Deutsche Welle: Indian Prime Minister Modi Identifies Three Global Threats

The world is not preparing for its most pressing challenges, and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticized global institutions for failing to recognize widespread aspirations or to confront reality. He addressed the World Economic Forum, an annual meeting of corporate, government and other leaders to review global priorities. Modi “urged sweeping reforms to modernize and restructure current political and economic institutions, also with a view to reflecting the needs and developments of emerging economies,” reports Deutsche Welle. Modi also identified three major threats. The greatest is rapid climate change and extreme weather that disrupt livelihoods and displace entire communities. He pointed to extremism and protectionism as nations withdraw from trade and other global interactions. The report notes, “Modi argued that networked societies in the era of big data, artificial intelligence and robots probably had all the tools to address current challenges, but it needed a lot of political will and coordination to use these tools for the benefit of all.” He urged societies to aim for sustainability in development. Otherwise, growth and greed will trigger decline. – YaleGlobal