Bulgaria’s Kristalina Georgieva appointed new IMF Chief

The International Monetary Fund has appointed Bulgarian economist Kristalina Georgieva as its new Managing Director for a term of five years.

With her appointment, she became the first person from an emerging economy to head the global lender. Additionally, she is also the second woman ever to lead the 189-member institution.

As a center-right politician who witnessed communism, she built a reputation during her stint at the World Bank as CEO.The selection had been all but guaranteed after the IMF said earlier that she is the sole candidate.

She was selected by 24-member Executive Board representing the IMF’s 189 member countries. She was backed by French President Emmanuel Macron and won support last month from the rest of the European Union as well as the tacit backing of the United States.

She took her position as Managing Director in October 2019, replacing Christine Lagarde who would take over European Central Bank later this year. As a Managing Director, she is the Chief of the IMF’s operating staff and Chair of the Executive Board. She will be assisted by four Deputy Managing Directors in the operation of the fund, which serves its membership through about 2,700 staff.

India-Germany Strengthen Bilateral Ties, Sign 17 MOUs & 5 Joint Declaration

In November 2019, German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited India and met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and co-chaired the 5th InterGovernmental Consultations (IGC).

Both countries acceded to sign seventeen agreements in the fields of agriculture, ayurveda, maritime technology, migration, occupational diseases and yoga. Five Joint Declarations of Intent were also exchanged on strategic projects, partnership for green urban mobility, research and development on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and cooperation in the field of prevention of marine litter.

Following are some significant India-Germany MoUs: An Implementing Arrangement on Exchange of Personnel between ISRO and German Aerospace Centre – Joint Declarations of Intent and MoUs on:

  1. Cooperation in the Field of Civil Aviation
  2. Cooperation within the International Smart Cities Network
  3. Cooperation between the Field of Skills Development and Vocational Education and Training
  4. Strengthening Economic Cooperation in the field of Start-ups
  5. Establishment of Bilateral Cooperation Project regarding Agricultural Market Development
  6. Exchanged between Siemens Limited, India and MSDE and German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development on Skills for Sustainable Growth
  7. Occupational Diseases, Rehabilitation and vocational training of Insured Persons & workers with disabilities

18th NAM Summit 2019 held in Baku, Azerbaijan

Baku, Azerbaijan hosted the XVIII (18th) Summit of Heads of state and government of the Non-Aligned Movement in October 2019. The theme of the summit was “Upholding the Bandung Principles to ensure concerted and adequate response to the challenges of the contemporary world”.

The Summit was preceded by Preparatory Senior Officials Meeting and the Preparatory Ministerial Meeting. The 120-member group representing 55% of the world population attended the 18th Forum. The focus of the summit was on issues related to terrorism, threats to peace and security, UN reforms, climate change, sustainable development, economic governance, and south-south cooperation.

Representatives of about 160 countries and international organizations attended the event.

Current chair of the NAM, President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro opened the Summit.

Hon’ble Vice President of India, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu, led the Indian delegation and interacted with the President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Dr. Mohammad Ashraf Ghani; President of Vietnam, Ms. Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh; President of Cuba, Mr. Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez and the President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro Moros.

Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo sworn in for 2nd term

In October 2019, Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo was sworn in for a second and final term amid tight security. As thousands celebrated with song and dance, helicopters flew overhead and troops kept a vigil in the capital Jakarta.

More than 30,000 security personnel were deployed in the capital. The city police even locked down some parts of the city over security concerns. With a sacrosanct Quran over his head, the 58-year-old Widodo along with Vice President Ma’ruf Amin, recited the oath of office before lawmakers and regional senators, which make up the People’s Consultative Assembly (Majelis Permusyawaratan Rakyat) at the Parliament building. Outside the Parliament, his supporters with red and white Indonesian flags dotted parts of the city. Citizens, many wearing T-shirts bearing the leader’s image, witnessed the swearing-in ceremony on a big screen near Jakarta’s national monument.

World Government Summit 2019

Dubai, UAE hosted the 7th Annual World Government Summit 2019. The three-day summit was attended by 4000 decision makers across 150 countries that include the head of the state, ministers and business leaders. It’s a global platform meant for shaping the future of governments worldwide.

The World Government Summit sets the agenda each year for the next generation of governments, focusing on how they can effectively use innovation and technology to solve universal challenges facing humanity. It’s a neutral non-profit organization that operates as a knowledge exchange platform for leaders in the public and private sectors to converge and collaborate with world-renowned experts to create a positive impact for citizens worldwide. This unique platform showcases and exchanges best practices and smart solutions to the challenges that nations face worldwide.

The World Government Summit was commissioned in 2013 by HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum as global knowledge exchange platform to showcase advance government services and technologies in an effort to bring policymakers, businesses and civil society together into the future. At the summit, a special track focuses on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The ‘SDGs in Action @WGS’ is organized through the collaboration between the United Nations, the World Bank, and the OECD. The collaboration brings together various stakeholders which include governments, international organizations, subject matter experts, NGOs, academia, youth groups, and the private sector. The World Government Summit is graced by various leaders, Presidents, Prime Ministers, philanthropists, religious leaders, etc. Imran Khan, Christine Lagarde, Harrison Ford were the speakers.

