| 15th G-15 Summit | |
|---|---|
| Host country | Sri Lanka |
| Dates | 2012 |
The Fifteenth G15 summit was held in Colombo, Sri Lanka in 2012.
The bi-annual summit agenda of the Group of 15 (G-15) [1] encompasses a range of issues.
The gathering brings together leaders, representatives and policymakers from non-aligned nations. African G-15 nations are Algeria, Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, and Zimbabwe. Those from Asia are India, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka. Latin American G-15 nations include Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Jamaica, Mexico, Peru and Venezuela. [2]
The Group of 15 was established at the Ninth Non-Aligned Movement summit in Belgrade, Yugoslavia in September 1989. The name of the group is unchanging, but its composition has expanded to 18 countries. [2]
The G-15 is composed of countries from Africa, Asia, North America and South America. These non-aligned nations joined to create a forum to foster cooperation and develop information which can be presented to other international groups, such as the World Trade Organization and the Group of Eight rich industrialized nations. The G-15 nations have a common goal of enhanced growth and prosperity. The group aims to encourage cooperation among developing countries in the areas of investment, trade, and technology. [2]
Those nations expected to be represented at the summit are Algeria, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Iran, Jamaica, Kenya, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, Peru, Senegal, Sri Lanka, Venezuela, and Zimbabwe. The G-15 membership has expanded to 18 countries, but the name has remained unchanged. [3]
The leaders of G-15 nations are core contributors in summit meetings, [4] but not all of the heads-of-state are expected to attend the Colombo event:
The G-15 nations perceive an ongoing need to expand dialogue with the G8 and with the G20. The G-15 want to help bridge the gap between developing countries and the more developed and industrialized nations. The fact that some of the G-15 are simultaneously members of these other forums is expected to be helpful. [2] At the Tehran summit of 2010, the President of Sri Lankan emphasized the importance of cooperation with the G8 on all major aspects of development. [5]
G-15 nations are united by shared perceptions of global economic issues; and the G-15 provides a structure for working out common strategies for dealing with these issues. [6] For example, the G-15 opposes using the international economic and financial systems as political instruments.
G-15 nations have joined in hopes of escaping from the more polemical atmosphere in other multi-national groups and organizations, such as the Group of 77 (G-77). [6] For example, the 14th G-15 summit called for reform of Bretton Woods institutions and examining alternate sources of financing for the developing world.
The summit provides an opportunity to focus on the importance of cooperation in facing the current challenges of food, energy, climate change, health and trade.
The chairmanship of the G-15 passed to Sri Lanka at the end of the 14th G-15 summit. [2]
The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that assists countries in economic and industrial development. It is headquartered at the UN Office in Vienna, Austria, with a permanent presence in over 60 countries. As of April 2019, UNIDO comprises 170 member states, which together set the organization's policies, programs, and principles through the biannual General Conference.
The Maldives has remained an independent nation throughout its recorded history, save for a brief spell of Portuguese occupation in the mid-16th century. From 1887 to 1965, the country was a British protectorate while retaining full internal sovereignty. At its independence in 1965, the Maldives joined the United Nations on 20 September.
The Group of 77 (G77) at the United Nations (UN) is a coalition of 134 developing countries, designed to promote its members' collective economic interests and create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the United Nations. There were 77 founding members of the organization headquartered in Geneva, but it has since expanded to 134 member countries. Cuba holds its chairmanship for 2023, succeeding Pakistan.
The Colombo Plan is a regional intergovernmental organization that began operations on 1 July 1951. The organization was conceived at an international conference, The Commonwealth Conference on Foreign Affairs held in Colombo, Ceylon in January 1950, and was attended by the finance ministers of Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, Ceylon, Pakistan and New Zealand, and the prime ministers of Ceylon and India. Membership has expanded significantly over the years to the current 28 governments.
Foreign relations of Sri Lanka refers to the diplomatic and commercial relations between Sri Lanka and other countries. Sri Lanka has stressed its principle of "friendship towards all, enmity towards none" in its diplomacy.
