It has been a turbulent few years for the planet — with wars, pandemics, extreme climate events and the looming threat of financial recession. Tens of thousands have lost their lives since the decade began, millions have been displaced and billions of dollars have been lost in economic damages. Prime Minister Narendra Modi sounded a sharp warning about poverty risks on Saturday as he noted that the world was going through a “decade of disasters”.
Addressing a community programme in The Hague during his visit to the Netherlands, PM Modi said the globe was witnessing crisis after crisis, which were impacting the economies and livelihoods of countries. He warned that recent events were creating severe global difficulties that might undermine years of economic and social progress.
PM Modi underscores growing global issues
“Whatever technology or system works for the good of humanity, the entire human race benefits from that. But today, humanity is facing a number of big challenges,” said PM Modi.
“First the coronavirus pandemic, then wars broke out and now there is an energy crisis. “This decade is turning to be a decade of disasters for the world,” he warned.
The Prime Minister cautioned that if these problems are not dealt with immediately, decades of progress could be lost.
“We are all seeing that if these situations are not changed quickly, the gains that have been made over many decades can be reversed. “Another large segment of the world population could once again fall into the poverty trap,” he went further.
Pandemic wars and economic shocks reshape global landscape
Since 2019, the world has witnessed several major disruptions, including the Covid-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war, conflicts in West Asia, a global energy crisis, inflation spikes, and supply-chain disruptions. Many countries have also faced extreme weather events and economic slowdown concerns during this period. Referring to all these developments, PM Modi termed the current period as a “decade of disasters” for the world.
India-Netherlands tie-up on robust supply chains
On the global economic stability, PM Modi said countries are now concentrating on developing more resilient and reliable supply chains to counter disruptions from conflicts and economic uncertainties.
“Given these global conditions, today the world is talking about resilient supply chains. “India and Netherlands are working together to build a trusted, transparent and future-ready supply chain,” he said.
PM Modi also highlighted India’s increasing significance in the global economy and called the country technology-driven and humanity-driven, ANI said.
“India is a land of opportunity in the 21st century. India is technology driven, people driven. “India is becoming as modern as it is ancient,” he said.
PM Modi recalls India-Netherlands partnership during visit
In his address, the Prime Minister also spoke of the developing relations between India and the Netherlands in areas such as commerce, connectivity, supply chains and technology. He also spoke about better cooperation between the two countries in economic and strategic fields in the context of changing global situations.
These comments were given by PM Modi while addressing the Indian diaspora in The Hague, as part of his five-nation international tour which began on May 15 and will conclude on May 20.
The Prime Minister had earlier visited the United Arab Emirates on the first leg of the tour. He also highlighted the expanding strategic, economic and cultural collaboration between India and the European nation in his presentation in Netherlands.