It is not multilateralism that hinders development, but hegemonism, says Dilma.

247 - The president of the New Development Bank (NDB), Dilma Rousseff, the prominent guest of Russian President Vladimir Putin at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), gave an exclusive interview to... Sputnik Discussing the current state of the global economy and the importance of BRICS and the NDB in international cooperation.

On Thursday (19), the president of the New Development Bank (NDB), Dilma Rousseff, participated in the opening ceremony of the International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg. Rousseff's participation came after a bilateral meeting with the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, on Wednesday (18).

Responding to a question about the current global economic architecture, the NDB chairwoman said that we are living in a complex time marked by geopolitical crises and tensions created by unilateral restrictions.

"We are living in a very complex moment due to the occurrence of simultaneous crises. First, we have a trade war of tariffs, which leads to the destruction of trade chains and even production chains, creating risks of inflation and a decrease in the economic growth rate of countries. Second, a series of geopolitical tensions produced by unilateral sanctions and technological blockades, also resulting in the disruption of productive activities, because it prevents free trade, especially between technological products. And, third, we also experience continuous natural disasters due to the problem of the climate crisis. The result is a situation that generates two dramatic effects: distrust and uncertainty. In addition, we are experiencing the imbalance that consists of not recognizing the growing importance of emerging economies and developing countries in the global economic and political arena," said Rousseff.

Regarding BRICS, according to her, the UN Trade and Development Agency predicts that, by 2030, BRICS will account for 43% of all global production and GDP, and will have already surpassed the G7 economically.

Importance of SPIEF

Rousseff emphasizes that the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) is of great importance, as it discusses the relevance of values ​​in building prosperity and a more cooperative world.

"What are these values? The first is the value of multilateralism, which is the fact that you recognize in all countries the right of each one to have its own position, to have its own development project, to have its own development strategy, which, in fact, is the recognition of the sovereignty of countries. The second value concerns the issue of cooperation. Cooperation is much more important than all policies that imply the interruption of trade chains [...]. Cooperation also leads to the construction of new paths. Among them, for example, platforms like BRICS and banks like the NDB, the New Development Bank," she said.

Why are platforms like BRICS and NDB important?

"Because opportunities for interaction are created, contributing through cooperation to the transfer of knowledge and technology. [...] The word development, which is within, for example, the bank of which I am president, refers to the fact that it is important for countries to have the capacity to develop. To develop today means 'technology'," Rousseff observed.

Regarding the construction of a new financial order, the NDB president said that this does not mean going against some strong currencies, such as the euro or the dollar, but rather adding to them.

"What does adding value mean in this case? It means valuing local currencies. Our local currencies can be used in ways that are already growing, for example, in commercial transactions," she noted.

Importance of NDBs for emerging economies

The New Development Bank (NDB) respects the sovereignty of the different countries that are part of the bank; this means that the projects, priorities, and plans that these countries make are respected.

"What we want is to be able to truly contribute to developing countries and emerging economies, which are increasingly important today. It is essential to give these countries the conditions so that the population of each one has better living conditions and overcomes the profound inequalities," Rousseff stressed.

She concluded by saying that "the forces of unilateralism block development, but the forces of cooperation can break the blockade. It is not multilateralism that prevents harmonious and shared development, but hegemonism and the unilateral imposition of models." (With information from the agency) Sputnik).