Saudi Arabia appointed its first female ambassador to US

On February 23, 2019, Saudi Arabia appointed its first female ambassador, Princess Reema Bint Bandar, to the United States. A former Vice-President of Women’s Affairs at General Sports Authority and a known philanthropist who lived in the US for more than two decades, her appointment came as a replacement of Price Khalid bin Salman Al Saud, which was a result of fallout over journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s murder tests relations between the allies.

The princess, who has been a pioneer women’s rights advocate in the kingdom, is also a rising political star in the country. Her appointment is considered as an earnest effort from Saudi Arabia that tries to smooth relations with the US after facing wide criticism for the murder of the US journalist at the Saudi consulate in Turkey. The appointment is considered as a desperate measure to quell the international outcry.

Egypt’s President Abdel Fatah Al-Sisi elected as new chair of African Union

Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Egypt’s President, has been elected chairman of the African Union by the continental body at a summit in Ethiopia. He has been appointed the chair of the 55-member pan-African body after former Rwandan President Paul Kagame stepped down.

The Egyptian leader said he would target his fight against the armed groups on the continent and focus his efforts on rebuilding the countries recovering from conflict during his one year term as a chairman of African Union. According to Sisi, the African Union will use mediation and ‘preventive diplomacy’ as mechanisms for promoting peace and security in the continent. He added that his main focus would be on creating an Africa-wide free trade zone.

However, Amnesty International, the leading human rights group, expressed its concern regarding Sisi’s chairmanship as it would weaken human rights mechanisms in the African Union.

According to Amnesty’s Campaign Director for North African region, it was during the tenure of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi when he exhibited shocking contempt for human rights and the country underwent a catastrophic decline in rights and freedom. The human rights group stated that since 2015 Egypt has been organizing ceaseless political attacks against the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the body that monitors African States Human Rights records.

India- Germany strengthen bilateral ties, Sign 17 MoUs & 5 Joint Declarations

In November 2019, German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited India and met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and co-chaired the 5th Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC).

Both countries acceded to sign seventeen agreements in the fields of agriculture, ayurveda, maritime technology, migration, occupational diseases and yoga. Five Joint Declarations of Intent were also exchanged on strategic projects, partnership for green urban mobility, research and development on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and cooperation in the field of prevention of marine litter.

Following are some significant India-Germany MoUs: An Implementing Arrangement on Exchange of Personnel between ISRO and German Aerospace Centre – Joint Declarations of Intent and MoUs on:

 

 

  • Cooperation in the Field of Civil Aviation
  • Cooperation within the International Smart Cities Network
  • Cooperation between the Field of Skills Development and Vocational Education and Training
  • Strengthening Economic Cooperation in the field of Start-ups
  • Establishment of Bilateral Cooperation Project regarding Agricultural Market Development
  • Exchanged between Siemens Limited, India and MSDE and German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development on Skills for Sustainable Growth
  • Occupational Diseases, Rehabilitation and vocational training of Insured Persons & workers with disabilities

16th ASEAN-India Summit 2019 held in Thailand

The 16th ASEAN-India Summit 2019 was held in Thailand in November 2019. The summit was chaired by H.E. General Prayut Chan-o-Cha, Prime Minister of Kingdom of Thailand. Along with 16th ASEAN-India Summit 2019, there are other summits that took place such as 35th ASEAN Summit, 14th East Asia Summit and 3rd meeting of RCEP.

The honorable Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended and co-chaired the summit along with the heads of member countries – Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, Brunei, and Laos.
The summit brought up and discussed topics related to promotion on ASEAN-India Strategic Partnership and ways to increase maritime cooperation, trade, investments, connectivity and partnership in science, technology and innovation.

At the summit, India extended USD $ 1 billion as line of credit for the improvement of physical and digital connectivity.

Kassym Jomart Tokayev elected as Kazakhsthan President

The interim and incumbent President of Kazakhstan, Kassym Jomart Tokayev won the country’s presidential elections by receiving 70.96 percent votes. With more than 50% votes in his favor, he was recognized as the elected President by the Member of Central Election Commission (ECE), Lyazzat Suleiman.

The new President took oath at the Palace of Independence in the country’s capital, Noor Sultan. Tokayev was the Interim President after former First President, veteran ruler, and former leader Nursultan Nazarbayev gave his resignation. He had sworn an oath after receiving a presidential certificate from the Chair of Chief Election Commission, Berik Imashev and addressed a gathering of around 2500 people including members of the Government, member of Nur Otan party and diplomatic corps.

The total voter’s turnout for all seven presidential candidates was 77.5 percent that includes Daniya Yespayeva, the country’s first woman candidate. The nearest rival of Tokayev was Amirzhan Kossanov of the Ult Tagdyry United National Patriotic Movement who received 16.23% votes.

The new President emphasized following the footsteps and strategies of Nazarbayev including The Third Modernization, 100 Concrete Steps to Implement Five Institutional Reforms and Digital Kazakhstan program.