The AI Race: A Tightrope Walk Between Innovation, Inclusivity and Prosperity for All
By Daniel Uribe Terán
The intensifying global race in Artificial Intelligence (AI) forces nations to walk a tightrope, balancing the drive for rapid innovation against the imperatives of fairness, safety and inclusivity. This tension is reflected in recent high-level international summits and the diverging regulatory paradigms emerging globally, most notably between the market-driven, largely deregulatory approach of the United States and the human-centric, risk-based model favoured by the European Union. Such divergence contributes to a fragmented governance landscape, posing significant challenges for developing countries, which face the risk of marginalisation due to disparities in infrastructure, resources, and technical capacity. Some of these countries have put in place proactive strategies as they endeavour to walk the tightrope between innovation and fairness in the unfolding AI era.
South Centre Inputs on the Draft Issues Notes on the UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation
11 July 2025
In preparation for the First and Second Sessions of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) on the United Nations Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation (UNFCITC) to be held in August 2025, the Co-Leads of each of the three Workstreams have released Draft Issues Notes for public comments. The Issues Notes are meant to provide direction on the content of the UNFCITC and its two early protocols on services and dispute prevention and resolution.
South Centre Statement to the 66th WIPO Assemblies
July 2025
At the WIPO Assemblies, the South Centre calls for a balanced IP regime that supports development, links to the SDGs, and preserves national policy space. We back the GRATK Treaty, TK & TCE negotiations, and a Development Acceleration Fund.
Domestic Revenue Mobilisation at the Heart of Sustainable Development: the Seville Declaration
Side-event at the Fourth Financing for Development Conference (FFD4), co-hosted by the South Centre, EU Commission, Germany and Nigeria
High Level Statement by Dr. Carlos Correa, Executive Director of the South Centre
Addis Tax Initiative (ATI) member the South Centre co-organized an event with fellow members the EU Commission, Nigeria and Germany at FFD4 on ‘Domestic Revenue Mobilisation at the Heart of Sustainable Development: the Seville Declaration’. Here are the remarks of Dr. Carlos Correa, Executive Director of the South Centre at the event.
South Centre Statement on the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development
Seville, Spain, 30 June – 3 July 2025
The international financial architecture continues to reflect a global order that existed eight decades ago. An urgent, comprehensive reform is needed to make such order responsive to the financing needs of developing countries in the 21st century.
Excerpt from the Speech by Mwalimu Julius K. Nyerere at the Opening Ceremony of the Second Meeting of the Council of Representatives of the South Centre in New York
21st September 1998
“If we in the developing countries are to shape our own destiny, and participate fully in shaping the future and the nature of the world in which we live, we have to have an effective voice. But we will not have that effective voice if we do not work together, at least in some areas of vital concern to all of us. Together we can reduce our separate weaknesses. Acting together we can become stronger; we can gain at least some more influence in the world.”
Book Review: What Do We Know and What Should We Do About Tax Justice
By Abdul Muheet Chowdhary
The book What Do We Know and What Should We Do About Tax Justice, written by Alex Cobham, CEO of the Tax Justice Network, is an excellent summary of the state of knowledge on tax justice and provides a clear direction on what should be the goals of the tax justice movement going forward.
Policy in Practice: Implementing Antimicrobial Stewardship Post-COVID-19
Q&A and Commentary
By Dr Rasha Abdelsalam Elshenawy
This report summarises the key questions and expert commentary for the South Centre, as well as the South Centre Policy Brief on lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, to strengthen antimicrobial stewardship and provide practical recommendations discussed during the South Centre webinar on “Strengthening Antimicrobial Stewardship: Policy Insights from COVID-19 and Future Pandemic Preparedness.”
Harnessing Open Account Trade — A Major Enabler for Illicit Financial Flows from Developing Countries
Can blockchain technology come to the rescue? Will the African Continental Free Trade Area leverage its Digital Trade Protocol?
By Yuefen Li
The current geopolitical landscape has made domestic resource mobilization an even more important imperative for developing countries. In this context, it is more urgent than ever to combat illicit financial flows (IFFs) whose staggering amount from developing countries has outstrippedthe combinedsum of official development assistance (ODA) and foreign direct investment (FDI)going into the developing world. The IFFs from the financial channel is significant, but the greater proportion ofIFFs actually stems from trade channels rather than from financial channels. It is particularly concerning that the flexibility and legitimacy of international trade have been exploited to cover IFFs. Trade mis-invoicingisthe largest component of IFFs from developing countries. A major reason for trade being used to undertake illicit, fraudulent or criminal activities is because 80%-85% of the more than US$ 24 trillion international trade is conducted via open account trade (OAT), which has minimum scrutiny as it is conducted on a bilateral basis between the importer and exporter, not transparent and with minimal involvement of the financial institutions and customs authorities. OAT payment does not require documents to prove quality, quantity and other information about the product being shipped and is made through automatic payment systems which lack the oversight provided by any third party. OAT gives trade mis-invoicing great ease, flexibility, minimal cost and minimal risk. Therefore, if the world is serious about combatting IFFs, it is urgent and imperative to close loopholes in the OAT for IFFs, making it transparent, trackable and involving third party monitoring and scrutiny. The functionalities and features of Blockchain technology (BCT), though its implementation is still nascent, can be a good candidate to make OAT more modern, transparent to regulators, traceable, more efficient and above all minimize IFFs.The goals of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)’sDigital Trade Protocol (DTP)includeboosting intra-African trade through unifying and harmonizing regulatory framework for Africa’s digital economy and regional trade, promoting cross-border data flows and paperless trade,and enhancing cybersecurity measures.Theexploration of Blockchain adoption to reduce OAT’s risks for IFFs and make trade more effective aligns well with DTP’s goals.
ID with the SR on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
South Centre Statement (Item 3)
In its 59th session of the Human Rights Council statement on the Right to Health, the South Centre addressed the Special Rapporteur’s report, focusing on the protection of health and care workers. The statement noted the challenges they face, from migration impacts to poor working conditions, and called for their protection to ensure health equity for all.
Advancing Women and Girls’ Health in a Time of Converging Crises
South Centre Briefing Session (April 2025) Report
The South Centre hosted a high-level briefing session aimed at advancing the health rights of women and girls in the face of multiple global challenges. The meeting coincided with the South Centre’s 30th anniversary and the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, bringing together ambassadors, health experts, and representatives of international organisations to discuss the protection and advancement of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) in the Global South.
