RALLY ROUND THE WORLD
Repositioning in the Global Community
BY: KWESI SAKYI-GYINAE
A World Connection
“It has been said that arguing against globalization is like arguing against the laws of gravity.”
On the 7th of September 2008, it was announced that two U.S based firms popularly known as Fannie Mae (Federal National Mortgage Association) and Freddie Mac (Federal Home Mortgage Corporation) would be nationalised to ensure their financial stability. Since they are the only two Fortune 500 companies that are not required to inform the public about any financial difficulties that they may be having, this news was received with mixed reactions. A week later, financial services firm, Lehman Brothers, filed for bankruptcy after being denied support by the U.S Federal Reserve Bank. Later the same day, the Bank of America declared their intention of purchasing Merrill Lynch, another world leader in financial management2 .....
These were snapshots of the evolution of the global financial crisis which surfaced on the world of business. Although it just began with the failure and merger of a number of American financial companies, the crisis managed to usurp other major financial institutions and national economies across the world. In a matter of days, people everywhere in the world could feel a pinch of this financial mishap. Perhaps Wall Street Journal’s commentary on January 17 1908 about the late 19th century Long Depression will still be a relevant qualifier of the recent economic crisis. It reported that “It was as if a volcano had burst forth in New York, causing a tidal wave that swept with disastrous power over every nation of the globe.”3
The Famous Icon
In contemporary times, one of the terms that has gained increasing popularity is globalization. The vocabulary of ‘globalization’ has pervaded almost all major languages. Its phenomenon has become a shibboleth among the diverse communities of business owners, politicians, journalists, managers, advertisers, bankers, entertainers, officials, computer experts, and researchers across the world. Now, everyday life easily associates with this term, making unending references to ‘global’ institutions, ‘global’ markets, ‘global’ finance, ‘global’ communications, ‘global’ migration, among others. 4
What has even heightened the fame of globalization has been the onset of the global financial crisis, which is a quintessence of how connected nations of the world have become. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) describes globalization as “The process through which an increasingly free flow of ideas, people, goods, services, and capital leads to the integration of economies and societies.”5 It is a process fuelled by, and resulting in, increasing cross border flows of goods, services, money, people, information, and culture.6 One of the comprehensive definitions is what Scholte (2000) sums up into a five-fold conception namely.....
Traces In the Past
Whereas several people have linked the idea of globalization to recent changes in society, especially with the advent of the information age7, others have argued the novelty or otherwise of this term. Literature is replete with divergent views about its origin. Contrary to the propositions of some economists which speculate the boom of international trade and investment before World War I as a form of globalization, another section of think tanks have identified the late 1970s and early 1980s as the spark period for the concept.7 Despite these disparities in opinions, what remain mutually agreed on, both conceptually and contextually, are the “increasing interaction of the world's peoples through their national economic systems” and the “significant broadening of world markets” that associate the term....
The African Experience
In spite of globalization’s robust intentions of reinforcing interdependencies between countries and continents, the African continent seems less inspired by its ideals since the latter has not been treated fairly by its influences. Unlike its Asian counterpart, Africa seems to have become the victim of the global change. The UNDP observed the associated discrepancies as well by stating in its 1999 Human Development Report (page 25) that: “While globalization has positive, innovative, dynamic aspects, it also has negative, disruptive, marginalizing aspects”.15 Addressing the same issue, Global Policy forum’s writer, James Matethia, identified that “No other region has suffered during this period of globalisation as Africa has.” He further details factors such as unfavourable terms of trade with advanced countries, lower prices of products and fewer markets, and austere measures attached to funding from International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, as challenges militating against Africa’s benefits.16
On several platforms that the plaudits of globalization have been mentioned, it excluded that of Africa. Has Africa become the extreme pessimists who see globalization as a ‘calabash full of problems’?....
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