Pranab pledges tech help to other G-77 nations

United Nations, Sep 23 (UNI) India has pledged cooperation, including technological expertise, to fellow Third World nations at a meeting of the Group of 77 (G-77) countries.

''We are unwavering in our support for greater South-South cooperation and the need to continue to enhance our cooperation with our partners in developing countries,'' Defenee Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who is leading the Indian delegation to the current UN General Assembly session, said.

He yesterday addressed a G-77 ministerial meeting held on the sidelines of the ongoing UN session in New York. Mr Mukherjee said, ''India is willing to share its expertise, including in frontier areas of science and technology, and is indeed doing so already with several partner countries.'' G-77 was established in Geneva with 77 developing countries to fight for their legitimate share in world trade and commerce from developed nations. Though the number of member countries now stands at 131. The group retained the old name for historic significance.

At the present 30th annual ministerial meeting in which South Africa relinquished its chairmanship to pave the way for Pakistan to take over, Mr Mukherjee praised Pretoria for its leadership of the group and welcomed Islamabad in its place.

According to the minister, if globalisation is inevitable multilateralism has to be its sustaining mechanism. Solidarity among developing nations would be crucial in addressing the challenges associated with globalisation.

''We believe that developing countries must have the policy space to determine their development plans and priorities based on their individual situations,'' Mr Mukherjee said. ''However, more intense cooperation at the international level is absolutely imperative.'' He deplored the suspension of Doha Round of trade talks as ''disappointing'' and expressed the hope that developmental objectives of the round would soon be achieved. The role of science and technology for development cannot be overemphasised.

The minister said, ''The revolution in IT offers us the tool to face the challenges of globalisation. It is ironic that the shrinking of the world as a result of technology should be accompanied by evolution of controls that restrict movement for the peoples of developing world.'' The United Nations has an overriding role in the area of development. ''The development agenda of the UN needs to be inclusive, going beyond the Millennium Development Goals,'' Mr Mukherjee added.

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