The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is the regional intergovernmental organization and geopolitical union of states in South Asia. Its member states are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. SAARC comprises 3% of the world's land area, 21% of the world's population and 5.21% of the global economy, as of 2021.
The South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) is a 2004 agreement that created a free-trade area of 1.6 billion people in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka with the vision of increasing economic cooperation and integration.
The Group of 15 (G-15) is an informal forum set up to foster cooperation and provide input for other international groups, such as the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the Group of Seven. It was established at the Ninth Non-Aligned Movement Summit Meeting in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, in September 1989, and is composed of countries from Latin America, Africa, and Asia with a common goal of enhanced growth and prosperity. The G-15 focuses on cooperation among developing countries in the areas of investment, trade, and technology. Membership has since expanded to 18 countries, but the name has remained unchanged. Chile, Iran and Kenya have since joined the Group of 15, whereas Yugoslavia is no longer part of the group; Peru, a founding member-state, decided to leave the G-15 in 2011.
The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is an international organisation of seven South Asian and Southeast Asian nations, housing 1.73 billion people and having a combined gross domestic product of US$4.4 trillion (2022). The BIMSTEC member states – Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand – are among the countries dependent on the Bay of Bengal.
Pakistan–Sri Lanka relations refer to bilateral relations between Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Both countries are located in South Asia. The earliest proper diplomatic and trade contacts between Pakistan and Sri Lanka date back as early as 1948. In 2013, the then prime minister Nawaz Sharif said that there were strong bonds of friendship between the two countries.
Cuba and Sri Lanka have had official diplomatic relations since 1959. Cuba has an embassy in Colombo and Sri Lanka has an embassy in Havana.
The Fourteenth G-15 summit was held in Tehran, Iran on May 17–20, 2010. The bi-annual summit agenda of the Group of 15 (G-15) encompassed a range of issues.
The Thirteenth G-15 summit was held in Havana, Cuba on September 14, 2006. The group's meeting was coordinated to take place at the same time as a non-aligned summit of 116 developing nations in the Cuban capital.
The Twelfth G-15 summit was held in Caracas, Venezuela on February 27–28, 2004.
BRICS is an acronym for five leading emerging economies: Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. The first four were initially grouped as "BRIC" in 2001 by Goldman Sachs economist Jim O'Neill, who coined the term to describe fast-growing economies that would collectively dominate the global economy by 2050; South Africa was added in 2010.
The 9th G-15 summit was held at Montego Bay in Jamaica on 10–12 February 1999.
Seventh Summit Conference of Heads of State or Government of the Non-Aligned Movement on 7–12 March 1983 took place in New Delhi in India, one of the founders and leading members of the Non-Aligned Movement. The summit followed the 1979 summit in Havana, Cuba at which confrontation between moderate member states led by SFR Yugoslavia and India and radical states led by Cuba led the movement into crisis. The keynote address delivered by Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi. At the summit in New Delhi Bahamas, Barbados, Colombia and Vanuatu were admitted as new member states, Papua New Guinea, Antigua and Barbuda as observers and Dominican Republic as an guest state. Cambodia was absent from the meeting due to rival delegations controversy, Saint Lucia failed to send a delegation while Luxembourg's request for an guest status was rejected on formalistic deadline grounds. 1,500 journalists followed the event.
The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is a forum of 120 countries that are not formally aligned with or against any major power bloc. After the United Nations, it is the largest grouping of states worldwide.
5th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement on 16–19 August 1976 in Colombo, Sri Lanka was the conference of Heads of State or Government of the Non-Aligned Movement. 86 nations participated in the summit with additional 30 observers and guests representing all the continents in the world. The Summit is the biggest international conference ever held in Sri Lanka and one of the greatest achievements in its foreign policy. The event took place at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall, the first purpose-built conference hall in Asia. It was the first heads of state or government summit of the movement to be organized in Asia. The decisions on the NAM Coordination Bureau organisation and membership conditions were formally defined at the Colombo Summit. The body was to have 25 members and was expected to meet regularly at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City.
