihoods across the planet?
One year ago, the Progressive International convened delegates from over 25 countries to Havana to inaugurate Cuba’s presidency of the Group of 77 — and participate in the inaugural Congress on the New International Economic Order. “Our nations continue to be in the rearguard of global development, while carrying on their shoulders the consequences of multiple crises and inequalities derived from the unjust current international order,” said President Díaz-Canel in his opening address to the G77.
Over the course of its deliberations, the Congress yielded a clear strategy to “assert Southern power”, set out in the Havana Declaration delivered at the closing ceremony on 28 January. “The Congress recognizes that economic liberation will not be granted, but must be seized... Our vision can only be realized through the formation of new and alternative institutions to share critical technology, tackle sovereign debt, drive development finance, and face future pandemics together,” read the Declaration.
One year later, however, the nature of these “new and alternative institutions” — as well as their path to implementation — remain undefined. Should we form a new cartel to coordinate the extraction of precious metals? Should we form a club of debtor nations to navigate the crisis of sovereign debt? Should we launch a joint medical regulatory agency to facilitate the flow of medicines across the South?
Over the next few days, the Progressive International is returning to Havana to answer these questions — to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the New International Economic Order, to sustain the dialogue initiated at the inaugural Congress, to sharpen the debate about the direction of South-South cooperation, and to strengthen the coalition to pursue it.
The 50th Anniversary Congress on the New International Economic Order brings together leading scholars, diplomats, and political leaders — from Brazil to Pakistan, South Africa to Spain — who share a commitment to the Right to Development and frustration with the present debate about how to win it.
Over the course of three days — in the stunning Southern Hemicycle of the National Capitol — this group will engage in a deep, honest, and rigorous debate to identify the primary challenges to sovereign development today, the key priorities to redress them, and the concrete proposals that can actually deliver on those priorities.
The formal goal of the Congress is to develop a new NIEO Program of Action that will be presented at its concluding press conference at the Palacio de Convenciones on 2 May — a document both inspired by the 1974 Programme of Action on the Establishment of a New International Economic Order, as well as informed by the expertise and experience that the delegates are bringing to the Congress.
In solidarity,