As conclaves go, G20 is hard to beat…comprised of the heads of government of countries with 80 per cent of world output, 70 per cent of global trade, two-thirds of the global population and 60 per cent of the world’s geographic area, what’s left for the rest of the 180 other countries?? The most telling statistic is that in all of Africa – with 1.2 billion people and 54 countries – only South Africa makes the cut!! But at least it’s a tad more inclusive than G7 which admits only the seven top “western” Nations, that includes Japan!!
These big ones are meeting at a luxury hotel in Bali, the ancient Hindu centre of the Indonesian archipelago – now the most populous Muslim nation of earth!! So, what’s on the agenda as these elephants rub up against each other?? Your Eyewitness isn’t gonna insult your intelligence, Dear Reader, by going beyond a mere enumeration of the OFFICIAL agenda: – Healthcare Architecture, Sustainable Energy Transition and Digital Transformation. By now we should be woke enough to realise that G20 is all about the big boys around the table – ain’t no girls at this meet! – going mano-a-mano on the sidebars to further their country’s interests!! Remember the old saw about friends and permanent interests??
The first big news is who DIDN’T attend – Putin!! After being given the cold shoulder back in 2014 after he’d annexed Crimea, he wasn’t about to court a repeat performance after invading Ukraine where the Western majority of G20 are directly backing Ukraine. Even China and India – which tried to dance between the raindrops – have been less demonstrative in their neutrality recently!! So fixing the disruption in global supply chains and the subsequent rise of prices and inflation ain’t gonna be discussed – in case you were wondering!! And this in face of the theme song in Bali – “recovering together, recovering stronger”. This is about G20 stupid, not YOU!!
So, what else?? The most highly-anticipated event is the first face-to-face meeting between the US’s Joe Biden and China’s Xi Jinping. They’re both coming off elections – with Xi now the supreme leader of his country that’s on course to replace the US as #1 economically!! Biden, in the meantime, while grateful that his party wasn’t wiped out at their midterms, is still gonna be hobbled with a Republican-controlled House! But on China, both the Democrats and Republicans have dubbed it as (international) public enemy #1! With the Republic-controlled House certain to investigate Biden’s son’s business interests in China, Biden will have to appear extra tough to prove his street cred!!
In the meantime, those expecting some decisions to coordinate the systemic shocks roiling the global economy, don’t hold your breath!!
…Diaspora
The headline was certainly dramatic enough – “Guyana has the world’s biggest diaspora” – 36.4% of population!! And it got your attention right?? Goes to show even staid mainstream media like Forbes gotta sex-up their headlines to compete with social media!!. Surely we don’t have more than the 10.7 million overseas Chinese – plus their 60 million descendants!!? What they meant was “Guyana has the world’s per-capita biggest diaspora”, but you just lost interest, no??
But as far as we’re concerned, we shouldn’t be surprised since 36.4% is only 263,920 persons!! We should be concerned ‘cause nowadays – as a matter of course – we assert that “there are more Guyanese outside than inside Guyana”!! Well, the study doesn’t disagree and in fact noted that it only picked up CITIZENS abroad who hadn’t gotten citizenship in their country of residency!! These are probably just the GUYANESE ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS!!
Along with legal immigrants and their combined descendants your Eyewitness figures there’s at least 1 million Guyanese in the 200+ countries of the world!!
A diaspora policy, anyone??
…UK disappointment
Hopefully, the euphoria over the UK’s visa-free entry policy will now wear off after that chap was refused entry – even though his sister vouched for his needs in the UK!!
Gotta have your own “show money”!!
